Paragraph Annotation of "Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria"?

(10.) Prejudice is one of the inescapable consequences of living in a racist society. Cultural racism—the cultural images and messages that affirm the assumed superiority of Whites and the assumed inferiority of people of color—is like smog in the air. Sometimes it is so thick it is visible, other times it is less apparent,[9] but always, day in and day out, we are breathing it in. None of us would introduce ourselves as “smog-breathers” (and most of us don’t want to be described as prejudiced), but if we live in a smoggy place, how can we avoid breathing the air? If we live in an environment in which we are bombarded with stereotypical images in the media, are frequently exposed to the ethnic jokes of friends and family members, and are rarely informed of the accomplishments of oppressed groups, we will develop the negative ideas about those groups that form the basis of prejudice. […]

I annotated this paragraph by circling the first word “inescapable”, underlining it and writing “WE CAN EVOLVE!” in all caps. I believe that our society has shown great improvement in even the past century when it comes to respecting other races, and I think the word “inescapable” does not belong anywhere near this topic. I also took the phrase “cultural racism” and made a connection to other phrases that I believe personally affect society as well, including “cultural sexism”. We learn from our peers, advisors, and people in power. We as a culture are individually responsible for what we think as a population. I agreed with the statement that the “assumed inferiority of people of color-is like smog in the air”; I think this is such a strong analogy: we are all exposed to the negative effects of everyone around us, none of us are immune but we can each help reverse it. I also underlined the term “ethnic jokes”, expressing that they are not jokes if they are sincere. Every random remark is taken into consideration by someone out there, even if it is just a passing statement. And if someone says it, even as a joke, they are contributing to the already smoggy atmosphere we live in today.