Race and Ethnicity Chapter 8

Pluralism

a cultural pattern of intergroup relations that encourages racial and ethnic variation and acceptance within a society

Assimilation

a pattern of relations between ethnic or racial groups in which the minority group is absorbed into the mainstream or dominant group, making society more homogeneous

Racism

a set of beliefs about the superiority of one racial or ethnic group, used to justify inequality and often rooted in the assumption that differences between groups are genetic

Ethnicity

a socially defined category based on common language, religion, nationality, history, or another cultural factor

Race

a socially defined category based on real or perceived biological differences between groups of people

Situational Ethnicity

an ethnic identity that can be either displayed or concealed depending on its usefulness in a given situation

Symbolic Ethnicity

an ethnic identity that is only relevant on specific occasions and does not significantly impact everyday life

Prejudice

an idea about the characteristics of a group that is applied to all members of that group and is unlikely to change regardless of the evidence against it

Race Consciousness

an ideology that acknowledges race as a powerful social construct that shapes our individual and social experience

Color-Blind Racism

an ideology that removes race as an explanation of any form of unequal treatment

Individual Discrimination

discrimination carried out by one person against another

Institutional Discrimination

discrimination carried out systematically by institutions (political, economic, educational, and others) that affect all members of a group who come into contact with it

Passing

presenting yourself as a member of a different racial or ethnic group than the one you were born into

Minority Group

social group that is systematically denied the same access to power and resources available to society's dominant groups though they are not necessarily fewer in number than the dominant groups

Cultural Appropriation

the adoption of cultural elements belonging to an oppressed group by members of the dominant group, without permission and often for the dominant groups gain

Genocide

the deliberate and systematic extermination of a racial, ethnic, national, or cultural group

Population Transfer

the forcible removal of a group of people from the territory they have occupied

Segregation

the physical and legal separation of groups by race or ethnicity

Racial Assimilation

the process by which racial minority groups are absorbed into the dominant group through intermarriage

Cultural Assimilation

the process by which racial or ethnic groups are absorbed into the dominant group by adopting the dominant group's culture

Privilege

unearned advantage accorded to members of dominant social groups (males, whites, heterosexuals etc)

Discrimination

unequal treatment of individuals based on their membership in a social group; usually motivated by prejudice