ISSUES OF RACE AND ETHNICITY

WHY DO YOU KEEP • RACE

BRINGING UP THIS – SHARED BIOLOGICALLY TRANSMITTED
“RACE” ISSUE?!?! TRAITS DEEMED “SOCIALLY SIGNIFICANT”
• CAUCASIAN: LIGHT SKIN, FINE HAIR
• NEGROID: DARKER SKIN, COARSE HAIR
• MONGOLOID: BROWN SKIN, DISTINCTIVE
EYES
• ETHNICITY
– SHARED CULTURAL HERITAGE
• DIVERSITY IN AMERICA: IS IT CELEBRATED?
• RACE, ETHNICITY, AND ASSIMILATION
– THOSE CONSIDERED MOST DIFFERENT
FROM THE DOMINANT RACE AND
ETHNICITY WILL HAVE DIFFICULTY IN
ASSIMILATING
 Racial Categories
United States of America, 1990

European 80

African Am. 12

Hispanic Am. 9

Asian Am. 3

Native Am. 1
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80

Percent of Pop.
Many persons indicated more than one category and that is why total is more than 100%
Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1993.
 In the Year 2050
DEMOGRAPHICS of the United States
1990 *
WHITE 80% OF POPULATION
– BLACK 12%
– HISPANIC 9%
– ASIAN 3%
2050
WHITE 53% OF POPULATION
– HISPANIC 21%
– BLACK 16%
– ASIAN 10%
* Percentages taken from previous slide
• DOMINANT RACIAL GROUP
– WHITE AMERICA
• THE RACIAL GROUP THAT HAS WITHIN ITS
POWER THE ABILITY TO EXPLOIT AND
CONTROL OTHER GROUPS, EVEN IN THE FACE
OF RESISTANCE
• THOSE IN A PLACE OF SOCIAL ADVANTAGE
– WHITE PRIVILEGE
• THE FACT THAT WHITES, BY VIRTURE OF
THEIR RACIAL IDENTITY, RECEIVE SPECIAL
CONSIDERATION IN ALMOST ALL FACETS OF
SOCIAL LIFE
• GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS
– SHARE A “DISTINCT IDENTITY”
• RACE, SEX, SEXUAL ORIENTATION, THE
POOR
– SUBORDINATION
• OFTEN SADDLED WITH LOWER STATUS
• STEREOTYPES, STIGMA, AND LABELING
– GROUP SIZE (NUMBERS)
• WOMEN IN AMERICA OUTNUMBER MEN
• BLACKS IN SOUTH AFRICA OUTNUMBER
WHITES
UNDERSTANDING PREJUDICE
A FEW BASIC TERMS MUST BE UNDERSTOOD

• PREJUDICE
– THEY ARE PREJUDGMENTS THAT CAN
BE EITHER POSITIVE OR NEGATIVE
• TRADITIONALLY, WHEN IT COMES TO
RACE…
– PREJUDICES ARE THOUGHT OF AS NEGATIVE,
RIGID, AND IRRATIONAL GENERALIZATIONS
ABOUT AN ENTIRE GROUP OF PEOPLE

• A STEREOTYPE
– A PREJUDICED DESCRIPTION OF AN
ENTIRE CATEGORY OF PEOPLE
• COGNITIVE LEVEL
– THE IDEA OR THOUGHT
• JEWISH PEOPLE ARE GREEDY
• EMOTIONAL LEVEL
– ATTACHING FEELINGS TO IDEA
• LEARNING TO FEEL ANGER TOWARDS WHITES
• ACTION-ORIENTATION LEVEL
– PREDISPOSITION TO ACT
• MORE LIKELY TO VERBALLY OR PHYSICALLY
ATTACK A TARGETTED GROUP
 A VERY POWERFUL AND DESTRUCTIVE FORM OF
PREJUDICE THAT REMAINS VERY MUCH ALIVE TODAY

• THE BELIEF THAT ONE RACIAL

CATEGORY IS INNATELY SUPERIOR OR
INFERIOR TO ANOTHER
– INDIVIDUAL RACISM
– INSTITUTIONALIZED RACISM
• RECALL WHAT RACE IS AND SEE THE
IRRATIONAL THOUGHT PROCESS
– THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A “PURE RACE”
THESE DAYS; A CONTINUUM
– RACE IS BIOLOGICAL, BUT WHAT PEOPLE
MAKE OF IT IS SOCIAL
• SCAPEGOAT THEORY
– BLAMING OTHERS FOR PERSONAL TROUBLES
– TARGET SELECTION AND THEN AGGRESSION
• AUTHORITARIAN PERSONALITY
– THE “ARCHIE BUNKER” THEORY
• CULTURE OF PREJUDICE
– THE SOCIALIZATION EXPERIENCE
– IT’S “NORMAL” FOR PEOPLE TO PREJUDGE OTHERS
• CONFLICT THEORY
– SELF-JUSTIFICATION FOR THE RICH AND POWERFUL IN
AMERICA
– USE OF “RACE CARD” BY MINORITY GROUPS CAN LEAD TO
“WHITE BACKLASH” MOVEMENTS
 IT’S A MATTER OF ACTION, NOT ATTITUDE

