Inaction, Silence, Focus, and Power: Identifying and Assessing Folk Theories of the Racism of Omission

Abstract

Recent scholarship has advanced a concept of racism operating through omission. Omission captures both inaction and action, highlighting how systems of oppression rely on inertia in addition to discriminatory action to perpetuate inequality. Yet little is known about how laypersons understand the role of omission in propagating racism in the United States. Building on this premise, we employ a mixed-methods approach to document and test folk theories of the racism of omission. We interview diverse individuals (N=40) about their appraisals of racism; we use these findings to design a vignette study which we fielded to a national sample (N=1,174). Interview data reveal that some Americans do understand omission to be a form of racism, highlighting (1) bystander inaction, (2) silencing of experiences of racism, (3) overfocus on White issues, and (4) disparities in positions of power as instances where inaction, exclusion, or inertia constitute a form of racism. Data show that Americans are most likely to consider overfocus and silencing as forms of omission-based racism, and that racism appraisals depend on the victim’s race. We find that political ideology, gender, income, race, and education shape appraisals of racism as omission. These findings have implications for measures of perceived racism and discrimination.