STEREOTYPES
Black People Are Not Lazy. Here's Why People Keep Repeating This Lie
It's easier to cast blame on individuals than acknowledge systemic problems
Racism is ubiquitous in this country. Lift a stone, and you're sure to find some. You would think that, given the prevalence of racism in American society, we would have a collective understanding of the vast disparities between Black and White Americans. But we don't. There will always be some people who attempt to justify racial disparities rather than mitigate them. For example, Black people are often stereotyped as lazy in an effort to deny their experiences with racism. When given the option to blame the system for perpetuating disparate outcomes or individuals for their personal shortcomings, conservatives seem to pick the latter every time.
Former president Donald Trump once claimed that "laziness is a trait in Blacks," according to John O'Donnell, a former employee. And it's this false assumption that leads White men in positions of power, like Trump, to oppose policies designed to mitigate racism. They're convinced that Black people are lazy and that if they worked hard enough, they could overcome any barriers in their path. However, as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. noted, "It's all right to tell a man to lift himself by his own…
