22. Race, Ethnicity, & Nation (I): Racism
Pressure to conform; who gives vivid description of the experience of colonised ppl?
*Black Skin, White Masks by Frantz Fanon* gives vivid description of experience of colonised peoples: Fanon was black citizen of French colony of Martinique, and experienced European racism firsthand. Describes the way fellow *Martiniquaises tried to adopt French culture, French pronunciation, French style etc* - and yet still faced prejudice from French people. Leads to existential failure to develop own sense of self. Practical evidence of this seen in *beauty products*: high sales of skin-whitening creams or hair-straightening products. in Africa, India, African-American areas. Pressure to 'look white.'
Karl Gunnar Myrdal and his take on inheritance of racism (he also termed 'underclass')
*Karl Gunnar Myrdal's American Dilemma: The Negro Problem & Modern Democracy* highlights particular problem of racial segregation in US history (and centrality to its sociology). *Myrdal highlights how white majority applied double standards:* Despite doctrine of equality in US constitution, African-Americans treated as less-than-equal even after end of slavery Continued assumption of African-American inferiority; some defenders of slavery argued slaves "not ready for freedom." *Myrdal suggests only serious government intervention could overcome racist attitudes:* need to improve minority access to education, housing, job security, with federal government backing. Even today, African-Americans first to suffer in crisis. *Myrdal insisted on activist sociology*: impossibility of impartiality, so we should recognise bias and work towards valuable goals
Prejudice vs Discrimination Who (2) conducted the CV experiment with names emily and greg and jamal and lakisha
*Prejudice: *Negative beliefs or opinions about others based on their group (gender, ethnicity) Discrimination:* Practices* that exclude, obstruct or harm people based on their group membership. Sociologists typically refer to individual's racist opinions and acts as* irrational prejudice or discrimination.* *Bertrand & Mullainathan, Are Emily & Greg more employable than Lakisha & Jamal?* sent identical CVs randomly-selected job adverts, different only in names at the top. CVs with 'white' names received 50% more callbacks than with 'black' names. While *prejudice may cause discrimination, not all racial discrimination is caused by racial prejudice:* One racial group may try to exclude others in order to protect their grasp on a small number of jobs. This may be unfair, but it's not necessarily associated with negative beliefs about other group.
Diff paradigms an their take on racism (see evernote)
*Structural functionalists* are (as always) more likely to view such differences as *positively functional.* *Symbolic interactionists* recognize conflict, but *don't necessarily see it as produced by malice.* *Critical theorists* explain racism by *struggles for domination*
Racialization who observed that racialization is a product of Europes justification to colonize?
*Unnecessary* use of 'racial' or 'ethnic' characteristics to distinguish people. Attempt to impose 'racial' interpretations on an issue with no basis in it. The idea of racial boundaries often emerged as a way to create boundaries between 'us' and 'them,' 'insider' and 'outsider' - an in particular to justify specific privileges: -*Hannah Arendt's* Origins of Totalitarianism argues that 'Race' emerged as Europeans sought an ideology to* justify treating those they colonized as unworthy* of equal rights. *This racialization leads to social problems*
Racial profiling
Deliberate targeting of specific racial or ethnic groups, especially by security forces, on the basis they're 'more likely' to be criminal. *Many of these institutional forms are explicitly racist:* they target racial groups directly and consciously: Canada limited non-European (esp. Chinese) immigration. Examples of residential schools, aimed at forcible integration of Aboriginal peoples into Euro-Canadian society, along with numerous violations of treaty rights. Even today, *state may persist in racialised practices*: *Racial profiling: *police will stop and search non-white citizens far more than whites; seen in airport security, for example. *Rules on speaking English or on accepted dress *
Social construction of race
Description of the way societies develop ideas of biological 'race,' looking at the reasons these categories emerge and the forms they take. Points to arbitrary, shifting definitions of races. *Biologists have helped us reject so-called biological race:* No clear genetic boundaries between so-called 'races.' Even 'scientific' racists couldn't agree on number of races! Sociologists therefore see* race as socially-constructed:* In era of slavery, US states varied in defining someone as 'black,' from 'One Drop Rule' to 'at least one parent.'\ This shows that the idea of race and the particular definitions it takes are subject to *social forces and transformations*.
