What Does It Mean For A Minority?

The institutional and cultural influences that generate these ideas of privilege and oppression are derived from the cycle of socialization. Before children are even able to comprehend what race is, the cycle of socialization is already shaping their views on society and social identities. Bobbie Harro illustrates the cycle of socialization by stating, “the socialization process is pervasive, consistent, circular, self-perpetuating and often invisible” (41). This makes the cycle extremely influential for the creation of our social identities in our society. In my personal experience, I vividly remember my parents taking extra precautious in poor black communities when I was younger to ensure my safety. Although their only intention was to promote my wellbeing, indirectly they established the notion that poor black people are dangerous. Obviously it’s erroneous to claim all black people are dangerous, but this is evidence of the beginning stages of the cycle of socialization taking action.

Moreover, to be white in the United States means that the lighter your skin, the more power, prestige, and property you have; which then results to the higher your social class is. To be white in the United States means you have easier access to the “American Dream.” The “American Dream” in which you are able to socially mobilize yourself to higher positions. According to sociologists, social mobility is the extent of which an individual can move in the class system. When you are white, you are oblivious to the systematic oppression of those beneath you. The education system, criminal justice system, and the government system are all in your favor. This white supremacy flows through our society. A few examples include the income gap between Blacks and Whites. People of color are paid less for the same efforts and level of labor compared to someone who is white. Some structural-functional sociologists believe this occurs in order to motivate those beneath the poverty line or in the working class will push forward and continue to extend efforts in order to possibly climb the social ladder. Others disagree and believe this income gap is the outcome of dominance and straining relationships due to scarce resources. Those who disagree are sociologists abiding by the conflict theory perspective. Of course, my definition and opinion on white

Appiah presents different ideas about social norms and the status of minorities in society throughout his entire essay. In the chapter, A Common Culture, Appiah talks about the great divide between the minority and the majority in terms of employment and educational opportunities, saying, “At the same time, it has always been true that there was a dominant culture in these United States. It was Christian, it spoke English, and it identified with the high cultural traditions of Europe and, more particularly, of England. This dominant culture included much of the common culture of the dominant classes---the government and business and cultural elites---but it was familiar to many others who were subordinate to them. And it was not merely an effect but also an instrument of their domination.”(Appiah 87). In this quote, Appiah brings up the fact that even though there was nothing written stating that minorities cannot be elites, it was know by the people of our country that the dominant race held claim to those positions. Though not stated

For instance, white people or people who have privilege, meaning that they have a career and a job, are privileged. On the other hand, there are a lot of disadvantaged population that won’t have the opportunity to live as their white folks. Disadvantaged population can be a minority of Whites, African-American, Hispanic and other minorities that didn’t developed the tools and skills to compete with a privileged population. For instance, the educational system is one encourages privilege and disadvantage separating the population more and more, creating a culture of acceptance and low skills as a norm among

In America’s history, each race has been portrayed as inferior or inferior, because of one’s skin color, or the beliefs of a culture. Oppression In early America varied in some ethnicities. Some races didn’t even have any civil liberties at all, they were not allowed to vote, not even allowed to become professionals. This was to keep everyone that was not of the superior race below them. Even though they are classified as U.S citizens. In most areas, the ruling race is the upper white class that runs the system, and have a disproportionate amount of power. In other areas, it may not be the white race, but it is still the race that makes up the majority. The majority, who makes the laws, and/or has money, are keys to dominate over the weaker minorities that don’t have the

Throughout the introduction and chapter 1 of the book, Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor explores the relations between the glorified mythology of American exceptionalism and the cultural pathology of Black livelihood, which has pinpointed and placed blame on Black people for their social and political positionality in US society. Black normativity (perceived by whiteness) is depicted as widespread poverty resulting from their innate capacities to gravitate toward impoverished material conditions. Given the dogma of white bourgeoisie ideals, the espousing of “colorblindness” has dominated mainstream academic and political discourse, which has only worked to further preclude the economic and social mobility of Black Americans. Thus, the limitations imposed upon people of color, and Black people in particular, have been the foreboding work of the current white supremacist late-stage capitalist society that continues to commodify

expounds that too many African American youngsters still believe that they have a much better

