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Review Notes on  ST 11:  Racial & Ethnic Stratification
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 Intro to Race Stratification   
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 Race   
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 Majority / Minority Patterns of Interaction   
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 Socio Historical Overview of  Race & Ethnicity   
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          Race in Hunter Gatherer Society   circa   1.5 mm BP  -  10 K BC   
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          Race Relations in the Pre Empires Era   circa 10 K BC - 3 K BC   
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          Race Relations in the Middle Ages   circa   500 AD  -  1300 AD   
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          Race in the Early Industrial Age circa 1300  - 1700   
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          Race in the Industrial Age  circa  1700  -  present   
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          Race in the Age of Global Capitalism     circa 1910 - present   
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 Discrimination  in Other Nations   
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 Race & Ethnic Demographics   
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 A Summary of Gender, Race, & Class Strat   
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 Social Mobility of Blacks   
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           Race & the Workplace   
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 Causes of Contemporary Racial / Ethnic Inequality   

 
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 Outline on the  Introduction to Race Stratification 
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  -  Project:  Class Over Race as a Basis of Unjust Economic Inequality 
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  RACE HAS DECLINED IN SIGNIFICANCE & THE STRAT BY RACE IS ACTUALLY MORE A FUNCTION OF CLASS THAN RACE 
 
  Since the 50s & 60s, esp in the South, race relations have transformed from a segregation or apartheid system to one w/ a high but imperfect level of social justice, integration, tolerance, & some segregation 
 
  Until the Civil Rts Mvmts of the 50s & 60s, segregation / apartheid systems dominated US race relations 
 
  Apartheid was broken by the Civil Rts Mvmts strategy of organizing non violent protests, & attacking apartheid laws in the court system 
 
  The non violent protests created public support for an end to apartheid & the court cases were impacted by this change in the public sentiment 
 
  Given the dismantling of the American apartheid system of segregation, since the civil rts mvmt, there have been significant changes in many aspects of race & ethnic relations such as improvements in ed opportunities & income disparities, & the development of a Black mid class 
 
  William Julius Wilson argued in The Declining Significance of Race (1980) that racial inequality in the US is more a matter of class inequality than of racial discrimination 
 
  Kerbo & many social scientists essentially agree w/ Wilson's 'class first' model of race & ethnic discrimination which is to say, grps such as Blacks experience low income, ed, health, etc more because they find themselves in the lower classes than because of their ascribed status 
 
  Race, ethnicity, & other dimensions of ascribed status such as gender, sexual orientation, etc, do matter, but these grps are often disadvantaged because they are born into the lower classes, & as has been demonstrated in analyses of class, there are many barriers to social mobility, esp out of the lower classes 
 
  Past racism has left blacks & other minorities disproportionately in lower class positions, where they remain, just as anyone is likely to remain b/c of the disadvantages of being poor, whether one is Black or White 
 
  Racial & ethnic inequalities that exist today are rooted in systems of social strat 
 
  Wilson demonstrated how the structure of inequality w/in the Black community has changed, creating a greater gap btwn poor & mid class blacks & making it more difficult for poor Blacks to escape poverty 
 
  Continuing levels of racism & sexism that produce inequalities do so through the occupational, authority, & property structures that affect everyone of all classes 
 
  THE 'CLASS FIRST' MODEL HOLDS THAT CLASS IS MORE DETERMINATIVE OF INCOME, ED, HEALTH, SOC MOB, ETC THAN RACE & OTHER ASCRIBED CHARACTERISTICS 
 
 
 The same principles of the 'class first' model of race relations apply in the situation of global race relations w/ the addendum of: 
 
