ETHNICITY AND RELIGION

1. ETHNICITY AND RELIGION

2. ETHNIC DIVERSITY • Language • Students in Chicago are taught in Spanish, Greek, Italian, Polish, German, Creole, Japanese, Cantonese, or the language of a Native American tribe. • In the Detroit metropolitan area, classroom instruction is conveyed in 21 languages including Arabic, Portuguese, Ukrainian, Latvian, Lithuanian, and Serbian.

3. ETHNIC DIVERSITY • Germans are the largest ancestral group in the U.S. • In the 2000 census almost 1/6 of Americans claimed some German ancestry. • The U.S. has over 33 million Irish Americans while the Republic of Ireland had a population of 3.7 million in 1998 • Nearly 5 million people claim Swedish ancestry and there are 8.9 million people living in Sweden today.

4. WHITENESS • Race is socially constructed. • Two aspects of White as a race are useful to consider: • The historical creation of whiteness • How contemporary White people reflect on their racial identity.

5. WHITENESS • Whites as people do not think of themselves as a race or have a conscious racial identity • The only occasion when a White racial identity emerges is momentarily when Whites fill out a form asking for self-designation of race OR • On one of those occasions when they are culturally or socially surrounded by people who are not White.

6. WHITENESS • Unlike racial minorities, Whites downplay the importance of their racial identity while being willing to receive the advantages that come from being White.

7. WHITE PRIVILEGE • Being White or being successful in establishing a White identity carries with it distinct advantages. Some of those include: • Being considered financially reliable when using checks, credit cards, or cash. • Taking a job without having coworkers suspect it came about because of your race. • Never having to speak for all the people of your race.

8. WHITE PRIVILEGE • Also… • Watching t.v. or reading a newspaper and seeing people of your own race widely represented. • Speaking effectively in a large group without being called a credit to your race. • Assuming that if legal or medical help is needed your race will not work against you.

9. THE THIRD-GENERATION PRINCIPLE • Marcus Hansen maintained that the grandchildren of the original immigrants would increase their ethnic interest and awareness.

10. SYMBOLIC ETHNICITY • The evidence of assimilation and the signs of ethnic identity seem to support a pluralistic view of society. • Symbolic ethnicity-ethnic food, holidays, … • The ethnicity that does exist may be more a result of living in the U.S. than actual importing of practices from the past or the old country. • Ethnicity paradox facilitates full entry into the dominant culture.

11. PREJUDICE • Respectable bigotry--hostility toward White ethnics. • Are White ethnic groups more prejudiced than other Whites? • Andrew Greeley study shows NO • White ethnics went so far as to turn their backs on federal aid offered them because they did not want to be associated with Black-oriented programs.

12. IRISH AMERICANS • Pull factors (land) led the early Irish to emigrate to the U.S. • Irish Catholics tried to settle in Protestant colonies. • Protestant settlers of all national backgrounds were united in their hatred of Catholicism. • Others came as an alternative to prison or after signing articles of indenture. • The American Revolution temporarily stopped the flow of immigration.

13. IRISH AMERICANS AND THE POTATO FAMINE • In 1845 a fungus wiped out the potato crop of Ireland. Devastating starvation did not begin to recede until 1851. • Some 2 million fled mostly to England, but then many continued to the U.S. • From 1841-1890 over 3.2 million Irish arrived in the U.S. • This led to the creation of ethnic neighborhoods • By 1850, nativism became an open political movement. Voters began to demand a 21 year naturalization period.

14. IRISH AMERICANS AND SLAVERY • Ireland had a long antislavery tradition • 60,000 Irish signed an address in 1841 petitioning Irish Americans to join the abolitionist movement in the U.S. • In 1863 the Union government implemented a national conscription law to fight in the Civil War. • Draft Riots of 1863

15. IRISH AMERICANS AS WHITE AMERICANS • 1950s--a cap of 2,000 immigrants from any one European country led to the sporadic influx of illegal immigrants from the Republic of Ireland. • 1987-- Congressional action resulted in another 16,000 visas for Irish immigrants. • 2000--Census shows 30.5 million people identify as Irish, second only to German ancestry. • 2001--Of the 345 firefighters who perished in 9/11, 145 were members of the Emerald Society, the fire department’s Irish American fraternal order.

16. ITALIAN AMERICANS • Like the Irish, Italians immigrated during the colonial period. • Mass immigration began in the 1880’s. • The majority of immigrants were landless peasants from rural southern Italy, the Mezzogiorno. • Many received jobs through an ethnic labor contractor, the padrone. • By WWI, 90% of Italian girls and 99% of Italian boys in NYC were leaving school at age 14 to work. The padrone system had died out by then.

17. ITALIAN AMERICANS AND THE CHURCH • The Catholic Church was a very important part of Italian American’s lives at this time. • However, they practiced different from Irish Americans. • Weekly attendance was overshadowed by the religious aspects of the feste (festivals) in honor of saints • The Irish viewed the feste as practically a form of paganism. • Today, more than 70% of Italian Americans identify themselves as Roman Catholics. • In turn-of-the century New Orleans, Italian Americans established special ties to the Black community because both groups were marginalized in southern society.

