https://www.facebook.com/thefilmhut1/videos/393597467677551/?v=393597467677551- Link to the movie Sarafina which is the media source for this project.  Attached are class lecture notes to be correlate

Race and Ethnicity - Part I SOCY 37 20 -E0 1 Global Perspectives on Social Issues Summer 2019 • Introduction • For this first part of our lecture we will be discussing these main points:  Race and Ethnicity Today  Race and Ethnicity - Definitions  Racism, Prejudice, and Discrimination  Minority Groups: their types and characteristics  Terminology Race and Ethnicity Today • So it is the year 2019 and many people constantly argue the importance and validity of many claims associated with race and ethnicity in thi s and many other countries. • Many of us think that race and ethnicity does not matter anymore. • That this may not be a global issue. • That it carries no international ramifications. • That there may not be any majority – minority interaction. • That it is a “thing” of the past. • We hear modern comments such as: • “I do not see race” • “I do not see skin color” • “I do not see nationality” • “We respect all cultures” • “Race makes no difference to me” • “This is no longer a racist society” • “Racism is no longer an issue” • “I do not believe in stereotypes nor do I stereotype people” • “I am not prejudiced” • “I never discriminate against anybody” • “It makes no difference to me ____________.” • So… “We respect all cultures” correct? • In Western societies, do we see Africa as a countr y instead of a continent with 54, yes, 54 countries in it? • Therefore, are all Africans the same? • Are Egyptians different in nationality, culture, religion, customs, language, and in some cases even racial categories from South Africans? • Do they speak Spa nish in Equatorial Guinea? (W & C African nation, Spanish, French & Portuguese are the official languages) • Do they speak French in Djibouti, Comoros, Seychelles, Benin, Burkina Faso, D.R. Congo, Gabon, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Mali, Niger, Rep of Congo, Senega l, Chad, Cameroon, and Togo? • “We do not see race” • “We do not see skin color” • “We do not see nationality” • Who do we see? • Sir Sidney Poitier • He is a Bahamian -American (born in Miami). • But in different countries he is “Black.” In the U.S., he can be considered African American. • His native language is English, but the Bahamas is located in the Caribbean so he is technically of Latin American descent. • So is he a Latino who is Black and speaks English? • Why is he a “Sir”? • Who do we see? • Actress, producer, director, humanitarian/activist , and fashion model: Charlize Theron • Born in Benoni, South Africa. • First language is Afrikaans, not English. • Her ancestry includes French, German, and Dutch, without a British trace. • Her mother shot and killed her alcoholic father in 1991 after an attack. • We do not see race or nationality anymore right? • Are they American? Why or why not? What is an “American?” • “We no longer stereotype people” “No more prejudices either” Who do you see? • “We no longer believe in stereotypes” • No prejudices and n o stereotypes . • Stephanie Wilson - Active astronaut. - Second African American woman to go into space. - Harvard graduate (1988) - M.A. in Aerospace Engineering (University of Texas, 1992) - Honorary Doctorate of Science from Williams College (2011) - Two -time Mission Specialist on three shuttle missions. - Avid stamp collector. - Skiing enthusiast. - Worked two years for the former Martin Marietta Astronautics Group in Denver, Colorado (1988 -90). • Chang An -Lo “White Wolf” - Former/Current Chinese Bamboo Union gang leader. - Triads member. - Obtained college degrees from U.S. universities. - Served a prison sentenced in the U.S. - Assassinated one Taiwanese -American journalist. - Arrested by Taiwanese authorities in 2013, out on bai l (NT$ 1 million, US$ 33,000). • Gender & Sexuality • No more stereotypes? • No more discrimination? • Gender & Sexuality • No more stereotypes? • No more discrimination? • Race & Ethnicity Today Race & Ethnicity • Race : • “The term race distinguishes one population of an animal species (including human) from another of the same subspecies. • Human racial categories are based on obvious visible traits (especially skin color, facial features and hair texture), genes and self -identification. • Conceptions of race and racial groupings vary by culture and over time, and are often controversial, for scientific reasons, as well as because of their impact on social identity and identity politics” (Manning, 2007). • Some scientists consider race to b e a social construct while others believe it has genetic basis. • The two keywords for this term are: obvious and physical . What is obvious? Hair color? The color of your eyes? To whom are these differences obvious? • Thus why race can be seen as a social co nstruct, since different societies define what they