  a.  a global sys of nation level econ dependence & exploitation   
  b.  a history of nationalism / war / or conflict among nations which can supersede other dynamics at particular historical instances   
  c.  the systems of trad strat which are much more influential in many lesser developed nations & again may supersede other dynamics at particular historical instances   
  d.  global migration, both voluntary & involuntary, which like migration w/in a nation, can either alleviate or exacerbate racial tensions   
  Thailand is ethnically diverse including the Mon, Khmer, Malay, Karen, Indians, Chines, Lao, et al   
  As is the case in many SE Asian nations, the Chinese ethnic grp is often the wealthiest, which creates resentment & tension w/ other ethnic grps   
  Thailand is more tolerant of ethnic grps, & for example, allows intermarriage btwn Chinese & other ethnic grps   
  LACK OF RACISM IN MANY NATIONS IS MORE A FUNCTION OF RACIAL HOMOGENEITY THAN RACIAL TOLERANCE  
  Japan is a nation of extensive homogeneity both in terms of race & ethnicity, as well as class w/ 97% being ethnic Japanese for several generations   
  Thus what appears as a lack of racism in the statistics of low levels of hate crimes, discrimination, etc, is the result of a homogenous culture & not racial integration   
  Ethnic Chinese & Koreans who make up almost all of the 3% of Japan's racial & ethnic diversity do experience discrimination   
  Japanese have continued extensive discrimination against a grp of about 1 mm people w/ ancient out caste origins who can be distinguished from other Japanese only through detailed backgrd research   
  THE US IS NO LONGER THE ONLY 'MELTING POT' NATION   
  The US's reputation of 'a nation of immigrants' is not a unique one any longer as several Euro nations have a similar 'melting pot' racial & ethnic make up   
  Much of the melting pot make up of other nations is a recent development   
  The influx of immigrants has contributed to the inequality btwn the rich & the poor is increasing steadily in recent decades, reaching its highest pt in world history at the beginning of the 2000s   
  During the 1st decade of the 2000s a wave of migration of up to 12 mm people occurs from the poorer to the richer countries   
  STRAT IS A FUNCTION OF CLASS, RACE, GENDER, IE BOTH ACHIEVED & ASCRIBED STATUS'S IN THAT STRAT IS MADE MANIFEST THROUGH OCCUPATION, AUTHORITY, & PROPERTY STRUCTURES  
  To understand strat & the systems that create rather regular patterns of inequality, one must combine not only the dynamics of the class system, but also the dynamics of race, ethnicity, gender, global structures, & numerous secondary but not insignificant systems related to factors from religion to tech   
  To understand strat & the systems that create rather regular patterns of inequality, one must combine systems based on achieved characteristics w/ systems based on ascribed characteristics   

 
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  Outline on  Race & Ethnicity 
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  RACE IS A SOCIAL CATEGORY THAT CANNOT BE DEMONSTRATED BY PHYSICAL SCIENCE   
  It is impossible to locate any 'pure' races of people in that the mixture w/in each broad category defies classification in that 'racial characteristics' vary w/in race as much as across race   
  Biologists have mapped the complete DNA of humans & comparing thousands of living humans all over the world shows that the DNA of 'racial' categories are more often more similar than the DNA w/in these 'racial' categories   
  For example East Indians have dark skin & Euro facial features   
  India is extremely diverse &  w/ over 1 bb people & there are Indians whose complexions are from white to black   
  Racial theory has been all but discredited but anthropologists who studied the East Indians stated that Indians fit into the Caucasian category   
  East Indians consider themselves white because race is not solely based on skin color, it also has to do w/ bone structure, hair type, height, etc   
  The Indians hold a resemblance to Europeans in their features, and a lot of Mediterranean countries have India as their source population   
  The Oxford Dictionary defines Caucasian as relating to a broad division of humankind covering peoples from Europe, western Asia, &  parts of India & North Africa   
  Racial classification is inexact & science shows that it is an obsolete & inaccurate concept; the cultures of the world have yet to understand that the Human Race is what ALL people belong to   
  RACE IS A CATEGORY THAT THE PHYSICAL SCIENCES HAVE FAILED TO FIND TO EXIST   
  A race is a group of people who share socially recognized physical characteristic(s), a social or cultural heritage (typically ancestry or religion) & recognize themselves as a distinct status group   
  A race is a socially constructed category composed of people who share biologically transmitted traits that members of a society consider important   
  Race is a significant concept because most people regard it as very important   
  WI Thomas said 'situations defined as real are real in their consequences,' & so it is w/ race   
  Race is a social category rather than a biological category & thus racial differences are only important because:   
  a.  people have defined them as important & acted upon these socially defined definitions   
  b.  cultural & sub cultural differences are often associated w/ race due to the long term separation of grps w/ socially defined racial differences   
  ETHNICITY IS THE RECOGNITION BY SOCIAL GRPS THAT CULTURAL VARIATION MAY DEFINE A CATEGORY OF PEOPLE   
  People frequently confuse the terms race & ethnicity & use them interchangeably, but they are not the same   
  An ethnic group is a group of people who share a socially recognized social or cultural heritage ( typically ancestry or religion ) & recognize themselves as a distinct status group   
  An ethnic group is a category of people who are recognized as a distinct status group entirely on the basis of social or cultural criteria, such as nationality or religion, but cannot be recognized by their physical appearance alone   
  An ethnic grp refers to a grp that is relatively distinct in cultural backgrd compared w/ dominant grps in the society   
  Ethnicity is a shared cultural heritage   
  Ethnicity involves even more variability & mixture than race because most people identify w/ more than one ethnic background   
  Examples of ethnic groups include gypsies, Jews, Italians, southerners, etc.   
  Our conception of race is a form of social differentiation: race is much more a socially defined trait,  than a genetic one   
  Racial & ethnic groups are socially defined categories of people who share a common ascribed status   
  Membership in racial & ethnic groups is generally hereditary   
 
