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Inequality by Race and Ethnicity

Inequality by Race and Ethnicity. The Privileges of the Dominant. The Social Construction of Race and Ethnicity Immigration and New Ethnic Groups Explaining Inequality by Race and Ethnicity Patterns of Prejudice and Discrimination. The Privileges of the Dominant.

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Inequality by Race and Ethnicity

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  1. Inequality by Race and Ethnicity • The Privileges of the Dominant • The Social Construction of Race and Ethnicity • Immigration and New Ethnic Groups • Explaining Inequality by Race and Ethnicity • Patterns of Prejudice and Discrimination

  2. The Privileges of the Dominant • One aspect of discrimination often overlooked is privileges dominant groups enjoy at expense of others • McIntosh: • Rarely needed to step out of comfort zone • Skin color (white) opened doors • Whiteness made job of parenting easier • Others did not evaluate her in racial terms

  3. The Privileges of the Dominant • Racialformation: sociohistorical process in which racial categories are created, inhibited, transformed, and destroyed • Social construction of race: process of defining a group as a race based in part on physical characteristics as well as historical, cultural, and economic factors

  4. The Privileges of the Dominant • Stereotypes: unreliable generalizations about members of group that do not recognize individual differences • Racial group: minorities set apart from others by obvious physical differences • Ethnic group: Set apart from others primarily because of its national origin or distinctive cultural patterns

  5. Race • Each society determines which “obvious” differences are important while ignoring others • Racial and ethnic composition of U.S. population will change more in next 100 years than in the last 100

  6. Table 6-1: Racial and Ethnic Groups in the United States, 2006

  7. Figure 6-1: Racial and Ethnic Groups in the United States, 1500-2100 (Projected)

  8. Ethnicity • Ethnic group: Set apart from others primarily because of its national origin or distinctive cultural patterns • Distinction between racial and ethnic minorities not always clear-cut • Distinction between racial and ethnic groups is socially significant

  9. Immigration and New Ethnic Groups • Significant segment of population of U.S. made up of White ethnics whose ancestors arrived from Europe • Symbolicethnicity: emphasis on concerns such as ethnic food or political issues rather than deeper ties to one’s ethnic heritage

  10. History of Immigration • Contemporary diversity of U.S. reflects centuries of immigration • 1920s: preference to people from western Europe • Late 1930s and early 1940s: allowed Jewish refugees to escape Nazi regime • Since 1960s: policies encourage immigration of people who have relatives in U.S. or those who have needed skills • Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986

  11. Figure 6-2: Legal Migration in the United States, 1820-2010

  12. Functions of Immigration • Immigration performs valuable functions • For receiving society: • Alleviates labor shortages • For sending nation: • Can relieve economies unable to support large numbers of people • Dysfunctions: • Areas with high concentration of immigrants may not meet short-term social needs • Loss of skills to developing countries

  13. The Conflict Approach to Immigration • White ethnics and racial minorities often antagonistic toward one another because of economic competition • Theorists note how much of debate over immigration phrased in economic terms

  14. Explaining Inequality by Race and Ethnicity • Functionalist Perspective • Nash’s 3 functions that racially prejudiced beliefs provide to the dominant group: • Moral justification for maintaining unequal society • Discourage subordinate groups from questioning their status • Encourage support for the existing order

  15. Explaining Inequality by Race and Ethnicity • Functionalist Perspective • Rose identified dysfunctions associated with racism • Society must invest time and money to defend barriers to full participation • Racial prejudice undercuts goodwill and diplomatic relations between nations • Society that practices discrimination fails to use resources of all individuals • Discrimination aggravates social problems

  16. Explaining Inequality by Race and Ethnicity • Conflict Perspective • Exploitation theory: Racism keeps minorities in low-paying jobs and supplies the dominant group with cheap labor • Too limited to explain prejudice in its many forms • Racial profiling: Arbitrary action initiated by an authority based on race, ethnicity, or national origin rather than on person’s behavior

  17. Explaining Inequality by Race and Ethnicity • Interactionist Perspective • Contacthypothesis: interracial contact between people of equal status in cooperative circumstances will cause them to become less prejudiced and to abandon old stereotypes

  18. Table 6-2: Sociology Perspectives on Race

  19. Patterns of Prejudice and Discrimination • Prejudice: Negative attitude toward an entire category of people • Ethnocentrism: Tendency to assume one’s culture and way of life are superior to others • Racism: Belief that one race is supreme and others are innately inferior • Hatecrime: Criminal offense committed because of the offender’s bias against a race, religion, ethnic group, national origin, or sexual orientation

  20. Color-Blind Racism • Color-blind racism: Use of principle of race neutrality to define racially unequal status quo • Idea that society should be color-blind only perpetuates racial inequality • Color line is still in place, even if more people refuse to acknowledge its existence

  21. Discriminatory Behavior • Discrimination: denial of opportunities and equal rights to individuals and groups based on some type of arbitrary bias • Discrimination persists even for educated and qualified minority members Glass ceiling: invisible barrier blocking promotion of qualified individuals in work environment because of gender, race, or ethnicity

  22. Figure 6-3: Categorization of Reported Hate Crimes, 2005

  23. Figure 6-4: U.S. Median Income by Race, Ethnicity, and Gender

  24. Institutional Discrimination • Institutionaldiscrimination: denial of opportunities and equal rights that results from operations of a society • Affirmative action: positive efforts to recruit minority members or women for jobs, promotions, and educational opportunities

  25. Measuring Discrimination • Comparing income data • White men earned 40% more money than Black men in 2006 • Black women earned significantly less than White women • Highly educated Asian Americans trail well behind their White counterparts

  26. Table 6-3: Median Income by Race and Sex, Holding Education Constant

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