consider to be obvious. • Ethnicity (Schaefer, 2002): • Ethnicity applies to a human population whose members identify with each other. This identification factor is usually based on a common ancestry. • Reco gnition by others as a separate ethnic group and the unique labeling or naming for each group also contribute to defining it. • Ethnic groups also include an share certain common cultural, behavioral, linguistic, ritualistic or religious traits. • In this s ense, an ethnic group is also a cultural community. • The keywords for this term are: national origin and/or distinctive cultural patterns. • Remember that: the designation of a racial group emphasizes physical differences as opposed to ethnic groups which em phasize cultural distinctions. • Why do we use these terms interchangeably? • This is due to the fact that a modern and macrosociological perspective on race denotes that: race, as a concept, includes physical characteristics, culture, geography, religion, lan guage, and nationality of an individual or specific group. Racism, Prejudice, and Discrimination • Racism, prejudice, and discrimination can be considered a “ root problem ” in this and any other society because it also affects the way we discuss:  Alcohol and drugs  Health care issues  Urban politics  Crime and violence  Poverty  Gender and sexuality  Aging  The family  The environment  Education  Population and immigration  Terrorism and war  Politics  As well as many other social issues. • Prejudice : • Prejudice includes a pre -judgment, the tendency to decide in advance how to think about a situation, an event, an object, or an individual. • It usually involves an emotional investment that can strongly resist change. • It is a categorical and/o r predetermined thought that forms an attitude. • In a negative way, it also means thinking ill of others without sufficient warrant. • Racism, Prejudice, and Discrimination • A prejudice is an attitude towards members of other groups, resulting in a negative ev aluation of them on the basis of group membership. (Ex. Racial groups, politicians, environmentalists, ex -convicts, rappers, headbangers) • Key elements: 1) Attitude (negative) 2) Attitude based on group membership 3) Pre -judgment 4) The thought • Discrimination : • We discriminate when we make a distinction. • It can also be seen as a negative or positive behavior toward a person based on negative or positive attitudes anyone can hold in relation to the group that individual belongs to. • Formally or in formally classifying people into different groups. • Treating one group of people less well than another on such grounds as their race (racism), gender (sexism), religion (religious discrimination), physical characteristics, ethnic background, national orig in, disability, sexual orientation, preference or behavior, age, or political views. • Key elements: 1) To make a (negative) distinction 2) Unfair treatment 3) The actio n • Racism : • Racism includes : a negative behavior, in word or action, toward any individual based on his/her race . • Racism can also be seen as an ideology of racial hegemony, domination, or exploitation. It can also include a belief that another race(s) are “inferior” in different ways . • Ex. Colonial Dutch, British, as well as Colonial Whites in the U.S., Nazi Germans, etc. • Racism and racist ideologies can derive from one person, from one group, one segment of the population or it can be included into different social systems and instit utions. (Ex. social structures, laws). • Racism can refer to personal or social beliefs, practices, and different institutions that discriminate against people based on their perceived or attributed race. • In some instances the term can be used to describe th e belief that race is the primary determinant of individual, group, or overall human capacities. Minority Groups: Types and Characteristics • Minority Groups • From a sociological perspective, minorities are those that do not receive the same treatment as other groups in society. • In other words, a minority group “ is a subordinate group whose members have significantly less control or power over their own lives than do the members of a dominant or majority group” (Schaefer, 2002). • Specific examples: Puerto Ricans, Guamanians, American Samoans in the United States, Uyghurs in China, Dalits in India, and Roma people in Europe to name a few. • As Schaefer (2002) points out, being superior in numbers does not guarantee a group’s control over its own destiny nor assures it of majority status. • For example, Whites are a mi nority within the world’s population. Asians, Arabs, Africans, and Hispanics represent a majority of the world’s population. • Characteristics of Minority Groups • Sociologically speaking, there are FIVE main characteristics of a minority group (Wagley & Harris, 1958): 1) Unequal treatment. 2) Distinguishing physical or cultural traits. 3) Involuntary membership. 