 There is no reliable way to identify a person's ethnic group by his or her physical appearance 
 
  Many separate ethnic grps may be considered racially identical; for example, Euros are similar in socially defined racial characteristics, yet they represent diverse cultural grps & among Americans are ethnic grps such as Polish American, German Americans, Japanese Americans, & so on   
  MAJORITY / MINORITY LABELS REFER TO THE POWER A GRP EXHIBITS, NOT POPULATION NUMBERS   
  Those in the disadvantaged or subordinate positions in a society are called the minority group   
  A minority is a category of people, distinguished by physical or cultural traits, who are socially disadvantaged   
  Minorities have two important characteristics: a distinct identity & subordination   
  Not all members of a minority category are disadvantaged   
 
 Those in the advantaged or dominant positions in a society are called the majority group 
 
 
 In considering the definition of minority & majority groups, note that a numerical minority can be a majority the sociological sense 
 
  A minority is any category of people, characterized by physical or cultural differences, that a society sets apart & subordinates   
  While women fit the definition of a minority group, most white women do not think of themselves in this way   
  A numerical majority of people can be "the minority" if they are subordinated & therefore the beliefs of the various grps in society is important in determining majority / minority status   
  Minority women are doubly disadvantaged, as explained by intersection theory, the investigation of the interplay of race, class, & gender, often resulting in multiple dimensions of disadvantage   
 
 The underclass includes poor people who are chronically unemployed or underemployed & who lack the necessary skills to obtain stable, quality employment   
  In the US, minority usually refers to blacks, Hispanics, Asians, Native Americans & other non-white ethnic groups   
  The term white ethnics has meaning because whites share a socially recognized social or cultural heritage & recognized themselves as a distinct status group   
  Whites have a long history of ethnic conflict as recently seen in the form Yugoslavia, btwn Irish & English, & historically btwn English, French, & Germans which are all different ethnic groups   
  MOST SOCIAL & PHYSICAL SCIENTISTS CATEGORIZE PEOPLE INTO 9 RACES   
  Humans share 97 % of the same genes w/ chimpanzees & the other 2 % of our genetic code largely defines non-racial differentiation (weight, height, etc.) & thus less than 1% of our genetic code defines race   
  Number of races:  Most experts now recognize nine races 
 
  Most of humanity has their origins in the THREE ancestral root races 
- Negroid who are primarily African Asian
- Mongoloid who are primarily Asian Oceania
- Caucasoid who are primarily European Asian
 along w/ SIX others, including the 
- Aborigines of Australia
- Micronesians of the Yap Islands
- Negritos of the Philippines
- Australian
- Melanesian
- Polynesian		  
  Race came into being as a social category when 19th C biologists tried to construct racial types   
 
 Some of the names of the races come from early examinations of race which wrongly held that their origins were near the areas of Mongolia in east central Asia, Nigeria in Africa near the west central horn of Africa, & the Caucasus Mountains in central Eurasia 
 
  Social scientists consider terms like Caucasoid, Negroid, & Mongoloid as misleading at best because there are no biologically pure races & because the names come from regions wrongly believed to be the cradle of that race   
  THE ORIGIN OF RACES IS IN   
 
 There are TWO theories of racial origins, but there is little clear scientific understanding of why, where, & how races originated 
 
