Revised 11/05
RACE AND ETHNICITY
The fundamental question of the 20th century is the color line.
W.E.B. DuBois
Race permeates every institution, every relationship, and every individual in the United States.
Michael Omi and Howard Winant (1994—quoted Kendall, p. 321)
Once again, the nature vs nurture controversy appears—also emphasized by a system of inequality, so that one race cannot be “superior” without another’s being “inferior”—race is different, not better or worse—millions of years of adaptation to climate and interbreeding have created a diversity of “colors and shapes” around the world--
Skin color is biology—there are also other physical characteristics, but the line between physical and social is often blurred—are blacks better athletes due to longer thigh bones, for example, or because they are socialized to see sports as an opportunity for upward mobility?
Race is a category of people who have been singled out as superior or inferior, often on the basis of real or imagined physical characteristics such as skin color, hair texture, eye shape—the social references to some of these groups (African-Americans, Mexican-Americans, Asian-Americans) shows cultural adaptation as well as background---Native Americans are another group—this is the idea of race, not physical differentiation
In the 19th century, some biologists divided the world into three racial categories:
- Caucasian—relatively light skin and fine hair
- Negroid—darker skin and coarser hair
- Mongoloid—people with yellow or brown skin and distinctively shaped eyelids—
Racial differences based on phenotypical differences, such as skin color, does not correlate with genotypical differences, based on differences in genetic makeup—not only are there enormous genetic similarities among the races but interbreeding over centuries has further mingled the biological characteristics—
Ethnicity (from Greek ethnos meaning :”people” or “nation”)is a collection of people who are distinguished, or who distinguish themselves, by a shared culture or nationality characteristics—share five basic characteristics
- Unique cultural traits—such a language, clothing holidays or religious practices
- A sense of community—often reflected in organizations like fraternal groups, churches, immigrant societies—both formal and informal
- A feeling of ethnocentrism
- Ascribed membership from birth
- Territoriality—occupy a distinct geographic area (Little Italy, Greektown) by choice or for self-protection
Often some confusion—are Jews a race or an ethnic group?
Ethnocentrism—sense that one culture is inherently superior to all others—a great myth is that some races are “smarter” than others, or superior in other ways—Hitler’s “Aryan supremacy” is simply an extreme example of race superiority (targeted gypsies, Jews, Slavs, homosexuals and people with mental and physical disabilities)—was also political, and organizers and communists were the first attacked—
There is no longer such a thing as a pure race—biologists cannot even agree on how many races exist today—estimates range up to 2,000, according to Ashley Montagu (1964) who identified 40 different races—even “one drop of blood” spoiled racial purity in the Old South--
Manuel Castells believes that ethnicity has been a fundamental source of meaning and recognition throughout human history:
Ethnicity is a founding structure of social differences, and social recognition, as well as discrimination, in many contemporary societies from the United States to sub-Saharan Africa. It has been, and it is, the basis for uprisings in search of social justice, as for Mexican Indians in Chiapas . . . as well as the irrational rationale for ethnic cleansing as practiced by the Bosnian Serbs. . . . And it is, to a large extent, the cultural basis that induces networking and trust-based transactions in the new business world, from Chinese business networks . . .to the ethnic “tribes” that determine success in the new global economy. (1997—quoted in Kendall, p. 321)
The “color line” has been important since 1619 in the US, when the first free black showed up in Virginia—slavery followed, and its culture was racism—took on a global element as ? million Africans were brought into the US—
Majority and minority groups—Kendal suggests using
Dominant group—one that is advantaged and has superior resources and rights in a society—may be a numerical minority, as the Boers--
Subordinate group—whose members, because of cultural or physical characteristics, are disadvantaged and subject to unequal treatment by the dominant group and who regard themselves as objects of collective discrimination—tend to marry among themselves—strengthens the sense of identity
Louis Wirth (1945) defined this as a minority group (Henslin, p. 213)—not necessarily a numerical minority—defined by power, not population—in California, for example, 54% of families do not speak English as a first language (2005)—
Minority groups are the result of geographic expansion—within a small tribe, there was only one culture but once the tribe moved and interacted with others, ethnic conflicts began, as did the concept of dominant and inferior cultures and status--
Prejudice (from the Latin prae “before” + judicium “judgment”)—a negative attitude based on faulty generalizations [?] about members of a selected racial or ethnic group—can be either positive or negative—
Stereotypes—overgeneralization about the appearance, behavior or other characteristics of members of particular categories—
Racism—sets of attitudes and beliefs that is used to justify the superior treatment of one racial or ethnic group and the inferior treatment of other groups—in the US, the question of “whiteness” is complicated by ethnic immigrants: how long do they have to be in the US to be considered “white?”—tends to intensify in times of economic hard times—based on the competitive economic system--
Overt racism—public and even “legal”—sometimes it becomes a major social policy, like “the white man’s burden”—social power is confused with racial superiority--
Subtle—
