In the United States, institutional racism has been responsible for slavery and Jim Crow segregation and while these institutions no longer “technically” exist, they continue to have long-term impacts on black society. As a result of ongoing institutional racism, racial stratification and disparities continue to occur in employment, housing, education, healthcare, government and all other sectors. While many laws were passed in the mid-20th century to make discrimination illegal, major inequalities still exist. Black people are charged higher interest rates on home mortgages and car loans than their white counterparts despite having identical credit scores and wages.
Racial profiling of black people which result in the police being called on them for the doing simple, mundane things, like swimming in pools, playing golf or barbecuing in parks, eating in restaurants are an everyday occurrence.
Driving a car while being black is often enough to be stopped by the police and harassed. 58 percent of incarcerated prisoners are black, despite making up only one quarter of the U.S. population. And unarmed Black men are regularly shot and killed by the police with impunity.
These are but a few examples of the conditions in which the children of Africa are existing in the diaspora. Numerous studies have proven that living under the constant stress of racial hatred and discrimination has a direct effect on the physical, psychological and emotional well being of African people.
Sadly, the US is not isolated when it comes to the ongoing maltreatment of Black people. There is a common theme of discrimination and maltreatment against African descendants in North America, South America, Australia or Europe. These practices of hatred towards African people have been ongoing for the past 400 years and show no signs of ever relenting. Therefore, the only logical solution is to remove ourselves from these hostile environments and make our way back to the land of our ancestors.
Sankofa Repatriation Assistance Program, Inc. intends to address this racial maltreatment and oppression directly by removing our people from these hostile environments and begin the migration back to the African continent!
