Unveiling Discriminatory Structures Against Social Minorities: An Examination of Some Governmental Structures of Discrimination and Abatement in the United States

Abstract

This paper examines the enduring structures that sustain discrimination in the US. It analyzes historical precedents, contemporary practices, and efforts toward its elimination. It begins by exploring legislative frameworks and highlights how policies such as the War on Drugs and immigration acts have disproportionately negatively targeted marginalized populations. It discusses how administrative practices, including law enforcement tactics and implicit bias, perpetuate differentially unequal treatment of people by categories within the criminal justice system. The study discusses how judicial precedents, notably the Supreme Court decisions, have also reinforced discriminatory structures, and how interpretations of civil rights laws have shaped policies affecting marginalized populations. Despite formal structures to combat it, persistent bias, institutionalized barriers, and power dynamics perpetuate discrimination. Lastly, the study examines how efforts towards the elimination of discriminatory structures have included legislative reforms aimed at addressing systemic disparities, affirmative action programs, and diversity and inclusion policies. The understanding of the intersectionality of multiple factors of discrimination is analyzed to be crucial in understanding the complexities of discrimination, as individuals experience multiple layers of oppression based on intersecting social identities.