Theories of Prejudice—a variant of the kiss-up/kick-down, more academically known as the frustration-aggression hypothesis, expressed by psychologist John Dollard (1939)—people who fail to achieve a highly desired status respond with a pattern of hatred toward others, especially subordinate social groups—often find scapegoats, a person incapable of offering resistance to the hostility or aggression of others—prejudice, according to symbolic interactionists, is learned behavior as children imitate adults, and are given smiles for derogatory remarks—positive prejudice overemphasizes the qualities of a particular race—most prejudice, however, is negative—as we treat people badly, the labels become a self-fulfilling prophecy—block out rational thoughts--
“Labels” or slur words intensify prejudice—cause selective perception, allowing us to see certain qualities while ignoring others
Anthony Greenwald ( ) created the “Implicit Association Test,” to evaluate reaction to words/pictures to show that all races learn biased perceptions—they are called “ethnic maps” Henslin, p. 218)
Eugene Hartley (1946) did a research survey on prejudice, and used imaginary names (Wallonians, Pireneans, Danireans), and people responded with negative answers (Henslin, p. 217) to prove that people can be prejudiced about other people they have never met!—the whole issue of prejudice was a major topic after WWII, which raised all sorts of issues about Germans and prejudice
Discrimination is an action, based on social thinking—we call it “unfair,” but many think it is simply part of a natural order--
Ashley Doane proposed four factors that heighten or lessen a sense of discrimination:
- relative size
- power
- appearance
- discrimination
If a group is relatively small, it is sensitive to elements of discrimination but a majority culture believes that its culture is the only culture, and cannot understand feelings of discrimination (Henslin, p. 216)
Genocide—the attempt to totally destroy a people because of their race or ethnicity—all history is the history of genocides—can focus on extermination of Native Americans (95% of them were killed), Ireland, South Africa, the Nazis or Rwanda—
Population transfer—when a dominant group makes conditions so bad for “inferior” groups that these groups leave—serves the same purpose of ethnic cleansing—the departures seems to be a “choice” and voluntary—direct transfer is the expulsion of certain groups—segregation is the separation of certain groups who remain within the geographic boundaries—apartheid is a modern example
Assimilation—the absorption of a minority culture into the dominant culture—a process—forced assimilation, the dominant group refuses to allow a minority to practice its own culture (language, religion, folkways)—permissible assimilation allows the mingling to take place by evolution
Multiculturalism—also called pluralism—minority groups are able to keep their own identities—freely participate in the country’s institutions--
Theodor W Adorno (1950), who fled from the Nazis, theorized that highly prejudiced individuals tend to have authoritarian personalities, characterized by excessive conformity, submissiveness to authority, intolerance, insecurity, a high level of superstition and rigid, stereotypical thinking (quoted Kendall, p. 327)—he looked at childhood, with parents who are anxious about status but show little love in raising their children—gave tests in 1950 to 2,000 people, measuring both anti-Semitism and support for authoritarian leaders—developed the theory of the authoritarian personality who dislike ambiguity, believe issues are either right or wrong, and are uncomfortable mingling with people of different cultures—this study provoked literally thousands more, that determined that people who are older, less educated, less intelligent and from a lower social class are more likely to be authoritarian—(overlooks the whole question of class culture and socialization: the culture of obedience)
As sociologists William I. Thomas and Dorothy S. Thomas observed, “If people define situations as real, they are real in their consequences.” (Henslin, p. 213) –people act on beliefs, not just on facts-
Emory Bogardus (1925) developed a scale to measure social distance—the extent to which people are willing to interact and establish relationships with members of other racial or ethnic groups—
EFFECTS OF DISCRIMINATION
Economy—blacks receive lower wages—use the Ucitelle article on the decline of blacks/unionism (11/05)
Health care—life expectancy, infant mortality—also lighter-skilled people are more likely to receive transplants—more preventive care given to whites, by both black and white doctors—
Housing and Incarceration—also major areas—
Education and literacy—
Cultural privilege—look at it from a global perspective—Henslin (p. 221) has an excellent project on the ”cultural knapsack”—can people participate as individuals without having other people regard them as “typical of a group”
Henslin covers some of the major groups in the US-the theory of rising expectations
RACIAL AND ETHNIC GROUPS
WASPS—the class/gender/race of privilege—it is such a dominant culture that most participants do not even recognize it as a distinct culture—
"WASP" is an acronym for white Anglo-Saxon Protestants. When someone calls someone a WASP today, they usually mean to imply that the person is uptight, reserved and/or elitist, regardless of their background. The stereotype of the uptight, upper class WASP is based on the assumption that white Anglo-Saxon Protestants are both genetically (white Anglo-Saxons) and religiously (Protestant) predisposed to acting like, well, snobs.
The term "WASP" was made popular by E. Digby Baltzell in his 1964 book, "The Protestant Establishment: Aristocracy & Caste in America." Baltzell used the term to refer to the American cultural, political and economic elite--preppy, Ivy League and country club types. These days, the label is used much more loosely to refer to people--almost always white, sometimes Protestant--who fit the behavioral stereotype of a WASP. The Anglo-Saxon part of the term--which refers to descendents of Germanic and Danish people who settled in the British Isles and are by definition white--has become irrelevant.