 
 1.  Dispersion theory holds that we all have one ancient ancestor in Africa & that species dispersed throughout world & as it did, people changed & races emerged 
 
 
 2.  Isolation theory holds that people did not originate only in Africa but all over the world (except No & So Am --to where people migrated) & thus similar beings, people emerged in relative isolation but w/ similar characteristics except for race 
 
  DNA mapping demonstrates the folly of the category of race & the existence of our common origins in Africa   
  DNA mapping has also shown that all humans originated in Africa   
  About 50 K yrs ago homo sapiens began moving out of Africa, going north & east, w/ one grp arriving in what is now Australia some 46 K yrs ago   
  After several thousand yrs, there were superficial changes among these humans in things like skin color to adapt to new climates around the world   
 
 THE SOCIAL CONSTRUCTION OF RACE 
 
  Obach points out that the idea that race is socially constructed is widely accepted w/in social science disciplines   
  Because people tend to view their world as an objective reality divorced, in many ways, from interpretation or constructed meaning, we often don't see race, or we ignore race as much as we can   
  It is difficult overcome the idea that nature determines race & to comprehend the principle of the social construction of race because the processes of the social construction of any identity, whether it be racial, gender, class, age, etc. are so subtle & pervasive   

 
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 Outline on  Majority / Minority Patterns of Interaction
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  Social scientists describe interaction btwn majority & minority members of a society in terms of the several models, including:  pluralism, assimilation, segregation, genocide 
 
  PLURALISM 
 
  Pluralism is a state in which racial & ethnic minorities are distinct but have social parity 
 
  The US is pluralistic to the extent that all people have equal standing under the law, but it also has non pluralistic characteristics 
 
  ASSIMILATION 
 
  The term assimilation to describe the process by which minorities gradually adopt patterns of the dominant category of people 
 
  The degree of assimilation in the US varies by the category of people by race, ethnicity, religion, nationality, etc. 
 
  Assimilation in the US has occurred more rapidly for grps defined by ethnicity than race 
 
  For racial traits to diminish over generations requires miscegenation, biological reproduction by partners of different racial categories 
 
  SEGREGATION 
 
 
 Segregation is the physical & social separation of categories of people 
 
 
 Segregation may be voluntary, but it is usually imposed 
 
  Segregation by race & ethnicity was legal in the US until the Civil War & then many laws were passed to keep segregation legal   
  The Civil Rights Mvmt of the 1950s & 60s began to break down segregation laws & norms & this process of desegregation continues today  
 
 GENOCIDE 
 
 
 Genocide is the systematic killing of one category of people by another 
 
 
 Genocide has been used throughout history but was made illegal after WW 2 
 
 
 Despite the illegality of genocide, it still occurs today w/ one of the major genocides of the 2000s taking place in Darfur, a region of Sudan in NE Africa 
 
 
 ETHNIC CLEANSING 
 
 
 Ethnic cleansing is the process of removal of a people from an area by either forced relocation or genocide 
 
 
 Like segregation, ethnic cleansing can be voluntary or involuntary, but is usually involuntary 
 
 
 Ethnic cleansing has occurred recently in the Balkan region (the former Yugoslavia), & may be occurring in the late 2000s in Iraq 
 
  Ethnic cleansing has occurred recently SE Asia & Africa  
  Tokenism, Apartheid, Majority Status, Minority Status  

 
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Outline of a   Socio Historical Overview of Race
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  Summary:  Racism does not develop until significantly after "civilization" begins and racism, in it's modern form, does not develop until the early Middle Ages; thus humans have spent 99+  % of existence in non racist, societies & less than 1,000 yrs. of history w/ racism  
  1.  Geologic era 5 bb BP - 
5 mm BP		 Earth formation 
- early primates		 Race & 
Socio Biology		  
  2.  Pre human evolution 5 mm BP - 
1.5 mm BP		 Old Stone Age
Early primates		 Races emerge  
 
 3.  Race relations in H-G society 1.5 mm BP - 
10k BC		 Mid Stone Age
Early humans		 Racial equality:  99 % of human existence has
occurred in hunter gatherer society
Racism has existed for less than 1 % of human existence		  
 
