The Effects of Slavery on Modern Day Society

In the Raisin in the Sun, we see the effects of slavery and segregation in America. The Younger’s are one of many poor African American families. They are an example of how slavery still affects us today despite it occurring almost 160 years ago.

Many argue that since there is no law or bill currently that infringes on the freedom of African Americans that the effects of slavery and racism are gone, but this is far from the truth. When slavery "ended", many African Americans were not truly free. The United States prison system, founded in 1891, was created to make those who were in debt are who "committed" crimes do manual labor for the government with no pay. And since African Americans could not find real jobs since no white man would want to hire them, they would either build up debt and return to their plantation or steal to live, making these prisons disproportionally African American. The system was rigged against them from the start and Despite the three different amendments that gave them more "freedom", they still had no place in a Post-Civil War Society.

                                            (yes this is a prison camp not a plantation)

Due to most African Americans not having opportunities for jobs and housing for last century and half, many African Americans have been segregated into terrible neighborhoods with violence and drugs today. Many conservatives will try and tell you that "they did this to themselves" or "its apart of their culture." But it is because of slavery and because of African Americans not having housing or job opportunities after slavery that the black community is riddled with drugs and violence. They will also bring up the 13% 50% statistic which is firstly, inaccurate and secondly, caused by the lack of quality job and housing opportunity for African Americans.

I remember I read a book last year called the Other Wes Moore. It is about two black kids both named Wes Moore who grew up in horrible neighborhoods and both of them had encounters with violence in drugs. The book shows how is very hard to get out of these horrible neighborhoods and live a successful life. When you are surrounded by drugs and crime, you are greatly influenced by it. This is why we can't simply tell poor African Americans to get a job and buy a better house because they have grown up in these terrible environments that white people put them in in the first place.

We need to help elevate these communities and make change to improve the lives of the people living in these neighborhoods. Ignoring the problem and saying slavery has no effect on today is not helping situation. That only normalizes the racism against African Americans.