18. ITALIAN AMERICANS AND CRIME • Arriving in U.S. in the bottom layers, Italians lived in decaying, crime-ridden neighborhoods that became known as Little Italy's. • Form some Italians, crime was a means of upward mobility. • U.S. troops including 500,000 Italian Americans, battled Italy during WWII. • Italian Americans were segregated in California and 10,000 were relocated from coastal areas. • 1,800 Italian Americans (citizens of Italy) were placed in an interment camp in Montana. They were eventually freed on Columbus Day 1942.

19. ITALIAN AMERICANS AS WHITE • Gradually Italians became White and enjoyed the privileges that come with it. • Not until 1962 was an Italian American named to a cabinet-level position. • Geraldine Ferraro’s nomination as the Democratic vice presidential candidate in 1984 was an achievement for Italian Americans as well as for women. • In 2000, the 15.9 million people of Italian ancestry accounted for about 6% of the population. They are the 7th largest immigrant group.

20. POLISH AMERICANS • The primary force for the exodus of Poles was the changing political status of Poland. • Like the Irish and Italians, they began arriving in Jamestown, VA in 1608. • It is difficult to document the size of this immigration because at various times Poland or parts of the country became part of Germany (Prussia), Austria-Hungary, and the Soviet Union.

21. POLISH AMERICANS AND COMMUNITY • Polonia or Polish American communities were more likely to begin in cities unlike the Irish or Italian communities. • Some Polish immigrants worked in mines in Pennsylvania • Single, male immigrants took shelter through a system of inexpensive boarding houses called tryzmanie bortnkók (brother keeping).

22. POLISH AMERICANS AND RELIGION • Most Polish immigrants who came to the U.S. prior to WWI were Roman Catholic. • During the first part of the 20th century, Jewish Poles began immigrating to escape the hostility they felt in Europe that culminated in the Holocaust. • In 1978 Karol Józef Wojtyla was ordained as Pope John Paul II. • As of 2006, 54 Roman Catholic churches in metropolitan Chicago still offer Polish-language masses.

23. THE LANGUAGE DIVIDE • Language is key to people’s functioning in a society. • Language is critical in relation to how they see themselves. • When the language is different from the dominant culture, it can be a source of hardship and stigmatization. • About 18% of the population speaks a language other than English.

24. LANGUAGES MOST FREQUENTLY SPOKEN AT HOME (Other than English and Spanish)

25. SPANISH SPEAKERS • As of 2002, about 23 percent of Mexican Americans are English dominant • 26% are Bilingual • 51% are Spanish Dominant • Nationally, 70% of Latino school children report speaking Spanish at home • Until 20-30 years ago, Spanish-speaking children were in segregated schools.

26. BILINGUAL EDUCATION • 1970 Cisneros v. Corpus Christi Independent School District ruled that de jure segregation of Mexican Americans was unconstitutional. • Even in integrated schools, Latino children were given separate, unequal treatment. • “No Spanish” was a rule enforced throughout the Southwest Florida and NYC schools in the 1960s. • From 1855 to 1968, teaching in any language other than English was illegal in California. • Bilingualism is the use of two or more languages in places of work or educational facilities.

27. BILINGUAL EDUCATION • 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo between the U.S. and Mexico guaranteed the right of Mexicans to maintain their culture. • All official publications were to be bilingual, but “English only” became the social norm. • Bilingual education is a program designed to allow students to learn academic concepts in their native language while they learn a second language. • English immersion is teaching in English by teachers who know the students’ native language but use it only when students do not understand the lesson.

28. OFFICIAL LANGUAGE • In the U.S., repeated efforts have been made to introduce a constitutional amendment declaring English as the nation’s official language. • The Voting Rights Act of 1965 requires voting information to be available in multiple languages.

29. RELIGIOUS PLURALISM • Today there are more than 1,500 religious bodies in the U.S. • More than 66 million members of the Roman Catholic Church • Sects with fewer than 1,000 adherents • In 1900, an estimated 96% of the nation was Christian • Just over 1% nonreligious • About 3% all other faiths • In 2005 82% are Christian • Nearly 11% nonreligious • About 7% all other faiths

30. RELIGIOUS PLURALISM • The First Amendment prohibits against establishing a state religion • A denomination is a large, organized religion that is not linked officially with the state or government. • The largest denomination in the U.S. is Catholicism • Non-Christian denominations in the U.S. with more than 1 million each include • Jews (over 6 million) • Muslims (over 7 million) • Buddhists (between 5 and 6 million) • Hindus (over 1 million)

31. RELIGIOUS CHARTS

32. ETHNICITY, RELIGION, AND SOCIAL CLASS • Life chances • According to Andrew Greeley, ethnicity is a stronger predictor of attitudes and beliefs than religion. • Except in the area of political party allegiance. • Ethclass (ethnicity and class). • Ethnicity, Religion and Social class all combine to • Form one’s identity, • Determine one’s social behavior, and • Limit one’s life chances.