 4.  Race relations in Pre empire era 10K BC - 
3k BC		 New Stone Age
Civilization dawns
1st ag & villages		 Slavery begins, based on punishment or conquest but not based on race  ( Patriarchy & sexism begins )  
 
 5.  Race relations in Early Empires Era 3K BC - 
200 BC		 Bronze Age
Egypt, Greece, 
China, etc.		 Slavery is common, but based on punishment or conquest, not race  
 
 6.  Race relations in Roman Era 200 BC - 
500 AD		 Rome rules W
China, India  E		 Slavery is common, but based on punishment/conquest, not race  
 
 7.  Race relations in the Middle Ages 500 AD - 
1300 		 Fall of Rome to the Enlightenment The Modern form of ideological Racism began & is justified by religion.  During the Middle Ages Christian ideology justifies racism, & both are used to justify imperialism  
  Racism, as we know it today, began during the Middle Ages
Slavery & Racism before the Middle Ages may be thought of as Conquest Slavery, whereas after the Middle Ages it may be thought of at Ideological Slavery
Thus, racism has existed for less than 1 % of human existence		  
 
 8.  Race in the Early industrial age 1300 - 
1700		 Renaissance
Reformation
Enlightenment		 Modern international slave system begins.  As society nears the industrial revolution, much of racism became based on Social Darwinism as well as Christianity  
 
 9.  Race in the Industrial age 1700 - 
present		 Am & Fr Rev's Slavery & racism begin to decline and Tubman, Douglas are important leaders   
 
 10. Race under Era of  Global Capitalism 1910 - 
present		 WW1
WW2		 1950s & 60s Civil Rights Movement began & had it's greatest success
MLK, Malcom X, Jackson, et al		  
 
 11. Race in Post Industrial Society 1970 -
present		 Service econ
Info econ		 - a non-white middle class forms
- the use of affirmative action declines		  

 
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Outline on   Race in Hunter Gatherer Society   circa   1.5 mm BP  -  10 K BC
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  Race relations in Hunter Gatherer (HG) Society had no ideology (world view or understanding) of racial differentiation  
  People were not racist in that they were just as likely to fear or welcome people of any color, religion, etc.  
  HG tribes were so differentiated & isolated that all were encountered w/ caution & in light of their own ideology:  warrior, pastoral, harvester, etc.  
  Tribes could wander for decades btwn encounters w/ other peoples  
  In the HG era, conflicts were not based on race because there were very few conflicts, because there was no surplus to be gained, population was low & the technology of hand to hand combat prevented any overwhelming advantages  
  During the HG era, social differences ( including race) btwn tribes were often welcomed  
  Because of inbreeding, isolation, etc., tribes often welcomed encounters w/ other tribes   
  Isolation & inbreeding was recognized as a problem  by HG people and therefore, people often welcomed, celebrated w/, & intermarried w/ other tribes & races  
  During the HG Era, & later, people would arrange marriages & other trades in order to "bring in fresh blood," which today we recognize as diversifying the gene pool  
  Because humanity has spent 99 % of its existence in HG society & because race was not an issue in HG society, for over 99 % of human existence, race relations were harmonious, thus, racial conflict IS NOT "natural"  
  There was no slavery during the HG era  
  As population, "turf" pressure, & agricultural development increased, hostility btwn tribes increased  
  But discrimination & conflict was not based on race, but opportunity & conquest as seen in the adage:  "An enemy of my enemy is my friend," & this was true regardless of race  
  Land, power, etc., were more important than race & this relationship did not change from a conquest orientation to an  ideological orientation until the Middle Ages  

