Definitions of Racism

These are some definitions of racism published by various sources in various years. If you have more, please share them.

Show

    Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary, seventh edition (1971)
    rac-ism \'rā-,siz-əm\ n 1 : a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race 2 : RACIALISM 1 - rac-ist \-səst n
    Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary, eighth edition (1973)
    rac-ism \'rā-,siz-əm also -shiz-\ n 1 a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race 2 : RACIALISM 1 - rac-ist \-səst also -shǝst n
    Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary, ninth edition (1983)
    rac-ism \'ra-,siz-əm, -,shiz-\ n (1936) 1 : a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race 2: racial prejudice or discrimination racist \-səst, -shəst\ n or adj
    Oxford English Dictionary, second edition (1989)
    a. The theory that distinctive human characteristics and abilities are determined by race. b. = racialism.
    Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary, tenth edition (1993)
    rac-ism \'ra-,siz-əm, also -,shiz-\ n (1936) 1 : a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race 2: racial prejudice or discrimination - racist \-səst, -shəst\ n or adj
    Wikipedia (2001-10-28)
    Racism is the political or ideological application of the concept of race, especially in terms of racial superiority.
    Wikipedia (2003-05-02)
    RACISM or RACIALISM is a form of discrimination based on race, especially the belief that one race is superior to another. Racism may be expressed individually and consciously, through explicit thoughts, feelings, or acts, or socially and unconsciously, through institutions that promote inequality between races.
    Wikipedia (2004-01-02)
    RACISM refers to beliefs, practices, and institutions that negatively discriminate against people based on their perceived or ascribed race. Sometimes the term is also used to describe the belief that race is the primary determinant of human capacities, or that individuals should be treated differently based on their ascribed race.
    Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary, eleventh edition (2005)
    rac-ism \'ra-,siz-əm, also -,shiz-\ n (1933) 1 : a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race 2: racial prejudice or discrimination - racist \-səst, -shəst\ n or adj
    Wikipedia (2005-05-28)
    RACISM has many different definitions. Historically, it has been defined as the belief that race is the primary determinant of human capacities, that a certain race is inherently superior or inferior to others, and/or that individuals should be treated differently according to their racial designation. Sometimes _racism_ means beliefs, practices, and institutions that discriminate against people based on their perceived or ascribed race. There is a growing, but somewhat controversial, opinion that racism is a _system_ of oppression -- a nexus of racist beliefs, whether explicit, tacit or unconscious; practices; organizations and institutions that combine to discriminate against and marginalize a class of people who share a common racial designation, based on that designation.
    Conservapedia (2007-09-09)
    RACISM is prejudice and discrimination based on race. An example is a claim that of inferiority or superiority based on the color of one's skin. Another example was the Jim Crow laws.
    Wikipedia (2007-10-18)
    RACISM has many definitions, the most common and widely accepted being the belief that members of one race are intrinsically superior or inferior to members of other races.
    Oxford English Dictionary, third edition (2008)
    Prejudice, antagonism, or discrimination by an individual, institution, or society, against a person or people on the basis of their nationality or (now usually) their membership of a particular racial or ethnic group, typically one that is a minority or marginalized. Also: beliefs that members of a particular racial or ethnic group possess innate characteristics or qualities, or that some racial or ethnic groups are superior to others; an ideology based on such beliefs. Cf. racialism n.
    Wikipedia (2008-07-31)
    RACISM, by its simplest definition, is the belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race. People with racist beliefs might hate certain groups of people according to their racial groups. In the case of institutional racism, certain racial groups may be denied rights or benefits, or get preferential treatment. Racial discrimination typically points out taxonomic differences between different groups of people, even though anybody can be racialised, independently of their somatic differences. According to the United Nations conventions, there is no distinction between the term RACIAL DISCRIMINATION and ETHNIC DISCRIMINATION.
    Wikipedia (2009-05-29)
    RACISM is the belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race.[1] In the case of institutional racism, certain racial groups may be denied rights or benefits, or get preferential treatment, while reverse racism favours members of a historically disadvantaged group at the expense of those of a historically advantaged group. Racial discrimination typically points out taxonomic differences between different groups of people, even though anybody can be racialised, independently of their somatic differences. According to the United Nations conventions, there is no distinction between the term RACIAL DISCRIMINATION and ETHNIC DISCRIMINATION.
    Wikipedia (2010-07-24)
    RACISM is the belief that the genetic factors which constitute race are a primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race.[1] Racism's effects are called "racial discrimination." In the case of institutional racism, certain racial groups may be denied rights or benefits, or receive preferential treatment.
