It has been argued that everyone is a little bit racist. Various studies have shown that black America are treated differently than white Americans. Examples of this include black students being more likely to be suspended, blacks being arrested at a higher rate than whites, and job applications with “black sounding” names being less likely to get callbacks than those with “white sounding” names. Interestingly, studies have shown that the alleged racism is not confined to white Americans and black Americans also seem to share this racism.
One study involved a simulator in which a participant takes on the role of a police officer and must decide to shoot or holster their weapon when confronted by simulated person. The study indicated that participants, regardless of race, shoot more quickly at blacks than whites and are more likely to shoot an unarmed black person than an unarmed white person. There are, of course, many other studies and examples that support the claim that everyone is a little bit racist.
Given the evidence, it would seem reasonable to accept that everyone is a little bit racist. However, there seems to be something problematic with claiming that everyone is racist, even if it is the claim that the racism is of the small sort.
One point of logical concern is that inferring that all people are at least a little racist based on such studies would be problematic. Rather, what should be claimed is that the studies indicate the presence of racism and that these findings can be generalized to the entire population. But this can be dismissed as a quibble about inductive logic.
Some might take issue with this claim because being accused of racism is offensive. Some, as also might be suspected, would take issue with this claim because they claim that racism has ended in America, hence people are not racist. Not even a little bit. Others might complain that the accusation is a political weapon that is wielded unjustly. I will not argue about these matters, but will instead focus on another concern, that of the concept of racism.
In informal terms, racism is prejudice, antagonism or discrimination based on race. Since studies show that people have prejudices linked to race and engage in discrimination along racial lines, it seems reasonable to accept that everyone is at least a bit racist.
To use an analogy, consider the matter of lying. A liar, put informally, is someone who makes a claim that she does not believe with the intention of getting others to accept it as true. Since people engage in this behavior, everyone is a little bit of a liar. That is, everyone has told a lie.
Another analogy would be to being an abuser. Presumably each person has been at least a bit mean or cruel to another person. This entails that everyone is at least a little bit abusive. The analogies could continue almost indefinitely, but it will suffice to stop with the result that we are all racist, abusive liars.
On the one hand, the claim is true. I have been prejudiced. I have lied. I have been mean to people I love. The same is likely to be true of even the very best of us. Since we have lied, we are liars. Since we have abused, we are abusers. Since we have prejudice and have discriminated based on race, we are racists.
On the other hand, the claim is problematic. After all, to judge someone to be a racist, an abuser, or a liar is to make a strong moral judgment of the person. For example, imagine the following conversation:
Sam: “Your friend Sally seems cool. You know her well, what is she like?”
Kelly: “She is a liar and a racist.”
Sam: “But…she seems so nice.”
Kelly: “She is. In fact, she’s one of the best people I know.”
Sam: “But you said she is a liar and a racist.”
Kelly: “Oh, she is. But just a little bit.”
Sam: “What?”
Kelly: “When she was in college, she lied to a creepy guy to avoid going on a date. She also said that when she was five, she briefly thought white people were racists and would not be friends with them. So, she is a liar and a racist.”
Sam: “I don’t think you know what those words mean.”
The point is, of course, that terms like “racist”, “abuser” and “liar” have a proper moral usage. Because these are such strong terms, they should be applied in cases to which they fit. For example, while anyone who lies is technically a liar, the designation of being a liar should only apply to someone who routinely engages in that behavior. That is, a person who has a moral defect in regard to honesty. Likewise, anyone who has a prejudice based on race or who has discriminated based on race is technically a racist. However, the designation of racist should be reserved for those who have the relevant moral defect. That is, racism is their way of being, as opposed to having some bias. As such, using the term “racist” (or “liar”) in claiming that “everyone is a little bit racist” (or “everyone is little bit of a liar”) either waters down the moral term or imposes too harsh a judgment on the person.
So, if the expression “we are all a little bit racist” should not be used, what should replace it? My suggestion is to speak instead of people being subject to biases. While saying “we all have biases” is less attention grabbing than “we are all a little bit racist”, it is a more honest description.