4) Awareness of subordination. 5) Endogamy. • Characteristics of Minority Groups • Unequal Treatment : • Schaefer (2002) explains that members of a minority group experience unequal treatment and have less power over their lives than members of a dominant group have over their own lives. • Prejudice, discrimination, and extermination can create this social ine quality. • Distinguishing physical or cultural traits: • Members of a minority group share physical or cultural characteristics that distinguish them from the dominant group, such as skin color, religion, tribal affiliation, or language, among many others. • Different societies have their own standards for determining which characteristics are most important in defining dominant and minority groups. • For example, height, aesthetics, skin color within the same group, etc (Schaefer, 2002). • Involuntary membership : • Membership in either a dominant or a minority group is involuntary. People are simply born into the group. • For example, (technically) a person cannot choose to be African -American, Hispanic, White, etc (Schaefer, 2002). • Awareness of subordination : • “Mi nority group members have a strong sense of group solidarity. • Individuals make distinctions between members of their own group (the in -group) and everyone else (the out -group). • When a group is the object of long -term prejudice and discrimination, the fee ling of ‘us versus them’ can and often becomes extremely intense” (Schaefer, 2002). • For example, Israelis, Jewish people, African -Americans/American Indians v. Whites in the U.S., the Hmong people from East and Southeast Asia. • Endogamy (or in -group marriag e): “members of a minority generally marry others from the same group. • Some members of a dominant group are often unwilling to join a supposedly “inferior” minority by marrying one of its members. • In addition, the minority group’s sense of solidarity enc ourages marriage within the group and discourages the opposite” (Schaefer, 2002). • Exogamy is the opposite. • Types of Minority Groups • Ethnic Groups : • Groups that share cultural features, such as language, religion, national origin, dietary practices, and a common history, and who regard themselves as a distinct group. • For example, ethnic groups in the U.S. include Hispanics or Latinos, including Mexica n-Americans (Chicanos), Puerto Ricans, Cubans, and other Latin Americans as well. • The same breakdown applies to American Indians and their different Nations. (i.e., Sioux, Iroquois, Navajo, Cherokee, Cheyenne, etc) (Schaefer, 2002). • Asians and Asian Ameri cans also share the same breakdown plus there is also a nationality component to their ethnicity. (i.e., Japanese -Americans, Chinese -Americans, Hmong, Vietnamese -Americans, etc). • Religious Groups : • As Schaefer (2002) explains, association with a religion other than the dominant faith is another basis for minority group status. • For example, in the U.S., Protestants, as a group, outnumber members of all other religions. • Roman Catholics form the largest minority religion. • Other religious minorities include groups such as Mormons, Pagans, Atheists, Agnostics, the Amish, Muslims, and Buddhists. • Globally speaking, Christians form the majority with 31% of the population being Christian, followed by 24% being Muslim, the ‘unaffiliated’ group in third place with 16% of the population followed in fourth place by 15% of the population being Hindu (Pew Research Center, 2017). • Atheists and Agnostics, are also discriminated against and are considered a religiously -oriented minority. • Jewish people are usually excluded from this category and placed among ethnic groups; culture is a more defining trait for Jewish people worldwide than is religious dogma (Schaefer, 2002). • Types of Minority Groups (Example) • Meet Consuelo: • At the same t ime, in a more comprehensive example of all types of minority groups we may find an older, short, aesthetically unpleasant, Black, handicapped, Atheist, Hispanic single mother, Lesbian, born in Cuba with a legal status of political refugee . • Not only would this woman almost fill the Affirmative Action quota for an entire company or institution in many countries , but simply imagine the prejudice and discrimination factors that she would have to overcome in this and many other societies. Terminology • Ethnocen trism • Ethnocentrism , coined by William Graham Sumner is the viewpoint that one’s ethnic group is the center of everything, against which all other groups are judged. • “The tendency to assume that one’s culture and way of life are superior to all others” (S chaefer, 2002). • Afrocentrism or the Afrocentric Perspective is the belief or the emphasis that African cultures have been the source of cultural and intellectual achievements permeating the behavior of ‘Blacks’ in this and many other countries. • Americe ntrism or American ethnocentrism refers to those individuals