Literature Review for Evidence and Interventions - myassignmenthelp

Question: Discuss about theLiterature Review for Evidence and Intervention. Answer: Racism in America has a long drawn history since the independence in 1776[1]. However, the Civil War of 1861 was succeeded to abolish slavery but the practice of racial segregation was still prevalent until 1968 when the Civil Rights Act was legalised[2]. However, the movement was suppressed in many ways by the government and the Caucasian citizens. In response to that this the book Jackie Robinson- Race, Sports and the American Dream reflects the journey of the famous baseball player Jackie Robinson who was not fair in complexion and because of that he had to face a series of life threats and humiliation[3]. Despite all these obstacles he stood firmly and changed the perception of American psyche about racial segregation. Therefore, the purpose of this report is to put focus on the depth of racial discrimination in American Society during 1950s and how far people like Jackie Robinson retaliated against this prejudice. It can be stated that editors Joseph Dorinson and Joram Warmund were trying to depict a social picturesque of racial prevalence in America during the 1950s[4]. It is imperative to understand that idea of racism and the discourses of apartheid in America. In US blacks are dealing with discriminations in terms of slavery, violence, symbol as well as state sponsorship[5]. In this context it is also important to keep in mind of the fact that in 2009 US got its first African- American President, namely Barack Obama[6]. Therefore, the intensity and relevance of racism is very significant. In this regard, the book on Jackie Robinson illustrates the obstructions that he faced in his professional career and how did he manage to change the perspective of sports as well as society. Apparently the book can be considered as a biography on Jackie Robinson. He was a US born Afro- American legendary professional baseball player who was the first player to play in Major League Baseball (MLB). Scouted by Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947 Jackie broke the colour segregation in professional baseball in US and became the first afro player to get selected in MLB[7]. However, before MLB career and during the professional career as well Jackie was facing enormous humiliation and threats despite of his outstanding performances. The entire struggling life of Jackie Robinson for achieving equality has been addressed in the books which not only reflects his fight against Racism but also provides a gross idea about the humiliation and discrimination that the black people were facing in US[8]. The audacious attitude of Jackie Robinson helped him to get the honour that he deserved and at the same time led the way towards the victory over Racism. It must be acknowledged that no discussion is perfect and always there is a possibility of biasness. There is no question about the detailed and informative arguments that were mentioned in the book indicating anti racist ideas. However, while scrutinizing the book a number of partialities are being figured out exhibiting the inclination towards leftist ideology or against white supremacy. For an instance, Joseph Dorinson, one of the editors of the book had a leftist influence because his parents were the supporters of left wing politics. In fact, the Red Scare movement associated with radical left communism had a deep effect on him. On the other hand, Joram Warmund was a victim of the World War II Holocaust and had a relation with the Zionist movement in South America. Therefore, it is evitable that those incidents could be reflected in their writings. In order to make the book more authentic the editors were relied on both the primary sources as well as the literary evidences. However, most of the research is restricted to primary evidences. The authors utilized a number of primary sources like journalists, ballplayers and newspaper magazines. Besides this, scholarly work was also done in response to make the information more authentic and concise. In fact, to make it more interest the authors were going to organise a conference and incorporated the review into the book. The theme of the book highlights racism in the American society and how far it affected the sport culture there. In that context, covering the life of Jackie Robinson is very relevant and significant. However, it should be acknowledge that there are other layers or factors that are equally represented the image of racism. The book is very linear and accounted a single perspective of the racism in America where as racism itself is a dynamic practice and divergent in action. The first approach is based on Structural racism. According to Bailey[9] structural racism is associated with the colonizers primarily who promulgated massacre and introduced legal oppression on the black people of America. In fact, the infamous Jim Crow law was also introduced under the state sponsorship[10]. Besides this there is also internalized racism which was practiced in America. Internalized racism defines the skin color[11]. It is a stereotype obsession of the fair complexions that makes them feel superio r[12]. In response to that the book Jackie Robinson- Race, Sports and the American Dream overtly indicates the incident but the internalised racism still exists in American society. Researchers and experts opined that psycho-social consequences were responsible for this. In this context, the book discusses neither the institutional nor the internal factors of racism. Instead, it put more emphasis on the person mediated factors. As a result of that the assessment lost its vitality and failed to get a broader vision of the fact. The book is genuinely an account of racial oppression. The name Jackie Robinson is very popular for his fight against racism but the book make it more authentic by using the primary and secondary sources. The book has the ability to penetrate the mind of its readers and using factual data with an understandable way make the book unputdownable. Nevertheless, there are some issues regarding the method of collecting data. Most of the data are verbal and based on an interview which ushers the question of authenticity. In fact, incorporating only one aspect of the racial theory reduces the credibility of the book. The book rightly described the journey of Jackie Robinson as a flag bearer of the fight against racism. In fact, it was also able to depict a clear image of the then American society where skin complexion came before your talent. Jackie succeeded to throw off the shackles of racism and paved the way for equality. In this regards it can be concluded that although the book has some limitations regarding aspects of racism but in the context of history of apartheid in US the book is very much relevant and significant. Reference Arajo, Marta, and Silvia R. Maeso.Eurocentrism, racism and knowledge: debates on history and power in Europe and the Americas. Springer, 2015. Bailey, Zinzi D., et al. "Structural racism and health inequities in the USA: evidence and interventions."The Lancet389.10077 (2017): 1453-1463. Dorinson J Warmund,Jackie Robinson: Race, Sports And The American Dream. Routledge 2015 Dovidio, John F., Samuel L. Gaertner, and Adam R. Pearson. "12 Aversive Racism and Contemporary Bias." (2017). Fredrickson, George M.Racism: A short history. Princeton University Press, 2015. Khan, Abraham Iqbal. "Michael Sam, Jackie Robinson, and the politics of respectability."Communication Sport5.3 (2017): 331-351. Ladson-Billings, Gloria, and William F. Tate IV. "Toward a critical race theory of education."Critical race theory in education. Routledge, 2016. 21-41. Maxwell, Morgan, et al. "Whats color got to do with it? Skin color, skin color satisfaction, racial identity, and internalized racism among African American college students."Journal of Black Psychology41.5 (2015): 438-461. Smith, Andrea. "Heteropatriarchy and the three pillars of white supremacy: Rethinking women of color organizing."Women in Culture: An Intersectional Anthology for Gender and Women's Studies404 (2016). Witherell, Carol S. "Exploring the Lingering Currency of Racism. A Book Review of Trayvon Martin, Race, and American Justice: Writing Wrong."Democracy and Education23.2 (2015): 11. Zigerell, L. J. "Distinguishing racism from ideology: A methodological inquiry."Political Research Quarterly68.3 (2015): 521-536.