• VERBALIZATION
– JOKES, COMMENTS, RACIAL SLURS
• EXCLUSION
– KEEPING PEOPLE MARGINAL
• AVOIDANCE
– NOT TRAVELING IN CERTAIN AREAS
• PHYSICAL ABUSE
– PHYSICAL ATTACKS
• GENOCIDE
– SYSTEMATIC KILLING OFF OF A GROUP
 INSTITUTIONALIZED
PREJUDICE AND DISCRIMINATION
• BIAS INHERENT IN THE OPERATION OF
SOCIETY’S INSTITUTIONS
– SCHOOLS AND EDUCATION
– BANKING AND LOANS
– POLICE AND CRIMINAL PROFILING
– WORKPLACE AND ADVANCEMENT
• MAJORITY GROUP
– IS OFTEN SLOW TO RECOGNIZE AND DO
ANYTHING ABOUT THINGS BECAUSE OF
TRADITIONS
• ALSO, SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS DO NOT CHANGE
QUICKLY UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE
 HOW ATTITUDES (PREJUDICES)
AND ACTIONS (DISCRIMINATION) WORK
TOGETHER TO CLASSIFY ALL PEOPLE
DISCRIMINATES?
YES NO

ACTIVE TIMID
YES
BIGOT BIGOT

PREJUDICE?
FAIR- ALL-
NO WEATHER WEATHER
LIBERAL LIBERAL
• PREJUDICE AND
DISCRIMINATION BEGIN
AS ETHNOCENTRIC
ATTITUDES
• AS A RESULT, GROUPS
CAN BE PLACED IN A
SITUATION WHERE
THEY ARE SOCIALLY
DISADVANTAGED AND
LABELED
• A GROUP’S SITUATION,
OVER TIME, IS THUS
EXPLAINED AS A
RESULT OF INNATE
INFERIORITY RATHER
THAN LOOKING AT THE
SOCIAL STRUCTURE OF
REASONS; THE CYCLE
THEN REPEATS ITSELF
RACIAL AND ETHNIC GROUPS
• NATIVE AMERICANS
– AN AMERICAN STORY OF GROUP GENOCIDE
• EURO AMERICANS
– QUICKLY FORGOT WHY THEY HAD LEFT
THEIR OWN COUNTRIES AND DENIED
FREEDOM TO MANY GROUPS
• AFRICAN AMERICANS
– FORCED IMMIGRATION FOR LABOR
• ASIAN AMERICANS
– AMERICA’S “MODEL MINORITY GROUP”
• HISPANIC AMERICANS
– FACING MANY SOCIAL ILLS IN AMERICA
• PLURALISM SOME FOLKS ARE LUCKY
ENOUGH TO GET BEYOND
– DISTINCT GROUPS WITH PARITY THE SELF-IMPOSED
LIMITATIONS OF COLOR
• ASSIMILATION
– ADOPTION OF MAJORITY GROUP
CULTURE
– INTERBREEDING
• SEGREGATION
– PHYSICAL AND SOCIAL DISTANCE
– DE JURE AND DE FACTO SEGREGATION
• GENOCIDE
– ONE GROUP “KILLS OFF” ANOTHER
GROUP
 RACIAL/ETHNIC GROUPS
IN AMERICA
• NATIVE AMERICANS
– FIRST TO SETTLE THE ESTERN HEMISPHERE
• WHITE ANGLO-SAXON PROTESTANTS
– CAME TO DOMINATE AMERICA ONCE EUROPEAN
COLONIZATION BEGAN
• AFRICAN AMERICANS
– ESTABLISHMEHT OF SLAVERY IN THE NEW WORLD
• ASIAN AMERICANS
– CHEAP LABOR FOR MINES, THE RAILROADS, FARMING,
AND MUCH DISCRIMINATION
• HISPANIC AMERICANS
– THE SOUTHWEST MEXICAN AND EASTERN PUERTO RICAN
HISTORICAL CONNECTIONS
TWO KEY AREAS:
1) ENHANCE THE EDUCATIONAL PROCESS
2) INCREASE MEANINGFUL SOCIAL CONTACT

• EDUCATION
– MULTICULTURAL EDUCATION
– LEARN TO APPRECIATE DIVERSITY
• MEANINGFUL CONTACT
– DESIRE TO CHANGE
– HONEST, SELF-CRITIQUE OF LIFESTYLE
– PLAN FOR INCREASING SOCIAL CONTACT