Why Does Racism Still Exist?

When reflecting on human history, we have seen some astonishing atrocities take place which are rooted in racism - genocide, slavery, and warfare to name a few. Now, in 2025, at the height of moral integrity, you would think that racism would be a thing of the past. Unfortunately, it still prevails. Why?

Human Evolution

All human beings are related. If you trace your own family tree upwards, eventually what emerges are connections that essentially bind us all together as relatives. Does that surprise you? It shouldn’t. We know that human beings evolved in Africa around 200,000 thousand years ago from the same hominin descendants, which makes us all one big happy family. It’s simply a fact. We are one and the same species, and more closely related to one another than to any other living organism that exists or has ever existed.

Our particular human species, Homo sapiens, are pretty lucky to have survived at all, given that all other human species eventually died out. For those who are confused on what a species actually is, it can generally be defined as an organism that can reproduce with one another and produce offspring. If we look at the dog species for example, we can see that there are a significant number of breeds with stark physical differences. All dogs can mate with each other, regardless of breed, and produce offspring. The same applies to us. Despite any physical differences, which we call ‘race’, we can all produce offspring because we are all the same species.

The reason we all look so different is because of changes that occurred very slowly over time. Ever since human beings migrated out of Africa and ventured into new territories around the globe, skin colour gradually changed (depending on the level of UV exposure that individuals were exposed to). And it’s not just skin colour. Eye colour and hair types also diversified, again, in response to the varying levels of sunlight and the amount of protection required against harmful UV radiation. Some places on earth are simply much hotter than other places, especially towards the equator.

In regard to other physical differences, environment, harsh climate, and diet have all played a part. For example, Asian people have epicanthic folds which cover the corner of their eyes. This genetic trait developed to provide protection from extreme weather, such as freezing winds and snowstorms.

Differences such as these are essentially superficial. All human beings on the planet are the same type of living organism. So, if science explains why such broad diversity exists in humans, why does racism still exist?

British Society and Multiculturalism

I was born in Britain, but my grandparents were not. They were born in India and both came to Britain in the 1960s. Families were invited over to help support the country with economic regrowth after World War II. In fact, they were encouraged because of the devastation after the war and the huge number of labour shortages all over the country. People were needed to fulfil a significant number of job roles in public transport, health, and other industries. My grandad actually became a bus driver in Wolverhampton and remained in this job role his entire working life. Thousands of people immigrated to Britain, arriving from Commonwealth countries in South Asia and the Caribbean.

The Commonwealth, as we know, is complicated. Britain has a long history with these countries because the British Empire once ruled them. And because of these ties, it made it much easier for people from these countries to settle into Britain because of the relaxed legislation at the time. Immigrants were offered a better life in Britain with prospects of good living standards and full-time employment. Therefore people came over, and this created a much more multicultural Britain and ultimately changed the face of the country both socially and economically. Despite the positive reasons for migration, there was an influx of racism during this period of time in Britain. There were many riots, deaths, and a mass societal uproar in response to growing multiculturalism.

Britain has continued to become more and more diverse over the decades, for several reasons. One being that the world is so much more connected than it was in the 1960s and people can work and travel wherever they wish. Britain, being the great country it is, has naturally attracted people from all around the globe to come over, work and settle. Many major cities are now very cosmopolitan. Another, being that Britain has chosen to support refugees and asylum seekers from troubled countries who wish to enter its borders. This has allowed more people from around the world to settle in Britain, thus increasing the diversity further creating a melting pot of cultures. And Britain is a hub for education. It has some of the best universities in the world which attracts international students. In fact, higher education currently relies heavily on recruiting international students to keep universities open and thriving. Students will often attain employment and end up staying, again diversifying the population.

I’ve lived in Britain my whole life and observed some of the fluctuating attitudes towards race and multiculturalism over a long period of time. And racism still seems to exist (perhaps more covertly rather than overtly) despite positive efforts to eradicate it. So discussing some of the reasons why it continues to exist is certainly an important step if we are ever to eradicate it for good.

Why Does Racism Exist?

There are several reasons as to why racism exists, not just in Britian, but around the world, and we certainly need to address them individually if we are ever going to make any sort of substantial progress in eradicating racism for good.

Firstly, ignorance has a key part to play. When I speak to people about how humans evolved, they either didn’t know, don’t understand, or choose not to accept it. If more people understood and accepted the truth about evolution, they would realise that the differences between human beings have come about through a long, slow process of change and are merely superficial. Regardless of what we all look like, we are still the same species, which assumingly should void the hate and division that drives racism. However, if nobody takes on board the information, then racism has an opportunity to thrive. Most racists are ignoramuses.

A second reason for racism is the prejudice behaviour that we all naturally exude. Stereotyping is a subconscious disposition within everybody, and seemingly acts as a quick way to protect ourselves from harm. Our ancestors, when faced with danger, would have to make quick decisions, and these choices would often have been based on stereotypes. This evolutionary trait still exists today. It is much easier for us to judge people based on their appearance, in this case ‘race’, and place them in a box. This makes it easier for our brain to digest information about the person.

However, although it is easier on the brain to place people into groups based on assumptions, it is ultimately a flawed way of thinking. Every single person is unique, in that their personality is individual. Their life experiences shape them, amongst a host of other variable influential factors across their life. Any assumptions that we make may not be true and are often quite lazy and distorted. This type of prejudice robs individuals of their right to be who they are – an individual human being. Stereotypes can therefore become dangerous and lead to discriminative behaviour. And in the past, this type of behaviour has led to tragic occurrences like genocide and slavery.

A third reason for racism is the natural tendency for humans to bond with people who look like themselves. Place a group of 100 people in a room, ask them to socialise, and you will start to see small groups form, likely based on physical (and therefore racial) similarities. However, that’s not to say that race is the only factor. Age, class, and intelligence are amongst other characteristics that bond people together. However, race is something that is quite obvious when you meet someone for the first time and therefore has a better chance of linking people together, as we may assume they have had similar experiences in life, as well as potential shared cultural similarities.

A fourth reason is the overwhelming lack of mutual respect in the world we have today. We are all, to be blunt, very selfish, and discrimination is almost like a byproduct. It is kinship that generally comes first (we are compassionate towards those closest to us). And if kinship involves humans of the same race, then this may be reflected in our attitude to those outside of this kinship, and therefore those outside of our own race.

Next Steps

If we educate people about evolution and how we are related, as well as promote diversity and the rich history of human culture that makes life interesting, we may start to see racism diminish. We also need to make sure that racial discrimination is illegal, everywhere. We fortunately have in the UK the Equality Act 2010 which protects people against discrimination in the public sphere, however other countries and their legal systems are not necessarily as compassionate. And the media have a big part to play in this too. I have seen some positive changes in recent years, with diverse faces across film and television, but there is still a lot of work to do in ensuring that we get rid of old stereotypes.

These are certainly some important steps we need to take, but will we as a society actually take them? The world is a big place, and change in these areas will admittedly be very difficult to overcome. But if we all work hard towards this end goal, and not be afraid to call out racism when we see it and educate people in the right direction, then it could one day be eradicated.