What is Discrimination?
Merriam-Webster defines discrimination as “the practice of unfairly treating a person or group of people differently from other people or groups of people”. To further elaborate, FindLaw defines unlawful discrimination in the context of civil rights as the “unfair or unequal treatment of an individual (or group) based on certain characteristics, including age, disability, ethnicity, gender, marital status, national origin, race, religion, and sexual orientation.
Federal and state laws prohibit discrimination against members of the aforementioned groups in various settings, including:
Many laws exist that prohibit discrimination as defined above, most of which originate from the federal level through federal legislation, when a broad issue is presented (ex: Civil Rights Act of 1964 or Americans with Disabilities Act of 1992), or through federal court decisions, which are presented in the form of a specific case (ex: Brown v. Board of Education).
Unfortunately, many of the discrimination in today’s society goes unnoticed due to lack of information provided to the public. Many organizations are working on exposing groups that discriminate and discrimination against certain groups, including:
Merriam-Webster defines discrimination as “the practice of unfairly treating a person or group of people differently from other people or groups of people”. To further elaborate, FindLaw defines unlawful discrimination in the context of civil rights as the “unfair or unequal treatment of an individual (or group) based on certain characteristics, including age, disability, ethnicity, gender, marital status, national origin, race, religion, and sexual orientation.
Federal and state laws prohibit discrimination against members of the aforementioned groups in various settings, including:
- Education
- Employment
- Housing
- Government benefits and services
- Health care services
- Lending and credit
- Public accommodations (access to buildings and businesses)
- Transportation
- Voting
Many laws exist that prohibit discrimination as defined above, most of which originate from the federal level through federal legislation, when a broad issue is presented (ex: Civil Rights Act of 1964 or Americans with Disabilities Act of 1992), or through federal court decisions, which are presented in the form of a specific case (ex: Brown v. Board of Education).
Unfortunately, many of the discrimination in today’s society goes unnoticed due to lack of information provided to the public. Many organizations are working on exposing groups that discriminate and discrimination against certain groups, including:
- IMADR: International Movement Against All Forms of Discrimination and Racism
- The Free Child Project: Youth Against Racism
- Equality Now (advocate for women’s rights around the world)
- ICAAD: International Center for Advocates Against Discrimination
- Amnesty International (advocate against all types of discrimination)
- Southern Poverty Law Center (advocate for making the civil rights movement a “reality for all”)
- Crossroads Antiracism Organizing & Training
- UNESCO: United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization
- Solid Ground: Building community to end poverty