Why Empathy in Racism Should Be Avoided

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Narrative
Confirmation
Refutation
Concession
Summation
Conclusion
Works Cited

Introduction

The persistent threat posed by racism question, and more especially anti-blackness, has prompted worldwide concerns about its long-term resolution. In several of these discussions, more empathy has been proposed to remedy the racial inequality that haunts society. Empathy is the capacity to comprehend and experience the emotions and ideas of others (Janice Gassam Asare). Moreover, empathic emotions are essential to social and interpersonal life since they allow individuals to adapt their cognitive processes to their social surroundings and to grasp the intents, actions, and behaviors of others (Janice Gassam Asare). Therefore, empathy in racism should be avoided since it causes more harm than good as it impairs the empath’s ability to provide ideal remedies to racially affected individuals.

Narrative

Generally, some people champion the essence of empathy toward racial eradication. At the same time, others discourage the action, as they argue that it breeds other emotions that are only detrimental to victims. In defense of advocating against empathy in racism, it is evident in the cold-blood murder of George Floyd in 2020 that onlookers were emotionally overwhelmed by empathy and hence could not rescue his life (McGhee). In this way, most of the witnesses were perplexed to the point where they could not aid in saving his life. Therefore, this narration is overpowering proof that employing empathy is not a way to assist the victimized; instead, it jeopardizes their lives further.

Confirmation

People’s capacity to empathize with others is impacted by their personal encounters and their perception of the one with whom they are empathizing. As such, empathy is an ambiguous notion intended to cloud people’s inherent nature; thus, it is not an optimal solution to racism. In this sense, people have less empathy for those who do not belong to their races (Lanzoni). For instance, the race of the individual experiencing pain affects the degree to which Caucasian onlookers can empathize with the suffering of other individuals. In the movie The Help, it is a typical scenario that enhances people to overcome empathy when dealing with racism. Precisely, the film is beneficial in preventing white viewers from feeling guilty and in lifting their spirits (Frederick). Thus, it emphasizes that people should address racism directly without involving emotions to soothe their feelings rather they should address their responsibility.

Hence, the conclusion that can be drawn from this is that not all forms of empathy are created equal. Due to this, individuals can empathize more with particular categories of people; nevertheless, they are only able to sympathize with one or two other individuals simultaneously; empathy seems to have a limited capacity. In addition, empathy has a limited field of vision, which means that it might lead people to concentrate their thoughts and feelings on a single subject to the exclusion of others (Lanzoni). If having empathy is the goal, then it makes perfect sense to argue that it will be difficult for a single person to comprehend and be sensitive to the anguish experienced by several oppressed groups at the same time.

Moreover, people do not have the same unique experiences as others. In this regard, the advocates of the thought argue that placing oneself in the same context as others who are racially abused is an approach that can alleviate racial discrimination. However, this is not the case; individuals should abandon the notion that everything needs to feel like something they actually encountered to be legitimate. For example, one needs to be racially mistreated to embrace or comprehend racism. Accordingly, it is essential to resist the need to tie everything to their real-world experiences (Janice Gassam Asare). In addition, arguing for this idea would indicate that if justice impacts an area of personal experiences that these individuals cannot connect to, they will likely disregard it.

In reality, individuals should be able to provide assistance to a trauma survivor without filtering the situation via their own subjective experience. This is problematic; nevertheless, since the empathy concept is predicated on the idea of knowing and experiencing what someone else person is feeling, and in doing so, individuals contrast their perspectives through the lens of their own experienced circumstances. Nonetheless, one might be empathetic and worried for another individual without necessarily experiencing what they undergo. Notably, one does not require empathy to help underprivileged individuals. White people may not always be able to comprehend and sympathize with the experiences of the racially disadvantaged, but this does not preclude them from advocating for and supporting these groups.