White ethnics—also suffer discrimination—“trailer trash”—
Trailer Trash Talkin' TurleenIf Barbie makes you want to puke, and memories of your childhood being forced to play with Barbie dolls induces nightmares, we have the cure. Introducing Trailer Trash Talkin' Turleen. Yes that's right, a burping, beer drinking, cigarette smoking, 12 inch tall doll, the doll exemplifies true American White Trash. Press her belly, (it's big because she's got one in the oven) and she will share some pearls of wisdom with the sophistication and style that makes her family and third grade teacher proud.
"..Pour me a double, I'mdrinking for two..."
- Turleen /
Jewish immigrants—a race or an ethnic group?
African-Americans—history is well-known through the civil rights movement—should blacks aspire to become white?
Latinos—in Maryland, this is an emergent culture, but people are still not aware of its history—
- Chicanos (Mexican-Americans)
- Puerto Ricans
- Cuban Americans
An excellent observation of social mobility among Chicanos is at:
Race or social class?—William Julius Wilson argued (1978) that class has become more important to blacks than race—the “two black worlds” created by social mobility—other sociologists insist that this view overlooks continuing discrimination—followed the work of DuBois and Oliver C. Cox (1948) who suggested that African Americans were enslaved because they were the cheapest and best workers the plantation owners could find for the heavy labor—
“Of course, the regrettable sideswipe against "liberal New Yorkers" is another instance of the erroneous idea that caste, class and race are more or less the same sort of thing. It's time we drove a stake through the idea. Fortunately, Oliver C. Cox completed that thankless task more than sixty years ago.In the 1940s, Lloyd Warner, W. Allison Davies, Kingsley Davies, John Dollard, Buell Gallagher and other sociologists claimed that race relations in the South between whites and blacks constituted a caste system.
But as Cox wrote, "the most insidious analogy ... rests in the idea of life membership in each group" [3]. To cite the simplest, non-trivial example: there is no such thing as a half-Brahmin or a quarter-Sudra or a one-eighth Untouchable; in the caste system, blood has a different cultural import [5]. Endogamyn. Marriage within one's own tribe or group as required by custom or law.† and hypergamyn. The practice of marrying into an equal or more prestigious social group or caste.† have been overstated aspects of the caste system. Mixing has two distinct meanings: merging or shuffling. Mixing races dilutes races; however, mixing (sub)castes either leaves the system intact or creates a new sub-caste. As Cox observed: It should be emphasized that a definition of a 'caste' does not define the 'caste system.' We have shown elsewhere that upper-caste men have always been able to marry women of lower castes without disturbing the caste system, a procedure which could not be sanctioned in the south. Endogamy may be an isolator of social classes, castes, tribes, sects, or any other social groups which think they have something to protect; hence the final test of caste is not endogamy but the social values which endogamy secures [3]. (italics mine)
Cox demonstrated that the social values -- reflected in what people can do -- of a racist society and those of a caste system are very different. The way one does business, makes love, gives to charity, worships god, and handles conflict are all fundamentally different. Inter-caste rivalry and jealousy tend to strengthen the caste system, not weaken it!
In short, racist societies are fragile whereas the Hindu caste system is anything but. The three hundred years of US history is marked by several bloody slave rebellions; similarly, the peasant /serf rebellions in feudal Russia led to death tolls in the millions. It's very hard to think of comparable statistics in the 3000-plus year history of the caste system.
Finally, race is not very good at separating people and/or division of labor. If everyone looks more or less the same, race proves to be too weak a classificatory criterion. Should one hire a talented octoroon accountant with perhaps a blob of Jewish blood over an incompetent melungeon who may merely look white? The computational costs begin to add up.
In the caste system, however, there are dozens of subtle cultural (not biological) cues. The way a person drinks water, sits, uses words; the food they eat; their names; the people who can vouch for them; the festivals they observe and the gods they worship; and most importantly, the things they find "impure" or "pure."
Class, Closure and Containment
Another good opinion on race and class is at:
Asian-Americans—long history of discrimination in the US, including The Chinese Exclusion act (1882)—ironically, The Statute of Liberty was dedicated in 1886—
- Chinese-Americans
- Japanese-Americans
- Korean Americans
- Filipino Americans
- Indochinese Americans
Native Americans—
What is the remedy for past discrimination—reparations? Casinos? Reservations? Affirmative action? Preferential hiring?
Middle Eastern Americans—became a ferocious issue after 9/11/2001—all of the stereotypes were intensified—clearly a distinct culture (dress/religion/food/gender relations)—perfect example of scapegoats
Gay Americans—while not a separate racial or ethnic group, as defined, they are still subject to all of the discrimination and scapegoating and hatreds--
Immigration and exclusion—a major topic as the US economy goes sour
DIVERSITY AND MULTICULTURALISM—also called ethnic pluralism—the critical race theory, which is directed at working-class experience—try to reach interest convergence, so that large groups will see it as self-interest to eliminate racial and ethnic conflicts—keep the ruling class in power—formal equality under the klaw does not constitute real equality--
Statistics prove that the US is becoming more racially and ethnically diverse, just as the economy is suffering from its exposure to the global economy—