Chapter 10

Race and Ethnicity

Racial and Ethnic Inequality: An American Dilemma

Racial and ethnic maltreatment and inequality have been persistent features of American society, affecting Indigenous Americans, Black Americans, and various immigrant groups throughout history. Despite changes over time, many patterns of discrimination and prejudice remain.

• Historical violence: Indigenous Americans suffered mass killings and disease; Black Americans were enslaved; immigrants faced violence and exclusion.

• Continuity: The phrase “the more things change, the more they stay the same” reflects ongoing issues in race and ethnic relations.

Race: Biological and Social Perspectives

Race is often defined as a category of people who share certain inherited physical characteristics, but sociologists and anthropologists challenge the biological basis of race.

• Biological concept: More physical differences exist within a race than between races; DNA evidence shows humans are over 99.9% genetically similar.

• Social construction: Race is a social construction, meaning it has no objective reality but is defined by societal perceptions and beliefs.

• Consequences: Although race is socially constructed, it has real effects due to people's perceptions and actions.

Ethnicity and Ethnic Groups

Ethnicity refers to shared social, cultural, and historical experiences, often tied to common national or regional backgrounds. Ethnic groups are subpopulations with distinctive beliefs, values, behaviors, and a sense of identity.

• Advantages: Provides a sense of belonging, recognition of cultural backgrounds, and ethnic pride.

• Disadvantages: Can lead to conflict and prejudice between groups.

Prejudice, Racism, and Stereotypes

Definitions and Concepts

Prejudice, racism, and stereotypes are central concepts in understanding racial and ethnic inequality.

• Prejudice: Negative attitudes, beliefs, and judgments about groups based on perceived race or ethnicity.

• Racism: Belief in the inferiority of certain racial or ethnic groups.

• Stereotypes: Simplified, mistaken generalizations about people due to their race or ethnicity.

Theories Explaining Prejudice

Several theories explain the origins and persistence of prejudice.

• Social-psychological explanations:

  • Authoritarian personality: Emphasizes obedience, rigid rules, and low acceptance of difference.

  • Frustration/scapegoat theory: Individuals blame minorities for their own problems, using them as scapegoats.

• Sociological explanations:

  • Conformity and socialization: Prejudice is learned from family, peers, and media.

  • Economic and political competition: Prejudice arises from competition over resources (jobs, housing).

The Role of the Mass Media

Media coverage can reinforce racial prejudice and stereotypes by presenting people of color in a negative light, often associating them with poverty or crime.

Correlates of Prejudice

• Gender: White men and women are equally prejudiced.

• Education: Less educated individuals tend to be more prejudiced.

• Region: Southerners are more prejudiced than non-Southerners.

The Changing Nature of Prejudice

Prejudice has evolved from overt Jim Crow racism to more subtle forms, such as symbolic or modern racism, which blames minorities for their socioeconomic status and opposes policies to help them.

Prejudice and Public Policy Preferences

• Racial prejudice among white people is linked to lower support for government efforts to help people of color and greater support for punitive criminal justice policies.

Discrimination: Individual and Institutional

Definitions and Types

Discrimination is the arbitrary denial of rights, privileges, and opportunities to members of subordinate racial and ethnic groups.

• Individual discrimination: Practiced by individuals in daily life; includes microaggressions (everyday slights and indignities).

• Institutional discrimination: Practices by institutions (housing, healthcare, law enforcement, employment, education) that perpetuate inequality, often unintentionally.

• Structural racism: Public policies, institutional practices, and cultural norms that reinforce racial group inequity.

Examples of Institutional Discrimination

• Healthcare: Black people are less likely to receive life-saving procedures and COVID-19 treatment.

• Mortgages and redlining: Black and Latinx people face higher rejection rates and insurance costs; residential segregation leads to concentrated poverty.

• Employment: Black and Latinx people earn less and face hiring discrimination; field experiments show racial bias in hiring.

• Criminal justice: Racial profiling, implicit bias, and harsher sentencing for people with darker skin tones.

Racial and Ethnic Inequality in the United States

Life Chances and Disparities

Racial and ethnic groups in the U.S. differ dramatically in their life chances, including income, education, and health outcomes.

• Black, Latinx, and Indigenous Americans have lower household incomes, higher poverty rates, and lower college degree attainment than non-Latinx whites.

• Asian Americans have higher incomes and education rates but similar poverty rates to whites.

• People of color face earlier mortality, crowded living conditions, unemployment, microaggressions, and discrimination in multiple spheres.

Explanations for Inequality

• Biological inferiority: Discredited theory claiming innate flaws.

• Cultural deficiencies: Claims lack of ambition or work ethic.

• Structural racism: Institutional and individual discrimination, lack of opportunity.

The Benefits of Being White: White Privilege

White privilege refers to the advantages white people enjoy in daily life simply due to their race.

• Examples: Driving or walking without fear of police harassment; living in dorms without concern for racial slurs.

Race and Ethnicity in the Twenty-First Century

Hope and Despair

There are reasons for optimism and pessimism regarding race and ethnic relations in the U.S.

• Hope: Legal segregation is gone; old-fashioned racism has declined; people of color have made gains in politics and society.

• Despair: Modern racism persists; institutional discrimination remains; hate crimes and police violence are common; inequality continues to affect health and life chances.

Affirmative Action

Affirmative action is the preferential treatment of people of color and women in employment and education, aiming to address past and ongoing discrimination.

• Opponents: Argue it is reverse discrimination and implies beneficiaries are less qualified.

• Proponents: Argue it is needed to compensate for discrimination and lack of opportunity, and to promote diversity.

Immigration

Recent waves of immigration have shaped American society, but also increased prejudice, discrimination, and controversy over policies.

• Anti-immigrant sentiment has grown, with increased hate crimes and restrictive policies.

Key Terms

• Race

• Social construction

• Ethnicity

• Ethnic group

• Ethnic pride

• Prejudice

• Racism

• Stereotypes

• Authoritarian personality

• Frustration or scapegoat theory

• Discrimination

• Structural racism

• Individual discrimination

• Microaggressions

• Institutional discrimination

• Implicit bias

• Racial profiling

• White privilege

• Affirmative action

Table: Relationship Between Prejudice and Discrimination

This table summarizes how prejudice and discrimination may or may not coincide, based on Merton's typology.

Additional info: Table entries inferred from classic sociological typology (Merton).