Empathic feelings often breed high sentiments and emotions that can be detrimental to people. Extremely empathetic individuals may be hindered by their compassion and unable to assist people who are directly hurting adequately. An extremely sympathetic individual, for instance, may not be able to properly advise people affected by trauma since they, too, are impacted by the experiences of the victims. This may result in secondary trauma, thus; a person suffering secondary trauma may be unable to provide effective assistance and advocacy for an individual in anguish (Janice Gassam Asare). As a result, it might obscure empaths’ judgment and restrict their grasp of how to directly provide meaningful assistance to a person suffering racial violence and trauma. It is essential to recognize that one might be motivated to assist people and campaign on their behalf without having empathy for them.

Refutation

Without empathy, an individual’s cognitive and emotional knowledge, when combined, has a lower likelihood of relieving racial prejudice.

“…I had learned many things today, and Miss Caroline had learned several things herself. She had learned not to hand something to a Cunningham, for one thing, but if Walter and I had put ourselves in her shoes, we’d have seen it was an honest mistake on her part (To Kill a Mockingbird (1962), time. 40^th minute)”.

The above quote originates from the movie To Kill a Mockingbird, which underscores how empathy is crucial to people who are being prejudiced. Consequently, this supports the notion of empathy role in curbing racism. Specifically, from the quote, Scout portrays that empathy can ensure responsibility in enhancing moral behavior. As such, Scout demonstrates empathy as she heeds Atticus when he urges her to contemplate Miss Caroline’s predicament after she sobs in class. Scout cannot comprehend why Miss Caroline is sobbing, but Atticus explains the situation.

However, to refute this idea, it is important to acknowledge that empathy means experiencing the same emotions, thoughts, and dispositions as another individual; hence, people have diverse attributes that limit the idea. Therefore, Scout’s character of being spiteful towards other races is a feeling she developed and is deeply ingrained in her, and her nature seems insidious towards other minority races. Hence, the notion that empathy is a key to eradicating racism is a vague idea. Instead, people should develop a collective responsibility to accept that equality and, thus, form an all-inclusive environment.

Concession

Essentially, from the above argument, it is evident that empathy is a scapegoat for those who are racists. As a result, it should not be used as an excuse for someone loathing other minor races. This is because feeling empathic while others are suffering has done more harm than good. In fact, it has cost people their lives as empaths frequently act based on emotions rather than ideal actions and solutions.

Summation

Basically, racism and prejudice is a persistent problems; hence, to tackle the ever-growing menace, people should stop being empathic and develop a strong sense of accountability towards every other minor race. Additionally, people should alter their way of thinking and get rid of any outdated practices. A transformation in thinking, changes in behavior, and the elimination of laws and institutions that create obstacles are required to fulfill the commitment to anti-racism and equality in the educational setting. As a result, it will ensure that in case of racial incidences, the victims will receive aid as opposed to when they are shown empathy, which sometimes can subject them to regrets of belonging to a particular race.

Conclusion

Overall, empathy is a crucial function that regulates social life in humans. Therefore, it cannot be discouraged and must always be employed in other bases of life. Nevertheless, based on the racism concern, humans deserve dignity and compassion irrespective of color, social class, gender, or other qualities. A lack of them cannot be subjective at the expense of a lack of empathy. The difficulty is that people process their emotions through the lens of their individual experiences. If someone cannot comprehend an experience or cannot place oneself in the shoes of another, their capacity to understand their emotions is restricted. It may be useless to attempt to remove racism via empathy alone. Importantly, empathy should not be the guiding principle of diversity, equality, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. Compassion and kindness are superior substitutes for empathy in the workplace. Rather than attempting to feel what the other person feels, individuals should concentrate on mitigating and repairing the damage perpetrated on the most underprivileged.

Works Cited

Frederick, Candice. “The Help Addresses Racism without Making White People Feel Guilty—and That’s the Problem.” Oprah Daily, Oprah Daily, Web.

Janice Gassam Asare. “It’s Going to Take More than Empathy to Eradicate Racism.” Forbes, Web.

Lanzoni, Susan. “Why Empathy Is the Key to Dismantling White Racism.” Washington Post, The Washington Post, Web.

McGhee Heather “Witnesses Should Not Have to Apologize for Not Saving George Floyd.” Oprah Daily, Oprah Daily, Web.

“To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)” YouTube, uploaded by Retrospective – Classic Movies, Web.

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