Transcript Race and Ethnicity - Old History Website

Race
•
Categories of people set apart
from others because of socially
defined physical characteristics
– Skin color
– Hair color
– Hair texture
– Facial features
– Eye color and shape
– Height
Ethnicity
•
Categories of people set apart
from others because of cultural,
religious, or national
characteristics
– Language
– Different Beliefs
• Where did we come from?
• How will we get there?
• Where are we going?
Prejudice
•
Widely held negative attitudes
toward a group (minority or
majority) and its individual
members
– Strong emotions; difficult to
change
Racism
•
An extreme form of prejudice that
assumes superiority of one group
over others
– Assumes own race/ethnicity is
superior
• Beliefs are “Justified”
because of natural
superiority
Minority Groups
•
Discrimination
•
Treating people differently based
on ethnicity, race, religion, or
culture
– Involves ACTING upon
prejudiced/racists thoughts
• Avoiding social contact
with members of minority
groups
• Denying positions of
authority
• Blocking access to more
exclusive neighborhoods
– EXTREMES
• Hate Crimes
– Attacks or killing
minority members
A group of people with physical or cultural
traits different from those of the dominant
group in the society
– Physical characteristics
• Skin color
• Facial features
• Language/Accents
• Religion
– Dominated by the majority
• Unequal share of goods, services,
and privileges
• Presumed to be inferior
Scapegoat
•
A weak, convenient, and socially approved
target ; often a minority
– Present when people cannot pinpoint
the source of their problems
• Direct anger towards target
– Targeted individual/group
shoulder the blame and pay
terrible penalties for “causing”
society’s ills
Cultural Pluralism
•
Racial and ethnic groups
cooperate while still retaining their
distinctive identities and lifestyles
– Reflects desires of minority
groups to cooperate with
others, yet preserve their
distinctive cultural heritages
• “Tossed Salad”
Assimilation
•
A process by which minority
groups lose their distinctive
identities and conform to cultural
patterns of the dominant group
– Encouraged or required to
adopt dominant culture
• “Melting Pot”
Segregation
• Physical or social
exclusion of minority
groups from dominant
group activities
– De jure: Segregation by
law
• Jim Crow Laws
– Separate waiting rooms
for Blacks and Whites
– De facto: Segregation by
custom
• Sitting at different lunch
tables, separated by race