Stereotype Threat by who? (2)
Effect of widespread social stereotypes about one's group on behaviour and performance. Stereotypes may result in increased anxiety due to fear of being judged by ethnic/gender group. *Claude Steele & Joshua Aronson* show effects of stereotypes on academic performance and other behaviour: When black students were reminded of broad myths about African-American academic performance, they were often extra-anxious, and* performed significantly worse on tests than if they were not cued up.* Similar responses seen in gendered groups too. The *perception that one is being judged can have material effect in addition to existing structural barriers.*
Race, racial group vs Ethnicity, ethnic group
Ethnicity, ethnic group: Group united by shared ancestry, cultural background, language etc. Race, racial group:Group defined by common visible features, e.g. skin colour, facial features, within a given society. Although* race is not biologically real, it is 'socially real' because people may act as if it's real*. Sociologists thus study the 'races' or 'racial groups' that societies operate with (and how defined). *Race is usually contrasted with ethnicity* (though any one person may be described both by their 'race' and their 'ethnicity'). Ethnicity is typically defined in terms of shared cultures.
Who describes the specific advantages of white people in North American society?
Feminist Peggy McIntosh describes specific advantages of white people in North American society: Able to cash cheques or use credit cards without suspicion; no need to worry how behaviour reflects on race as a whole. Crucially, McIntosh argues it's the* absence of obstacles that makes people unaware of problem of race: *White people rarely made conscious of race because they don't get prejudice from others. '*White' is thus treated as 'normal' *- because it's never subject of questioning, its privilege is hidden to those who enjoy it.
Race
Historically-contested term to describe a group of people assumed to share a common ancestry, physical features, personality characteristics etc.
Examples of ethnic inequalities
In Canada,* median income* of men is $30,404 and of women, $20,015; for black Canadians, figures are $24,343 & $19,026; for aboriginal people, it's $15,512 & $12,311 respectively. Similar statistical evidence for *underrepresentation in professional or managerial employment*, or as employers. John Porter's Vertical Mosaic suggested 1960s Canada run largely by British-origin families. In 1997, *Jason Lian & David Matthews *found improvements for some groups, *but many remaining inequalities.*
Institutional or structural racism vs Expressed racism
Institutional or structural racism: Racism as a property or outcome of certain social structures & institutions Expressed racism: rascism as expressed by individuals Typically, when *sociologists refer to 'racism,' we mean the institutional or structural form. *Usually, we will refer to *individual acts* or attitudes of *expressed racism* as *discrimination or prejudice*
Racial / Ethnic Socialisation
Learning socially-defined racial boundaries, stereotypes and roles. Learning what society expects of people of 'your' ethnicity, and what 'role' you have. *Symbolic interactionists* how ethnic & racial boundaries are constructed, so *people learn to treat them as 'real.'* Racial socialization may take form of children learning about their own culture through shared celebrations, history, values etc. But other factors contribute to the fixing of racial boundaries: *Neighbourhood segregation* by race/ethnicity creates the impression that such boundaries are 'real.' People may *learn prejudice from their parents.* *Racial socialization affects life chances.*Members of minorities may learn lower expectations due to lack of media representation etc, while dominant group has numerous role models
Orientalism whos term?
Saïd's term for the way Westerners constructed single image of entire "East." Asians depicted as mysterious, pre-modern. Edward Saïd's Orientalism describes the *particularly-damaging stereotypes dominant groups use about minorities:* Described as like 'savages': treated as less than fully human, or irrational, and expected to act like beasts. In the particular case of "the Orient," *Saïd points to the way Europeans describe whole area from Turkey to Japan as a 'mysterious,' 'magical' realm of superstition, violence, and despotic *rule by traditional emperors and viziers. Contrasts with progressive, free, democratic, scientific West. Saïd explores how such harmful images are constructed, and how they create hierarchies of values.