 
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Outline on    Race Relations in the Pre Empires Era   circa 10 K BC - 3 K BC
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  -  Project:  The Difference in Race Relations Today & in the Pre Empires Era 
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  SLAVERY BEGINS   
  Slavery begins along w/ "history" or "civilization" & agriculture   
  History, civilization, slavery, etc. begins w/ early, barely known civilizations that preceded the Egyptians, Sumerians & other early civilizations   
  In the Pre Empires Era, tribal societies are just forming into sedentary societies & it takes another 6 K yrs before Egyptians, etc. buy into it all   
  Advances in human society & technology allowed "surpluses" to be created  
  One person could produce more than they needed to consume   
  Therefore, one person could hire or enslave another to work for them & profit from it   
  Thus slavery is an economic relationship  
  But, like in the Hunter Gatherer Era, slavery was not based on race  
  CONQUEST   
  In the Pre Empires Era, slavery was based on conquest  
  The outcomes of conquest might include anything such as ...
-  mass murder
-  genocide
-  partial to full enslavement
-  paying tribute
-  enslaving low as well as high level workers
-  pillaging
-  simply conquering & moving on		  
  IDEOLOGY   
  In any system of exploitation, there is always an ideology ( world view or set of ideas ) that supports it  
  It is through the ideological system that the economic exploitation or relationship is disguised, often as one of race, religion or nationalism  
  It is the ideology of conquest that supports slavery in the Pre Empires Era, not racism per se ( i.e. genetic or developmental inferiority ) that is the justification of slavery  
  An ideology of modern, genetics based racism does not occur until the Middle Ages  
  The ideology of the Pre Empires Era was that the victors have the right to rule the vanquished, but there are still strong individuals w/in a defeated society  
  The ideology of the Pre Empires Era was, "I conquered, I may exploit you." accompanied w/ a respect for the enemy  
  The next period, the Early Empires Era, witnesses the continuation of slavery based on conquest, not race  

 
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Outline on   Race Relations in the Middle Ages   circa   500 AD  -  1300 AD
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 CONQUEST BASED SLAVERY TRANSFORMS TO SLAVERY BASED ON IDEOLOGY RESULTING IN MORE SLAVERY & MORE OPPRESSIVE SLAVERY
 
 
 Introduction:  Race relations in the Middle Ages transformed from the relatively "tolerant" ideology & relations prevalent since the HG Era into modern forms of racist ideology & global slave trade
 
 
 The previous era, the Era of the Roman Empire ( 200 BC to 500 AD ) was characterized by relatively tolerant race relations  
  Previous to the mid ages, slavery was based on who was conquered, regardless of race & thus slavery was decoupled from race resulting in the many early racially tolerant societies   
  Conquest based slavery was less widespread than the slavery which develops in the mid ages because it was limited to times of war/conquest, which admittedly were common, but not as common as the global slave trade which developed in the mid ages   
  Conquest based slavery was less oppressive that the ideological slavery of the mid ages & the modern eras because many conquered people were still able to buy or work their way out of slavery &   
  Under conquest based slavery, the enslaved was not considered inferior; in fact it was recognized that some slaves had very important skills as when a teacher or craftsperson was conquered & enslaved   
  IDEOLOGICALLY BASED GLOBAL SLAVE TRADE DEHUMANIZES & EXPLOITS SLAVES TO A GREATER EXTENT THAN CONQUEST BASED SLAVERY BECAUSE EMPIRES NEED TO JUSTIFY GREATER CONQUEST & GENOCIDE  
  As the Age of Exploration begins & thus global capitalism begins, international trade begins, the modern form of slave trade begins  
  The origins of modern versions of racism & global slave trade begin w/ Age of Exploration in the Middle Ages  
  During the Middle Ages, people / slaves become a commodity  
  The emerging European Powers utilized an ideological justification of slavery / discrimination, especially religious, racist, & conquest / imperialist ideologies  
  The ideological justification of racism/slavery begins circa 1000 AD  
  Circa 1000 AD ideological racism emerges along w/ slave trade using both Biblical & imperialistic justification of colonization & the slave trade begins as a global social institution  
  Thus, modern relations of tension / conflict among the races has existed for less than 1000 years  
  Religion & racism interact w/ the result being the ideology that "primitives" may be converted & have their souls saved  
  There is little mention of race in the Bible, yet religions' interaction w/ other social structures has often resulted in the call to evangelize/convert a particular group of people  
  Papal determinations were made & if a people were found to have a soul, the Church would sanction conversion  
  During the middle ages, if a people were found to not have a soul, the Church would sanction enslavement or genocide  
  The next era, the Early Industrial Age ( 500 to 1300 ), has little change in the nature of race relations, but there is huge & tragic growth in the global slave trade  

 
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 Outline on  Race in the Early Industrial Age circa 1300  - 1700
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  Beginning in the 1500s, the genocide of Native Americans occurs which has many similarities to the genocide of peoples throughout Age of Exploration
 
  Throughout the Age of Exploration, the international slave trade continues, and grows to become a large scale phenomenon
 
  In 1607, the first slaves were brought to the U.S.  
  In 1688, the earliest protest formally voiced in colonial America was the Germantown Mennonite Resolution Against Slavery
 
  In 1776, the final version as accepted by Congress of the Declaration of Independence:  omitted this paragraph written by Jefferson:  "He has waged cruel war against human nature, violating its most sacred rights of life and liberty in the persons of a distant people who never offended him, captivating and carrying them into slavery in another hemisphere, or to incur miserable death in their transportation thither..."
 
