Ethnicity

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Ethnicity Race
Race is/Race Aint from Safari Montage
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Unit Objectives

• Explore the concepts of race and ethnicity
• Understand the extent and impacts of racial bias,
  preference, and segregation
• Which is the most useful construct for us to
  consider when we think about social issues?
• In the US?
• Globally?

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Squirming?

• Talking about race in the US tends to make people
  uncomfortable.
• Why do you think that is?

• RACE IS NOT REAL.
• Race is a social construct.
• But the effects of our perceptions of race are
  very real.

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What do you know about race?

• Quiz time!

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What is Race?

• Race a categorization of humans based on skin
  color and other physical characteristics
• genetic traits
• biologically inherited physical characteristics
• Racial classifications are assigned to people on
  the basis of arbitrary differences like the shape
  of the nose, the degree of pigmentation in the
  skin, and the texture of the hair.
• There is more genetic variation within a
  particular racial group than between racial
  groups.

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What is Race?

• Racial Categories are often imposed on people by
  governments. Which box do you check?
• White Black or African American Asian
• American Indian/Alaska Native
• Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander
• The racial categories included in the census
  questionnaire generally reflect a social
  definition of race recognized in this country and
  not an attempt to define race biologically,
  anthropologically, or genetically. In addition,
  it is recognized that the categories of the race
  item include racial and national origin or
  sociocultural groups. People may choose to report
  more than one race to indicate their racial
  mixture, such as American Indian and White.
  People who identify their origin as Hispanic,
  Latino, or Spanish may be of any race.

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(No Transcript)
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So What is Ethnicity?

• Ethnicity group of people w/ a common identity
  based on a distinct but shared culture (i.e.
  common homeland, language, religion, or race).
• Comes from Greek word ethnos which refers to a
  unique and cohesive groupi.e. us v. them

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Ethnicity v. Race

• Ethnicity and race are not the same thing
• Ethnicity involves more than biological
  characteristics. May include that, but goes well
  beyond to include persons social and cultural
  identity.i.e. people of same race can have many
  different ethnicities
• Its hard to define race and ethnicity clearly
  Ambiguity

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Ethnicity good or bad?

• Ethnic Pride sense of belonging pride in
  ones heritage culture
• Ethnocentrism the idea that ones own group is
  superior to others (like racism for an ethnic
  group)
• Ethnic groups usually have ties to a particular
  homeland -a place - this has led to ethnic
  cleansing or violence to try to control land by
  destroying an ethnic group
• Ethnicity is a strong force. Even if diffusion
  and globalization change culture, ethnicity will
  likely remain.

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Ethnic Groups

• Ethnic groups can be difficult to
  identify.usually self-identified. Do we see
  ourselves as a unique and cohesive groupi.e. us
  versus them?
• Racial categories used to be simplernow it is
  virtually impossible to classify people into
  simple categories of race or ethnicity.
• Why?

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Racial/Ethnic Distributions

• In United States
• 16 Hispanic
• 13 African American
• 5 Asian American
• 1 American Indian
• (63) White Not-Hispanic (NOT an ethnicity.
  why not?)

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Ethnic Clusters

• Ethnic enclave voluntary residential segregation
  based on ethnicity (i.e. ethnic
  neighborhoodsHispanic barrios, China town,
  little Havana)

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Why Does it Matter?

• Prejudice pre-judgment. An assumption made
  about someone or something before having adequate
  knowledge to be able to do so with accuracy.
• Discrimination treatment taken toward or against
  a person of a certain group based solely on
  category. Discrimination is the actual behavior.

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de Jure vs. de Facto Segregation

• de Jure legalized segregation
• Plessey v. Ferguson
• Apartheid in S. Africa

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de Jure Segregation

• Separate but equal overturned by Brown v. BoE -
  1954
• Nelson Mandela in S. Africa

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de Facto Segregation

• Not legal just happens.
• Ethnic clustering or ethnic enclaves
• Can be based on religion, as well
• Northern Ireland Protestant v Catholic
• http//www.youtube.com/watch?vPkjqS-GtiT4

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Why Does it Matter?

• Minority vs Dominant groups in society
• A minority is the group subjected to prejudice
  and discrimination.
• The dominant group holds greater power,
  privilege, and prestige within the society.
• Why/how did it begin in the US?
• Race A History

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White Privilege

• Does it exist?
• Freakonomics
• Name Change
• Read the article and respond on your blog. What
  do you think?
• White Privilege Debate