Race and Ethnic Stratification Essay

Humans define race by how they conceive and categorize different social realities. Thus, race is often referred to as a social construct. The differences in skin color and facial characteristics have led most of society to classify humans into groups instead of individuals. These constructs affect us all, and they often result in situations where majority racial groups cause undue suffering to those that are part of the minority. The understanding of race as a social construct is best illustrated by the examination of racial issues within our own culture, specifically those that have plagued the history of the United States.

Upon entering the class I was anxious, curious, and also oblivious to the ideas I would be encountering. Like other students who had not previously spent time discussing topics of race and ethnicity, I myself had nervous tendencies in assuming that such a class may not strengthen my understanding of ethnic and race relations. I realized I knew little about race or ethnicity, and even the possible similarities or differences. However, I welcomed the opportunity to further discover the possibilities of the class. My understanding of race was concentrated in a definition that could be understood as different skin colors. My limited conception of ethnicity applied to people’s origin or where they lived. It seemed as though my lack of

U.S. There are more people of color, whether black, hispanic, Indian, or any other color other than white in our overcrowded prisons today. They are in there because of their street crimes and because they are minorities who get significantly higher rates of penalization. Because of their financial situation, they do not have the ability to get able attorneys to represent them. Since they don’t have able representation, they plead the way they are told and end up in prison and remain there until their sentence ends. Their plight is one that does not have much assurance because they live in high crime areas, have low income or no jobs at all, and little or no education. Living in these areas and having no form of income with little education has labeled them. This predicament unfortunately leads to crime. The punishment for the crimes of the minority races are most of the time more harsh than for the white person. If a black person harmed a white person, the penalty would be harsher than if the black person harmed another

These disputes can be found throughout history such as the conflicts between Indian tribes, immigrants and others. A good example of racial conflict of superiority can be found in “Reading the American Past.” The white supremacists in the KKK rebelled against the blacks in 1898, “The white people of Wilmington,

In class we have been focusing on the topic of racial and socioeconomic inequalities, and how they are demonstrated in todays society. Both are issues that have improved over the years but are stuck in a pretty bad place right now. We need to become aware of these issues and be willing to make changes to see progress and equality across the United States.

American society likes to believe that race relations in our country are no longer strained. We do not want to hear about the need for affirmative action or about the growing numbers of white supremacist groups. In order to appease our collective conscious, we put aside the disturbing fact that racism is alive and well in the great U.S.A. It hides in the workplace, it subtly shows its ugly face in the media, and it affects the education of minority students nationwide. In the following excerpts from an interview with a middle class African American male, the reader will find strong evidence that race plays a major role in determining the type and quality of education a student receives.

One important note to consider when discussing the conflict theory is the term conflict. This conflict does not necessarily mean that the conflict at hand is physical in nature. The main method of having conflict in today's day and age is through financial and economic means. Such methods can include the establishment of laws to restrict immigration, or to make it difficult for new immigrants to receive citizenship or working visas. In my opinion, when trying to understand racial discrimination and determining if race matters in society, I prefer to side with the conflict perspective theory.

In 1492 Columbus sailed the Ocean Blue. Everyone knows the story of Christopher Columbus; they are taught it in grade school if not before then. When he landed in America by accident, he had no idea that he would be creating the world's largest Melting Pot. This "melting pot" provided means for a new country, made from a mixture of many cultures and beliefs, thus creating a new country with a new and ever-changing culture. One complication with a Melting Pot is that you cannot put people of different race and ethnicity together without conflict.

The central argument of these articles is the whites and non-whites racial inequalities. This social inequality has led to the institutional racism in the United States. According to Martha Augustinos and Stephanie De Garis provides ample evidence that culture identity represent a dilemma at the moment to represent our self. American today tends to believe in the racial heritage. They make the point that president Obama was questioned from Black and Whites communities about his racial identity. Many people criticized Obama for not really being an African American. They argued that his mother is White American girl and his father a Kenyan man. However he represents himself as a multiracial culture. On the same hand Monique Constantce - Hugging

Hue: Race, Ethnicity and a Matter of Colour is a documentary that follows Vic Sarin, a famous director/cinematographer as he explores how colourism plays an important role in a society. Alice Walker defines colourism as “the prejudicial or preferential treatment of same-race people based solely on their color.” The documentary touches on Vic’s own personal experience with dealing with colourism when he was younger and how that affected the way he acts now. He interviewed different personalities like an entrepreneur who sell skin-whitening products and another female who was denied for marriage because she was too dark, to name a few examples. He also interviewed others that have had to

A racial minority is a group with physical features that are different from the main population, most distinctly skin color, and it is often characterized by where their ancestors were from. African Americans are a minority in the United States, making up 13.2 percent of the U.S and the obvious majority is made up of white americans, making up 77.7 percent of the country. Black people are not given the same privileges as white people even though the biggest differences between them are where their ancestors were born and the amount of melanin in their skin. Skin color has no correlation to someone’s potential to perform well socio-economically, but it has become the basis of prejudice against African Americans. People of African American descent in America require assistance in receiving equal opportunities as majorities because they are less likely to be considered for jobs despite being just as capable and are falsely punished for crimes

Omi and Winant’s discussion from “Racial Formations” are generally about race being a social construct and is also demonstrated in the viewing of Race - The power of an illusion. Omi and Winant have both agreed that race is socially constructed in society. Ultimately this means that race is seen differently in different societies and different cultures. Media, politics, school, economy and family helps alter society’s structure of race. In the viewing , also media as well as history seemed to create race by showing how social norms have evolved in different racial groups.

Throughout America’s past, racial inequality has been a reoccurring theme in our society. Ever since the Europeans invaded America the white man has been superior compared to all ethnicities. No more than two hundred years ago, African Americans were slaves and only counted as three fifths of a person. Within the past hundred years African Americans have managed to obtain more equality in some situations, but in other cases racial inequality has become worse than it was when segregation took place. The gaps between the quality of education of white and black students receive appears to be growing instead of shrinking. The lack of quality education blacks receive has contributed to significant health differences between

Many circumstances oblige people to move from their native country to a foreign one. From this movement of migration have emerged many ethnic groups. An ethnic group is a restraint number of persons living in a larger society and sharing the same distinct cultural heritage. Some people tend to bury their habits and accommodate to the new way of life. However others hold on to their identity and try to identify their race and maintain it. This enriches societies and makes them multi-racial. Therefore, every ethnic group is essential to complete the mosaic. Although they are sometimes threatened, minorities must fight to preserve their principles. Why must they fight? Because racial identification has many positive impacts on the members.

Fostering cultural awareness in children has many benefits that contribute to the overall development of children. Educators encounter challenges that may include academic pressure, collaborating with diverse families, and meeting the needs of the students. This paper examines theoretical perspectives using a longitudinal study. The study examined the experiences of children ages 3.5 to 5.5, by using their everyday experiences of race and ethnic diversity in their classroom setting.