Eli5 What is systemic racism

Question

I saw [this](https://www.reddit.com/r/FragileWhiteRedditor/comments/kyo25g/fwr_says_theres_no_such_thing_as_systemic_racism/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share) Reddit post today and it sparked a few questions.

For context, I consider my self sort of knowledgeable of social justice issues, but I don’t understand this one that much.

The responding Redditor says that if you remove all the racists from a systemically racist system, the system still favors a certain ethnicity. I am in no way trying to argue this, and I don’t not think it’s true, I just don’t understand what systems are in place that are racist by design. I acknowledge that if it weren’t for my white privilege, I would probably know. I definitely think that the system is racist, but I always thought it was the people applying it unjustly, not the system itself.

Thanks

Edit: I understand this is a pretty common question and I should’ve better explained my question specifically as something like:

“I understand that many modern social systems are based on unjust, racist treatment of certain groups, be it slavery, Residential Schools, or otherwise. I understand that this has lasting impacts on our society, and these policies and practices continue to negatively impact minority communities to this day. It is evident to me that, for only one example, a racist judge, would apply harsher sentencing to a individual, due to their ethnicity.

My question specifically is, like the Redditor stated: How is it that, even once the racist individuals within the system are removed, the system still favors one ethnicity, and oppresses the other?”

Thanks to some very helpful, and precise replies I much better understand systemic racism as a whole, and my question is answered. Thanks to everyone who put in the time to explain.

In: Other

Answer 1

I’ve often tried to find this out too. Every article I read seems to just wave vaguely in the direction of “systemic issues” but what I really want is for a POC to come out and say, “this exact racist thing happened which made my life worse in a totally measurable and non-vague way which can’t be explained away by personal perceptions.”