  In 1787, the US Constitution provides for the extension of slavery for a 20 year period & contains the "three fifths compromise"
 
  In 1791, the Bill of Rights was intended to protect particular rights of all people
 
  In 1799, Washington's Last Will & Testament frees his slaves & reflects concern for the financial welfare & education of former slaves
 
  Europe eliminates slavery, but the young US continues to enact compromises that allow it to continue into the 1800s eventually erupting in the Civil War & the end of slavery  
  The next period, the Industrial Age, witnesses the advent of Social Darwinism, & the beginning of the decline of the modern slave systems  

 
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  Outline on  Race in the Industrial Age  circa  1700  -  present
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  In the 1800s, Social Darwinism replaces religious / exploration conquest ideology as the major ideology supporting slavery, racism, exploitation, etc.
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  Social Darwinism offers false scientific justification for discrimination, genocide, & colonization   
  In 1863, President Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation declared the slaves "forever free"  
  In 1869, the 15th Amendment was passed and ratified in 1870, giving Black Men the right to vote  (Women get the vote in 1920)  
  In the 1860s, President Johnson institutes Jim Crow laws creating American Apartheid against the vision of the late President Lincoln  
  The KKK forms & institutes a war of terror against Blacks, & later, other groups, through lynchings, assault & other tactics of intimidation  
  Employers utilize split labor market tactics to pit workers of one race against workers of another race  
  Split labor market tactics are used to keep wages low, prevent workers from seeing their common experience of exploitation, & thus prevent unionization  
  Frederick Douglas ( 1817 - 1895 ) was an eloquent abolitionist who lived as a slave until he escaped to freedom at age 21, where upon he was appointed to the position of US Marshal for Washington DC, & he was also a newspaper editor, public speaker, & diplomat  
  Harriet Tubman was a black abolitionist who was a leader in the Underground Railroad  
  Sojourner Truth  
  WEB Du Bois ( 1868 - 1963 ) was a Professor who educated the US on race & analyzed the migration of Blacks to North & developed an early understanding of the split labor market theory  
  Du Bois taught history, sociology, & political science & was one of the founders of the NAACP & editor of its "Crisis Magazine"  
  In 1871 in Los Angeles,  mobs attacked Chinese over the issue of jobs  
  A BRIEF HISTORY OF CIVIL RIGHTS   
  A brief history of early, significant Civil Rights Events:   
  In 1807, the Act to Prohibit the Importation of Slaves passes Congress  
  In 1819-21, the Missouri Compromise is struck  
  In 1827 the Inaugural Edition of Freedom's Journal, the first African American Newspaper in the US, is published
Freedom's Journal is owned & edited by Samuel Cornish & John B Russwurm		  
  In 1831 The Liberator, the most Famous Abolitionist Newspaper in the US, was founded by Lloyd Garrison who was white  
  In 1847  The Abolitionist operates under the direction of Frederick Douglas  
  1850  The Compromise of 1850  contained the Fugitive Slave Act  
  In 1852  Frederick Douglas gives his famous Independence Day Address entitled "What to the Slaves is the Fourth of July?"  
  In 1854 the Kansas Nebraska Act is passed  
  In 1863 the Emancipation Proclamation is given  
  In 1865 the Freedmen's Bureau provided basic health & educational services for freed men  
  In 1865 the 13th Amendment abolishes slavery  
  In 1866 the Civil Rights Act is designed to protect freed men from the Black Codes, Jim Crow Laws & other repressive legislation  
  In 1868 the 14th Amendment defined US Citizenship for ex slaves  
  In 1870 the 15th Amendment established the right to vote for ex slaves  
  In 1875 the Civil Rights Act prohibited racial discrimination in public accommodation  
  In 1895 Booker T Washington gives his famous "Atlanta Compromise" speech  
  The next period, the Global Capitalism Era, witnesses the dismantling of American Apartheid, & the beginning to the end of discrimination  

