Final answer:
Race has long been ingrained in American social and political life due to historical laws, institutional racism, and persistent societal norms. Even with legal advances in civil rights, educational, economic, and political systems perpetuate racial inequality, making race a central factor in defining social status and political power.
Step-by-step explanation:
Race has become ingrained in the constitution of social and political life due to historical, institutional, and cultural factors. Movement leaders during the Civil Rights Movement highlighted how laws and institutional structures perpetuated disenfranchisement and inequality, questioning the professed beliefs in fairness and equality. The majority often uses its power to shape whose rights are protected, which can contribute to institutional racism within constitutionalism and political culture. Even non-legislative aspects, like economic and educational systems, perpetuate racism as a social fact. Despite the changing norms and the advancements in civil rights, which marked a shift from overt systems of White superiority, race continues to play a central role in American political, social, and economic life. Several legal and sociopolitical mechanisms have historically established and continue to reinforce the entrenchment of race. For instance, disenfranchisement and segregation policies formally divided American society and denied equal opportunities to African Americans and other minority groups. Educational, criminal, and economic systems have perpetuated these divisions, impacting political representation and policy-making, thereby maintaining inequality. Furthermore, subtle forms of racism often remain unchallenged due to misunderstandings about racism's nature and existence. Thus, through both direct policies and broader societal norms, race remains a fundamental factor in defining social status and political power in America, as well as in the allocation of rights and resources. History has provided countless examples where the gap between the ideal of equality and the reality of systemic racism has required persistent struggle and advocacy for change.