Culture V – Ethnicity and Race

Ethnicity vs. Race• Ethnic Group or Ethnicity– Cultural traits shared by a group of people– Closely linked w/Nationality

• Nationality is identity w/a group of people through legal attachment (country of origin)

• Race– Characteristics that can be transmitted genetically from

parent to offspring– Physical characteristics of a common genetic heritage

• African American vs. Black

Counting the Races

• US Census– US Census race classifications– Population Estimates

• What is this information used for?• What is the purpose of knowing the races?• What do people identify more with, race or

ethnicity?

Race in the USA• Historically, race relations in the USA has been to discourage

of spatial interaction– Laws and policies– Cultural preferences or discrimination– Based on racism

• “Separate but Equal” – 1896• “Jim Crow” laws– Housing and Ghettos

Race in the USA

• Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka, KS – 1954

• “White Flight” and “Blockbusting”

• Detroit– Whites

• 1950 – 1.7 million• 1960 – 1.3 million• 1970 – 900,000• 1980 – 500,000• 1990 – 300,000• 2000 – 200,000

– Blacks• 1950 – 300,000• 1960 – 500,000• 1970 – 700,000• 1990 – 800,000• 2000 – 800,000

Race in South Africa

• Apartheid– Established by whites –

Boers/Afrikaners– British defeated Boers in 1902– 1948 – Afrikaners gained

control of gov’t through elections

– Newborns classified in to 1 of 4 races• White, black, colored (mix), or

Asian

– Established 10 “homelands” for blacks

Race in South Africa

• End of Apartheid– 1991 – white dominated

gov’t repealed laws– African National

Congress legalized• Nelson Mandela released

from jail after 27 years

• Nelson Mandela was elected president in 1994

Distribution of Ethnicities in the USA

• 2 largest ethnic groups1. Hispanic or Latino – 14%2. African American – 12%

• Distribution of ethnicities at 2 scales1. Within regions of a country2. Within neighborhoods of cities

Distribution of African Americans in the USA

Distribution of Hispanic Americans in the USA

Concentration of Ethnicities in Cities

• African Americans– ¼ of Americans live in

cities– ½ of African Americans

live in cities• MI

– Detroit - 85% – Rest of State – 7%

• Hispanic Americans– North – similar to

African Americans– South

• CA– Los Angeles – 50%– Rest of State – state

average• TX

– San Antonio and El Paso – 50%

– Rest of State – state average

Concentration of Ethnicities in Neighborhoods

• Immigration in early 20th century to Northern cities due to manufacturing industries

• Ethnic groups clustered in neighborhoods – chain migration

Ethnic Groups in Los Angeles

Ethnic Groups in Chicago

African American Migration Patterns1. Immigration from

Africa in the 18th century

African American Migration Patterns

2. Immigration from South to North during 1st half of 20th century

a) WWIb) WWII

African American Migration Patterns

3. Immigration from inner-city ghettos to other urban neighborhoods