from the United States who can be ethnocentric or culturally biased while thinking that ‘American’ values are of higher worth than others. • Judeocentrism , Semitism , Jewish ethnocentrism (Judeo -ce ntric , etc.) are new political terms used by those who view Zionism as Jewish or Zionist ethnocentrism. • It refers and applies to those Jewish individuals who can consider their culture and values to be superior to all others. • Eurocentrism includes the ideology and/or practice of believing in the inherent superiority of European (or Western) theories and practices when compared or applied to other cultures. • It also assumes that Western concepts are universal. • Western ideals usually includ e individualism, human rights, secular authority and law, and the separation of religion and state. • Androcentrism, Gynocentrism, and Anthropocentrism • Androcentrism includes the belief and/or action of prioritizing male human beings or the masculine point o f view at the center of a society or a culture (sometimes including its history). • Gynocentrism includes the belief and/or action of prioritizing female human beings or the femenine point of view at the center of a society or a culture (sometimes including its history). • Anthropocentrism is the belief or practice of placing human beings at the center of the universe. It sometimes includes the notion that the universe was created for us, that we are the reason why the universe exists. • Cultural Bias • Cultural bias includes viewing, judging, and understanding social and/or cultural aspects from one’s own culture and social values. • For example: when we usually hear the phrase “they drive on the wrong side of the road” as it is applied to British culture. It is certainly not the “wrong” side to them. • Cultural Imperialism • Cultural imperialism is considered to be the promotion, and sometimes, the forced adoption of one culture and different cultural aspects onto another. • For example: One important example of cultural imperialism was when the British Empire decided to eradicated the use of Latin in order to be substituted with the general use of English. • Think of the different countries that still live under British cultural influence. • Xenophobia • Xenophobia : Fe ar (phobia) of strangers (xeno) and of the unknown. • Both racism and homophobia can sometimes be reduced to xenophobia. • It often involves the dislike of foreigners. • Often a dislike of individuals from a particular nation. • Anti -Semitism • Anti -Semitism , ca n be prejudice and/or discrimination towards Jewish people. • It can range from attitudes and actions towards Jewish people at an individual level or at the group level in institutionalized ways. • Some forms of anti -Semitism include:  Racist Anti -Semitism  Religious Anti -Semitism  Socio -Economic Anti -Semitism • Political Correctness • Political correctness is language usually applied to avoid offense or stereotyping. It is intended to deter and even eradicate language previously used to discriminate or subjugate any specific individual or group. • Another purpose is to prevent the exclusion individuals based on differences or handicaps. • A major purpose behind politically correct language is to bring peoples’ unconscious biases into awareness in order to recognize f actors/behaviors different people might find offensive. • White Guilt • White guilt refers to the feeling of guilt by White or Caucasian individuals when including past or present unjust actions against other racial/ethnic minorities. • Although many White peo ple do not necessarily have personal guilt over past oppression of other races they often choose to distance themselves from the crimes of their ancestors and can feel a sense of collective guilt. • Whites can also become very anxious to avoid being seen as racist. • Racial Profiling • Racial profiling is the use of race as a consideration in suspect profiling or other law enforcement practices. • The debate is divided on whether race should be: 1) Considered when statistically significant, or 2) Never considered for any reason. • Including race as a factor in suspect profiling is usually supported by the law enforcement community.

Profiling based on different characteristics is a universal police tool. • Affirmative Action • Affirmative action is “t he positive effort to recruit subordinate -group members including women for jobs, promotions, and educational opportunities.” (Schaefer, 2002) • This may consist of preferential access to education, employment, health care, or social welfare. • Some may argue that affirmative action is still needed, others argue that is no longer needed and that ‘discrimination is discrimination’ regardless of being positive discrimination. • Others argue that affirmative action is program designed to correct a history of discri mination against minorities. • Others object to the use of racial quotas and gender quotas in affirmative action.