racism

Belief in, or set of implicit assumptions about, the superiority of one's own race or ethnic group, often accompanied by prejudice against members of an ethnic group different from one's own. Racism may be used to justify discrimination, verbal or physical abuse, or even genocide, as in Nazi Germany, or as practised by European settlers against American Indians in both North and South America.

Many social scientists believe that even where there is no open discrimination, racism exists as an unconscious attitude in many individuals and societies, based on a stereotype or preconceived idea about different ethnic groups, which is damaging to individuals (both perpetrators and victims) and to society as a whole. See also ethnicity.

A 1999 Pentagon survey revealed that racism is still rife in the US military, after 79% of Hispanic and 76% of both African-American and American Indian active-duty service personnel reported that they had experienced offensive behaviour on account of their race. A report by the Applied Research Center released in March 2000 concluded that minority students are discriminated against in US public schools, as they are less likely to be accepted into advanced classes and gifted programs, they are suspended or expelled more often than white students, and the proportion of minority teachers is seldom as high as that of minority students.