In today’s society, the state of mind that African American males is constructed upon is troubling. It is not a frame of mind that develops overnight, it starts developing at a young age and manifests into adulthood. Many of these African American males that have developed this mentality “were abused as children, dropped out of school, lived in poverty, abused drugs, and served in many juvenile jails and prison sentences (Austin & Irwin, 2012).” Unfortunately, the environmental factors have dictated the lives of young black men instead of using it as a source of empowerment like women. They rather life the “ fast life” that involves them joining in gangs, selling illegal narcotics, and engaging in various types of property crimes just to

Historically African Americans have been discriminated against in the United States and a system of race based hierarchy still exists. The lower class includes the Blacks and Hispanic population and other so called minorities. The upper class includes the white population also called majority, the higher social position of white the population allows for a greater advantage when it comes to the writing and application of laws that will apply to the majority and minority population.

From birth I believe that the dominant races, in particular Caucasians, are taught that they are better than the minorities. I feel that they are taught the Authoritarian personality theory. This means that they view society naturally competitive, which is fine, the part that makes it so bad is that they believe they are better and must dominate the minorities. They feel that it is there duty to obtain better careers and even live in better communities. On the other hand, minorities face challenges when looking for jobs that offer the same packages as the dominant race, such as good salaries, health care benefits, and job security. The authoritarian majority feel that no one can interfere with their businesses that have been created by their people so the less fortunate should take whatever they can. What they don’t understand is that this causes more taxes to set up reforms to offer a helping hand for the minorities.

Using the black-white paradigm really misses the complexities of minority relations in connection to the dominant White groups. There is a connection though, on how minority groups see prejudice when they feel like their resources are seen as belonging to a certain group that may have the most power between them. As Tawa, Suyemoto, and Turiac suggest, although no minority group has absolute power some groups may have relative power. Like the example of the “model minority” given to Asians, may have given them some power over other minority groups, for example Blacks. This helps explain some power dynamics between minority groups that may lead to

“That one has a jail-cell with his name on it”, (Ferguson 1). A quote this powerful lays a foundation of the stories shared within the book Bad Boys.  This book allows us to see how the public school system is shaping black masculinity, and the affect it brings on these young boys.Yet, in the book The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace, it tells us about  Robert’s struggle from poverty, the streets of Newark, and his education at Yale. These two books give us a powerful message. One that allows us to see the underlying triumphs Black men face. With poverty, biases, prejudices, and many more obstacles thrown in their path, they will always be set to prove themselves. The odds are constantly against them, as they are seen and viewed as

I would hope that viewers can clearly see that numerous systems work together to limit the possible opportunities for the urban community and that the actions, beliefs, and attitudes of individuals are shaped by these setting. While academia assumes often that these ideas as basic assumptions, American remains strongly inclined to the idea that individuals are largely responsible for their own economic situations. In a recent survey of American attitudes, “fully two-thirds of those interviewed (67%) say blacks in this country who can’t get ahead ‘are mostly responsibly for their own condition’ while only 18% say discrimination is mainly at fault.” Nearly three-quarters of US whites (70 percent), a large majority of Hispanics (69 percent), and even a slight majority of blacks (52 percent) believe that “blacks who can’t get ahead are mostly responsible for their own condition.”

Ethnic minorities tend to be disadvantaged in many situations, most often because they are associated as being different from the norm. Race and religion are more likely than anything else to provoke prejudice and can be long lasting.

The dominant group in a society is referred to as a group of individuals who set the values and norms of a system. They tend to have the power, social status and privilege over the minority groups. They could also be referred to as the majority group. The minority group is simply the opposite of the majority group. They lack the power, prestige, status and influence that the dominant group has. They are labelled by the majority not to have these attributes. People who belong to the minority group are usually discriminated against by the majority because of difference in physical appearance, social stratification, cultural characteristics, and are treated unequally. They are labelled by the majority not to have these attributes.