Chapter Ten: Race and Ethnicity. Inequalities of Race and Ethnicity 22 Chapter Overview Laying the Sociological Foundation Theories of Prejudice Global

Chapter Ten:Race and Ethnicity

Inequalities of Race and Ethnicity2

Chapter Chapter OverviewOverview

Laying the

Sociological

Foundation

Theories of Prejudice

Global Patterns of

Intergroup Relations

Laying the

Sociological

Foundation

Theories of Prejudice

Global Patterns of

Intergroup Relations

Race and Ethnic

Relations in the

United States

Looking Toward the

Future

Race and Ethnic

Relations in the

United States

Looking Toward the

Future

Inequalities of Race and Ethnicity

Understanding Race

RaceA category created by

society to classify people on perceived similar physical characteristics

Is Race a Myth or Is Race a Myth or Fact?Fact?


Race - Group with Biological Characteristics

Myth 1 - Idea That Any Race is Superior

All Races Have Geniuses and IdiotsM

yth 2 - Idea that Any Race is Pure Human Characteristics Flow Endlessly Together

4

Race and Race and EthnicityEthnicity


1. Current scientific thinking: “race” as a biological reality does not exist...

2. No set number of “races” in nature...

3. Rather, “races” are social constructs, reflecting divisions based on arbitrary physical traits.

Relevance of Race as Scientific Concept


Understanding Ethnicity •E

thnicityStatuses based on cultural heritage and

shared “feelings of peoplehood”• Key factors that heightened or reduce our

sense of ethnic identity• Relative size, power, appearance, and

discrimination

•Ethnic groupA category of people set apart from

others because of distinctive customs and lifestyles

•Ethnic workThe way people construct their ethnicity


M

inority Group - People Singled Out for Unequal

Treatment by the Dominant Group

D

ominant Group – Group with wealth, power, and

privileges

M

inority groups are not necessarily small in number 7

Minority and Minority and Dominant GroupsDominant Groups


M

embership is an Ascribed StatusP

hysical or Cultural Traits Held in Low

Esteem by Dominant GroupU

nequal TreatmentH

igh ingroup marriage: marry within own

groupA

n awareness of inequalities and feel strong

group solidarity 8

Characteristics of a Characteristics of a Minority GroupMinority Group


Stereotype Static, oversimplified

ideas about a category of people

Attitudinal Tools of Domination

Prejudice Preconceived judgments

about a category of people

Racism Belief that one race is

inherently superior or inferior to another


PrejudiceA

n irrationally based negative, or sometimes positive, attitude toward a certain group of people.

An attitude or subjective feelings

Sets group boundaries

Promotes social solidarity and identity (we-ness and sense of superiority).


Psychological Perspectives

Frustration and Scapegoats – people who are unable to strike out at the real source of their frustration look for someone to blame

The Authoritarian Personality – Theodor Adorno created a survey which measured: ethnocentrism, Anti-Semitism, and support for strong, Authoritarian leaders and found that these criteria were connected

11

Approaches to PrejudiceApproaches to Prejudice


Stereotyping

One common reaction to strangers is to categorize them broadly.

An oversimplified generalization by which we attribute certain traits or characteristics to a group without regard to individual differences

Positive stereotypes

Distort reality, but are nevertheless socially approved images held by one group about another.

Easily becomes ingrained within everyday thinking.



Internalization of Dominant Norms

People can learn to be prejudice against own group

Members of groups held in low esteem by society may, as a result, have low self-esteem themselves.

Banaji & Greenwald, “Implicit Association Test”



Socialization

Individuals acquire the values, attitudes, beliefs, and perceptions of their culture or subculture, including religion, nationality, and social class.The child conforms to the parents’ expectations in acquiring an understanding of the

world and its people

We learn the prejudices of our parents and others which than becomes a part of our values and beliefs.

CriticismDoes not explain the origin of prejudice or why prejudice intensifies or diminishes

over the years.



DiscriminationD

iscriminationUnequal treatment of people because of their group

membership

Types of DiscriminationPersonal (Individual) discrimination

Legal discrimination

Institutional discrimination


Institutional DiscriminationT

he complex societal arrangements that restrict the life chances and choices of minority groups in comparison with those in the dominant group.

Embedded into the social institutions.

Benefits are given to one group are withheld from another.

Maintains the disadvantage position of minority groups.

Examples: sentencing inequalities, hiring practices, segregated housing, education, health care, etc.


Health Care InequalityD

iscrimination is does not have to be deliberate People unconsciously discriminate and those who are being

discriminated against are unaware of it.I

nferior Health Care African American mother is more than three times likely to die in

childbirth than a white mother. African American babies has more than twice the chance of dying in

infancy than does a white baby R

ace is a factor in Medical decisions The researchers examined hospital records of about 40,000 Medicare

beneficiaries Whites are more likely than blacks to be given cardiac catheterization (a test

to detect blockage of blood vessels)


Contemporary Discrimination in the United States

Racial Profiling

Refers to the action taken by law enforcement officials on the presumption that individuals of one race or ethnicity are more likely to engage in criminal activity.

Leads law enforcement to routinely stop vehicles driven by Blacks and Latinos in the expectation of finding drugs in their possession.

2003 U.S. Department of Justice issued guidelines rejecting racial profiling In the statement it included a broad and largely

undefined exception when “national security” concerns come into play.


Criminal Justice System

Minorities are suspected and arrested for more crimes than whites.

Minorities face more serious charges and are given more serious penalties and longer sentences than whites for the same crimes.

Prison and Capital Punishment (1998)Black defendants were 38% more likely to be sentenced to die than others

who committed similar crimes.African Americans constitute slightly more than 12% of the American

population They account for more than 50% of all federal and state prisoners


In the Workplace and EconomicallyT

he Civil Rights Act of 1964 dramatically altered historic patterns of discrimination

Mandated that the government take affirmative action to ensure “equality of employment opportunity”

For several decades, affirmative action accomplished a great deal 1960 10% of African American households were in the middle class 1990 30% of African American households were in middle-class 1990 their number in high-paying professional and technical

occupations had increased by over 100%


Even with such gains there still remains a sizeable economic gap between whites and most other minorities.


Functionalist – Sherif Study

Prejudice is functional as it brings people together

Can create negative stereotypes (dsyfunction)

Conflict – Prejudice is beneficial to the dominant group as it keeps minority groups oppressed

Power Split Labor Force

Symbolic Interactionist – Labels lead to selective perception – we see what we want to see

Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2009 22


Dominant-Minority Group Relations

Cultural PluralismWhen groups cooperate while still retaining their distinctive identities and

lifestylesA

ssimilationProcess where minority groups lose their identities & conform to the dominant

groupS

egregationPhysical or social exclusion of minority groups from dominant group activities

GenocideDeliberate and systematic elimination of minority group members


Race & Ethnic Diversity in U.S.

White Anglo-Saxon Protestants

Native Americans

Latinos

African-Americans

Euro-American Ethnics


Documents

Chapter Ten: Race and Ethnicity. Inequalities of Race and Ethnicity 22 Chapter Overview Laying the Sociological Foundation Theories of Prejudice Global