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systemic racism

American  
[si-stem-ik rey-siz-uhm] / sɪˈstɛm ɪk ˈreɪ sɪz əm /

noun

  1. racism.


Etymology

Origin of systemic racism

First recorded in 1970–75

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

"Now we need to go beyond the symbolic," he said, urging a "real reparations programme", including for example more funds for educational projects to transmit history and help battle systemic racism.

From Barron's May 28, 2026

When Welteroth took the helm in 2016, the Black Lives Matter movement was bringing renewed attention to police brutality and systemic racism in the criminal legal system.

From Salon Nov. 16, 2025

Dr Shereen Daniels said that systemic racism was "not a matter of perception", adding that "true accountability begins with specificity".

From BBC Nov. 7, 2025

Four years ago, as Pence and Harris were discussing systemic racism, a fly settled on the snowy expanse of Pence’s white coiffure — and ended up walking away with the evening’s affair.

From Los Angeles Times Sep. 29, 2024

He starts by talking about his experience growing up Black in Mississippi and moves on to talk about systemic racism and how we don’t even realize how embedded it is in our world.

From "Finding Junie Kim" by Ellen Oh

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