33. CIVIL RELIGION • Money • Pledge of Allegiance • The pledge did not include the phrase “under God” until 1954. • Inaugural speeches

34. DIVERSITY AMONG ROMAN CATHOLICS • By 2006 Latinos account for 44% of all Roman Catholic parishioners. • In 2006 nearly one-third of new priests ordained were foreign-born

35. DIVERSITY AMONG PROTESTANTS • We can identify 4 “generic theological camps”: • Liberals: United Church of Christ (Congregationalists) and Episcopalians • Moderate: Disciples of Christ, Methodists, and Presbyterians • Conservatives: American Lutherans and American Baptists • Fundamentalists: Missouri Synot Lutherans, Southern Baptists, and Assembly of God

36. RELIGION AND INCOME

37. RELIGION AND INCOME/EDUCATION • All Protestant groups draw members from each social stratum. • Religion becomes a mechanism for signaling social mobility. • A person who is moving up in wealth and power may seek out a faith associated with a higher social ranking. • The same is true of education.

38. RELIGION AND EDUCATION

39. WOMEN AND RELIGION • Religious beliefs have often placed women in an exalted but protect position. • Meaning they are “protected” from becoming leaders. • The exception is the Christian Science church where the majority of practitioners and readers are women. • The Bureau of Census shows that 6% of clergy were women in 1983 and 14% in 2005.

40. RELIGION AND THE U.S. SUPREME COURT • Remember the First Amendment declares a separation between church and state. • Four issues that continue to require clarification • School prayer • Secessionist minorities • Creationism • Public display of religious symbols

41. 1. SCHOOL PRAYER • In 1992, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in Lee v. Weisman that prayer at a junior high school graduation in Providence, RI violated the U.S. Constitution’s mandate of separation between church and state.

42. 2. SECESSIONIST MINORITIES • Groups such as the Amish, who reject both assimilation and coexistence. • In 1990 the Supreme Court ruled that prosecuting people who use illegal drugs as part of a religious ritual is not a violation of the First Amendment guarantee of religious freedom. • In 1993 the Supreme Court unanimously overturned a local ordinance in FL that banned ritual animal sacrifice • The Santeria religion

43. 3. CREATIONISM • People who support the literal interpretation of the Bible are known as creationists. • Intelligent design (ID)is a view that life is so complex that it must have been created by a higher intelligence. • In 2005 a federal judge in Kitzmiller v. Dove Area School District ended a Pennsylvania school district intention to require the presentation of ID.

44. 4. PUBLIC DISPLAYS OF RELIGIOUS SYMBOLS • Can a manger scene be erected on public property? • How about a cross or star atop a water tower overlooking an entire town? • In 1995, the Supreme Court ruled that tax-supported religious displays on public government property may be successfully challenged but are not permissible if they are made more secular. • In 1995, the Court clarified the issue by stating that privately sponsored religious displays may be allowed on public property if other forms of expression are permitted in the same location.

45. THE AMISH • Began migrating to North America in the early 18th century and settled first in eastern Pennsylvania. • Also known as the Pennsylvania Dutch. • The Old Order Amish Mennonite Church • By 2003 there were about 1,400 Old Order Amish settlements in the U.S. and Canada. • About 180,000 Amish • Approximately 75% live in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Indiana.

46. THE AMISH • Amish practice self-segregation • A settlement is not larger than 75 baptized members. • There are no church buildings (they meet in homes). • Each district has a bishop, 2-4 preachers and an elder. • Old Order Amish services are conducted in German with a mixture of English

47. THE AMISH CULTURE • Known for their plain clothing and noncomformist way of life. • The practice of Meidung, or shunning, persists. • Social norms or Ordnung are “understandings” which specify • the color and style of clothing, • color and style of buggies, • the use of horses for fieldwork, • the use of the Pennsylvania Dutch dialect, • worship services in the homes, • unison singing without instruments, and • marriage within the church.

48. THE AMISH CULTURE • The Ordnung prohibits • Filing a lawsuit, • Entering the military service, • Divorce, • Using air transportation, • And even using wall-to-wall carpeting • Exceptions to the Ordnung include • Using chemical fertilizers, insecticides, and pesticides • The use of indoor bathroom facilities • Modern medical and dental practice

49. THE AMISH • Education • Amish education ends at about age 13 because the community feels their members have received all the schooling necessary to prosper as Amish people. • In 1972 the U.S. Supreme Court, in Yoder v. Wisconsin, allowed Wisconsin Amish to escape prosecution from laws that required parents to send their children to school to age 18. • Stratification is absent among the Old Order Amish because the truly regard one another as equal. • Amish youth test their subculture’s boundaries during a period of discovery called rumspringe, a term that means “running around.”