Racism has come a long way throughout history. Even though the world has progressed for decades, there is still a categorization of races which then leads back to racism. People will say all sorts of indecent and provocative things if they think you share a similar point of view to theirs. And now, leaving others with questions, what could you say? Or what should you say? When someone makes a racist remark. Is this a form of racial harassment, disrespect or ignorance? Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Racism is an illustration of ignorance, of madness, in defiance of all human common sense. This article “What to do when someone makes a racist remark?” By Rachel L. Swarns seems to give an indication that most people lack knowledge about the things they spit out of their mouths. An example would be the woman who said Michelle Obama “looked like a monkey” or Mr. Imperiale who said “he seemed to go out of his way to make racist comments in front of me.” Now the questions arise: What is an honest person supposed to do or say when someone who clearly does not seem to be in their right mind says something racist in your presence? Do you respond that it was racist, as the article suggests, or do you just leave? Frantz Fanon said in his book The Facts of Darkness: “The beautiful little boy trembles because he thinks that the Negro is trembling with rage, the little boy throws himself into his mother's arms: Mama the Negro is going to eat me. This comment left him in shock and made him believe that his body had been returned to him. How should he have reacted, or even how should the mother have reacted? The real truth is that if someone is old enough to know, then they are definitely old enough to learn. Therefore, why walk away when you have the opportunity to educate this person's ignorance. Have you ever wondered why black people can say the N-word, but when a white person says it, it becomes racist? Richard J. Perry asserts that “racism is real. The race is not” – “The race”. Facts or Artifacts.” What is meant by this is that race is not real in terms of biological mechanisms, every human being is created the same. Race is something that has been socially constructed and divided into binary categories; like color. Racism exists because of these categories that make us appear uncaring, which then leads to racism as a form of disrespect. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized article from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Disrespect is defined as rude, lacking in courtesy, and often insulting. Every word a person says carries a different tone and intention. As noted in the article, Ms. Middleton's white friend's mother used the N-word during a discussion about race in the living room, which then left her frozen in an instant. The lady not only disrespected Ms. Middleton as a black woman who thought "she had done everything she could to keep racism at bay", but also the black race in general. Not recognizing what she had said and her daughter remaining silent by looking away was beyond disrespectful and scandalous...