Prejudice & Discrimination: Race Chapter Notes | Religion, Philosophy & Ethics for GCSE/IGCSE - Year 11 PDF Download

The Nature of Racism

• Prejudice is when people make judgments about someone or a group without really knowing them.
• Discrimination happens when individuals act on their prejudices, treating others unfairly because of differences.
• Racism is a type of prejudice that involves unfair treatment of others based on their ethnicity or nationality.
• Racism comes from the idea that some races are better than others.
• It is often linked to skin color.
• In the UK, laws like the 1976 Race Relations Act and the Equality Act 2010 make it illegal to engage in racist behavior or speech.
• Even with these laws, racism still exists in society, leading to campaigns such as football’s ‘Show Racism the Red Card’ that aim to educate people against it.
• Positive discrimination can be used to fight racism, like when employers set hiring goals for minority ethnic groups.
• Both Christianity and Islam teach that all people are God's creation and are naturally equal, opposing all forms of racism.

Christian Attitudes Towards Racial Prejudice and Discrimination

• Most Christians do not accept racism in any form. 
•  Racism views some individuals as less valuable, which goes against the Christian belief in love and respect for all people. 
•  The Bible teaches that all people are equal: 
  •  Everyone is made by God in His image, making each person important and unique. 
  •  Differences among people do not take away their equalityin God's eyes. 
    •  As Paul said: "There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:28). 
  •  Paul also mentioned, "God does not show favouritism" (Romans 2:11). 
  •  James wrote, "My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favouritism" (James 2:1). 
•  Christians are expected to treat everyone with respect, following these teachings. 
•  Jesus' command to "love your neighbour" and the Golden Rule, "Do to others what you would have them do to you" (Matthew 7:12), show that racism goes against Christian beliefs. 
•  Christians are encouraged to show love, respect, and kindness to others, just as they wish to be treated. 
• Christianity is a worldwide religion that brings together believers of different races into a global community. 
•  However, the Dutch Reformed Church supported apartheid in South Africa during the twentieth century: 
  •  Apartheid separated black and white people. 
  •  White people had privileges, including voting rights, while black people faced limited access to education, housing, jobs, and public services. 
•  Other Christians opposed apartheid, with leaders such as Archbishop Desmond Tutu leading peaceful campaigns for equal rights and the end of apartheid, which was abolished in 1994. 
•  Many Christian individuals and groups have worked against racism. 

Martin Luther King

• A Christian Baptist minister who worked for equal rights for Black people in the USA in the 1950s and 1960s.
• King used peaceful and non-violent ways to fight against racism.
• After Rosa Parks was arrested for not giving up her bus seat to a white person, King organized the Montgomery Bus Boycott. During this boycott, Black people avoided using the buses for 382 days, which caused significant financial loss for the bus companies.
• The Supreme Court reacted by changing laws, which allowed Black people to keep their seats on the bus.
• King was a leader in the Civil Rights Movement, arranging campaigns and peaceful protests to promote equality.
• Despite facing death threats and attacks, he received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964 and was tragically assassinated in 1968.
• In his famous 1963 "I Have a Dream" speech at the Civil Rights March in Washington, DC, King shared his vision: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the colour of their skin but by the content of their character."

Muslim Attitudes Towards Racial Prejudice and Discrimination

• Muslims do not accept racial prejudice or discrimination. 
•  The Qur'an teaches against racism, stating that all people, regardless of their races or tribes, come from a single man and woman and are equal. 
•  People should focus on understanding each other instead of creating barriers based on stereotypes. 
• The Qur'an says: “People, We created you all from a single man and a single woman, and made you into races and tribes so that you should get to know one another. 
  In God’s eyes, the most honoured of you are the ones most mindful of Him: God is all knowing, all aware” (Qur'an 49:13). 
•  Allah sees all people as equal, regardless of differences like color or ethnicity. 
  The Qur'an states: “And among His signs is the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the difference of your languages and colours” (Qur'an 30:22). 
•  The Hadith reinforces the idea of equality:“People are equal like the teeth of a comb”. 
•  Muslims follow the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) from his last sermon, which said: “An Arab is not better than a non-Arab… a White person is not better than a Black person except by piety and good actions.”
• Islam promotes a worldwide community, the Ummah, where there are no differences based on race. 
•  This equality is shown during Hajj, where all pilgrims wear the same white clothing to represent their equality before Allah. 
•  Although some Muslims may show prejudice against Westerners or those from different religions, it often stems from disagreements with their lifestyles or lack of faith rather than race, which goes against Islamic teachings.