Chapter 9Race and ethnicity

Race and Ethnicity Prejudice Discrimination Sociological Perspectives on Race and Ethnic

Relations Racial and Ethnic Groups in the United States Global Racial and Ethnic Inequality in the Future

 Race And Ethnicity

Race is a category of people singled out on the basis of physical characteristics.

Ethnic group is a collection of people distinguished on the basis of cultural or nationality characteristics.

Characteristics of Ethnic Groups

Unique cultural traits (language, clothing, holidays, religious practices).

A sense of community. A feeling of ethnocentrism. Ascribed membership from birth. The tendency to occupy a geographic area.

 Theories of Prejudice

Frustration‑aggression hypothesis Social learning theory Theory of the authoritarian personality

Four Major Types of Discrimination

1. Isolate discriminationA prejudiced judge giving harsher sentences to African American defendants.

2. Small-group discriminationSmall group of white students defacing a professor’s office with racist epithets.

Four Major Types of Discrimination

3. Direct institutionalized discriminationIntentional exclusion of people of color from public accommodations.

4. Indirect institutionalized discrimination Special education classes may have contributed to racial stereotyping.

Contact Hypothesis

Contact between divergent groups should be positive as long as group members:

1. Have equal status.

2. Pursue the same goals.

3. Cooperate with one another to achieve goals.

4. Receive positive feedback while interacting.

Conflict Perspectives

Caste perspective - views racial and ethnic inequality as a permanent feature of U.S. society.

Class perspectives - focus on the link between capitalism and racial exploitation.

Racial Formation theory - actions of the government define racial and ethnic relations.

Racial and Ethnic Groups in the United States

Native Americans White Anglo‑Saxon Protestants African Americans White Ethnic Americans Asian Americans Latinos/as Middle Eastern Americans

Native Americans

Most disadvantaged group in the U.S. in terms of income, employment, housing, and nutrition.

As a group they have experienced:– Genocide– Forced Migration– Forced Assimilation

African Americans

Slavery was rationalized by stereotyping African Americans as inferior and childlike.

Civil Rights Acts of 1964 and 1965 sought to eliminate discrimination in education, housing, employment and health care.

Asian Americans

Fastest growing ethnic minority in the U.S. Includes Japanese, Korean, Filipino and

Indochinese Americans.

Latinos/as (Hispanic Americans)

Includes Mexican American's, Puerto Ricans and Cuban Americans.

Many Mexican American families have lived in the U.S. for 4 or 5 generations and have made significant contributions.

In 1917, Puerto Ricans acquired U.S. citizenship and the right to move freely to and from the mainland.

Middle Eastern Americans

Includes immigrants from Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Iran, and Jordan.

The Lebanese, Syrians, and Iranians primarily come from middle class backgrounds.

Most Iranian immigrants initially hoped to return to Iran; however, many have become U.S. citizens.

Growing Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the United States

In 1980 white Americans made up 80% of the population.

In 2000, white Americans made up 70% of the population.

By 2056, the roots of the average U.S. resident will be in Africa, Asia, Hispanic countries, the Pacific Islands, or Arabia—not white Europe.