What does racism look like?

If you asked twenty different people that question, you’d likely get twenty different responses. Their answers may primarily reflect the individual’s own unique experience, trauma, or background. They may recall specific memories, certain situations where they felt the sting of racism. It may conjure up images of white hoods or racial slurs painted on neighborhood buildings or footage of police brutality.

But no matter what it looks like to each person, the fact of that matter is, it’s there. And while it’s easier or simpler to blame the individual (or individuals) behind the attack, we must take a step backward and look at the larger picture and the invisible systems in place.

Systems like healthcare, higher education, and real estate are just a few of the many areas where racial bias and discrimination exist. And only by getting to the root of the problem will we ever have a hope of putting an end to racism.