Institutional or structural racism
Systems, rules, practices with disproportionate effect on specific ethnic groups. May or may not be deliberately targeted at these groups; may be insensitive to differences. The most widespread forms of racism are manifest in social institutions, laws, and social structures, and may not intend racism: Similarly, *such racism may build on existing social inequalities:* Disadvantaged racial group may *live in poorer areas,* without access to good schools; credit scores based on neighborhood, making it harder for them to get loans and move elsewhere. *Lack of social capital*: those in dominant groups may offer jobs to those already in their circle, without (consciously) trying to exclude other races.
'Scientific' Racism Who (2) try to defend racist theories (such as African-Americans being less smart by nature)?
Term describes series of theories from mid-19th century till 1945 that claimed to provide a 'scientific' basis in biology that 'proved' superiority of a particular racial group. Before 19th century, concept of biological race unknown. Comte Arthur de Gobineau's Essay on the Inequality of Human Races (1853) founds attempts to *explain human history in terms of supposed innate characteristics of different groups.* *Darwinist theory of evolution misused to justify hierarchies of race:* Europeans portrayed as biologically superior to other 'races.' *Eugenics*, or selective breeding of humans supposed to improve humanity by breeding out 'undesirables.' Permitted in Alberta by Sexual Sterilisation Act of 1928 (no consent). Even today, some still try to defend racialist theories: e.g. *Murray & Herrnstein, *The Bell Curve (1994) used standardised IQ test scores to argue African-Americans were less smart by nature *85% of human genetic diversity can be found within 'races' *- i.e. there may be more genetic difference between two random Cambodians than between a Cambodian and a Norwegian.
Critical Race Theory
Theoretical analysis arguing that racism is integral to the fabric of Western (especially US) societies, in a way that consistently marginalizes, excludes, and disadvantages people of colour. Starting in legal studies, *Critical Race Theorists* have argued that the history of racism has left a* legacy of continued inequality. * Given this history, it's necessary for the *state and the law to recognize race *and take steps to redress it: Some scholars argue for* colour-blindness*, i.e. law and social institutions must treat everyone equally, and (they argue) this will produce fair, non-racist outcomes. CR theorists suggest that this just leaves those already on top (white people) in a position of unassailable power - *so positive discrimination* is required in order to bring fairness, taking material steps to remedy the situation.
Double conscious-ness whos term?
Visible minorities have two identities: member of nation ("Canadian", "American") but also ethnic group ("African-American"). Thus view selves through eyes of others. Sociologist *WEB DuBois *ID impact of experience of prejudice on African-Americans in *The Souls of Black Folk.* African-Americans become aware of *"living behind the Veil"* - an invisible barrier that separates them from rest of society. DuBois describes own first experience of prejudice, making him aware that he was viewed as different. Leads to '*double consciousness' of self*: whilst white Americans were just 'Americans,' black Americans were 'African-American' - both black and American. 'Double' also in sense *that minorities are aware of selves through categories dominant groups* use to describe them.
Social Distance who observed how socieities liked to distance themselves from ;outsiders;
Way of measuring how far people are willing to mix with members of other groups, and how far particular groups are excluded from majority of society. Emory S. Bogardus finds way to *measure extent of prejudice by asking people how much 'distance' they would want between themselves and members of another group.* *Higher scores = greater social distance = greater exclusion.* *Small, isolated communities particularly likely to want to exclude outsiders* and increase social distance; large urban areas show greater tolerance and smallest distance score. Social distance also shows who is *most excluded:* Romany/Gypsies subject to particular levels of intolerance; they are excluded almost everywhere, with universal prejudice