    Wikipedia (2011-10-17)
    RACISM is the belief that inherent different traits in human racial groups justify discrimination. In the modern English language, the term "racism" is used predominantly as a pejorative epithet. It is applied especially to the practice or advocacy of racial discrimination of a pernicious nature (i.e. which harms particular groups of people), and which is often justified by recourse to racial stereotyping or pseudo-science.
    Conservapedia (2012-03-27)
    RACISM is prejudice and discrimination based on race. An example is a claim that of inferiority or superiority based on the color of one's skin. Another example was the Jim Crow laws; one more: Nicolas Sarkozy was accused of racism for ordering closure of 300 illegal gypsy camps and expulsion of Roma after riot. [1] Sarkozy was behind the controversial measure to deport Roma gypsies, breaching European immigration laws. European Union officials accused Sarkozy of "fanning xenophobia" in his move to deport the Roma. [2]
    Wikipedia (2012-10-24)
    RACISM is usually defined as views, practices and actions reflecting the belief that humanity is divided into distinct biological groups called races and that members of a certain race share certain attributes which make that group as a whole less desirable, more desirable, inferior or superior.[1][2][3]
    Conservapedia (2013-03-26)
    RACISM is prejudice and discrimination based on race. An example is a claim that of inferiority or superiority based on the color of one's skin. Another example was the Jim Crow laws. Racism means the hatred of another person because of the color of his or her skin; some used the term _racism_ for perceived difference in origin.
    Wikipedia (2014-06-01)
    RACISM consists of both prejudice and discrimination based in social perceptions of biological differences between peoples. It often takes the form of social actions, practices or beliefs, or political systems that consider different races to be ranked as inherently superior or inferior to each other, based on presumed shared inheritable traits, abilities, or qualities. It may also hold that members of different races should be treated differently.[1][2][3]
    Wikipedia (2016-04-04)
    RACISM is a product of the complex interaction in a given society of a race-based worldview with prejudice, stereotyping, and discrimination. Racism can be present in social actions, practices, or political systems (e.g., apartheid) that support the expression of prejudice or aversion in discriminatory practices. The ideology underlying racist practices often includes the idea that humans can be subdivided into distinct groups that are different in their social behavior and innate capacities and that can be ranked as inferior or superior.[1] Racist ideology can become manifest in many aspects of social life. Associated social actions may include xenophobia, otherness, segregation, hierarchical ranking, supremacism, and related social phenomena.
    Wikipedia (2017-01-02)
    RACISM is discrimination and prejudice towards people based on their race or ethnicity. Today, the use of the term "racism" does not easily fall under a single definition.[1]
    White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo (2018)
    Summarized: Racism is a racial group’s collective prejudice backed by the power of legal authority and institutional control.
    Wikipedia (2018-01-01)
    RACISM is the belief in the superiority of one race over another, which often results in discrimination and prejudice towards people based on their race or ethnicity. Today, the use of the term "racism" does not easily fall under a single definition.[1]
    Conservapedia (2018-05-20)
    RACISM is prejudice and discrimination based on race. An example is a claim that of inferiority or superiority based on the color of one's skin. Other examples include the Jim Crow laws and the discrimination and violence against white South Africans by their country's government.
    How to be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi (2019)
    Racism is a marriage of policies and ideas that produces and normalizes racial inequities.
    The Merriam-Webster Dictionary (2019)
    rac·ism \'rā-ˌsi-zəm\ n 1 : a belief that some races are by nature superior to others; also : discrimation based on such belief - rac·ist \-sist\ n
    Conservapedia (2019-07-31)
    RACISM is making a moral judgment about a person based on skin color or ethnic heritage. The hatred of another person because of the color of his or her skin is racist; some use the term _racism_ for the perceived difference in origin, as a member of an ethnic group.
    Wikipedia (2020-03-23)
    RACISM is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to physical appearance and can be divided based on the superiority of one race over another.[1][2][3] It may also mean prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against other people because they are of a different race or ethnicity.[4][5] Modern variants of racism are often based in social perceptions of biological differences between peoples. These views can take the form of social actions, practices or beliefs, or political systems in which different races are ranked as inherently superior or inferior to each other, based on presumed shared inheritable traits, abilities, or qualities.[6][7][8]
    merriam-webster.com (2021-01-06)
    rac·ism | \ ˈrā-ˌsi-zəm also -ˌshi- \
    1 : a belief that race is a fundamental determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race
    2 a : the systemic oppression of a racial group to the social, economic, and political advantage of another
    specifically : WHITE SUPREMACY sense 2
    b : a political or social system founded on racism and designed to execute its principles