Racial discrimination

This article is about specific discriminatory actions and processes. For the broader concept, see Racism.

Racial discrimination is any discrimination against any individual on the basis of their race, ancestry, ethnic or national origin, and/or skin color and hair texture. Individuals discriminate by refusing to do business with, socialize with, or share resources with people of a certain group. Governments discriminate through statutory law or policy – for example through policies of racial segregation – disparate enforcement of laws, or disproportionate allocation of resources. Some jurisdictions have anti-discrimination laws which prohibit the government or individuals from being discriminated against based on race or other protected categories.

Some institutions and laws use affirmative action to attempt to overcome or compensate for the effects of racial discrimination. In some cases, this is simply enhanced recruitment of members of underrepresented groups; in other cases, there are firm racial quotas. Opponents of strong remedies like quotas characterize them as reverse discrimination, where members of a dominant or majority group are discriminated against.

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