 
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Outline on  Race in the Age of Global Capitalism  circa 1910 - present
External
Links
  -  Supplement:  Senate Committee Approves Sweeping Immigration Bill, Kingsport Times, News, March 28, 2006, p 3A
Link
  Summary:  The period of Global Capitalism witnesses the dismantling of American Apartheid, & the beginning of the end of discrimination  
  In the Age of Global Capitalism, there is less physical violence based on racism today than in the past   
  Racist mobs attack Blacks, Asians, etc. for economic reasons, justified by racist ideologies based on  Social Darwinism & religious beliefs  
  Many racial attacks & harassments are coordinated or incited by the KKK & related orgs  
  1908-21  mobs attack blacks in dozens of US cities  
  In 1922, Marcus Garvey gives the Universal Negro Improvement Association Speech in NYC, & this organization becomes the Negro Nationalist Movement  
  From 1937-1945 the Holocaust took place in Europe  
  The economic base of Nazism necessitated the Holocaust, & was justified by the racist ideology of Aryan superiority  
  The US knew about the Holocaust but chose to look the other way because of American Anti Semitism, lack of public political will, & a reluctance to enter WW 2  
  An analysis of the early discrimination in unions shows that early in their development, many American unions, but not all, were discriminatory / racist  
  The UMWA was not discriminatory  
  Unions also discriminated against women & other groups because many early US unions were dominated by a WASP patriarchy  
  The UMWA had accepted many ethnicities & races of miners from its inception  
  Liberal & Radical Union leaders had been assassinated & deported by the govt.  
  Since the late 1800s, lured by industrialists, Blacks traveled North & had been & used as scabs & strikebreakers  
  The Internal Colonialism Theory & the Split Labor Market Theory explain much of the racism that festered in the late 1800s & early 1900s  
  See Also:  The Causes of Racism / Social Differentiation  
  Dr. Ralph Bunche (1903-1971), an African American mediator & UN diplomat, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his role in fostering an armistice btwn warring Arabs & Israelis  
  In 1960, Wilma Rudoph made history when she became the 1st African American woman to win three Olympic gold medals in track & field.  She was known as "the fastest woman in the world"  
  In the 1950s & 60s, the Civil Rights Movement uses non-violent methods in 200 cities to advance its cause  
  In 1957, the Civil Rights Act was passed  
  In 1957, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, w/ ML King as president, was formed  
  In 1963, the Letter from a Birmingham Jail w/ the Birmingham Manifesto heralded King's legacy to African Americans  
  In 1963, WEB Du Bois dies at age 95 in Ghana  
  In 1964, the another Civil Rights Act passed & these two laws are the first comprehensive federal civil rights legislation of the 20th century  
  The Civil Rights Act makes it illegal to discriminate on basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, & established the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ( EEOC )  
  The Disabilities Act is passed decades later, but even today it is still legal to discriminate on sexual orientation though some institutions have rules against it  
  In 1968,  ML King is assassinated  
  See Also:  Affirmative Action,   1967  
  Executive Order 11375, signed by President Johnson, established Affirmative Action  
  See Also:  Affirmative Action Backlash  
 
 In 1983 President Reagan signed the bill that established January 20 as a federal holiday in honor of ML King
 
 
 It took many years for Congress to decide to celebrate ML King Day, but a few states had declared a state holiday
 
  Unions & race today:  
  In 1960, the AFL CIO supports civil rights, & begins integration in unions  
  Nearly all unions have successfully integrated today  
  Blacks & Hispanics in America are more likely to be union members than whites  
 
 The glass ceilings still exist in some unions as a result of institutional discrimination
 
 
 Significant Impacts of race in modern era include that in:
 
  - the 1960s there were race riots in US cities  
  - 1968 when MLK is assassinated, over 100 communities erupt in violence  
  - 1973 US Steel pays $31 mm to women & minorities for past discrimination  
  - 1973 the first interracial kiss occurs on national TV on Star Trek btwn Cpt Kirk & Lt Orrura (but the kiss is the result of  both being under the control of an 'alien force')  
  - 1980 in Miami, when the police beat a black business man to death for a traffic violation, riots occurs in Miami & other cities resulting in 18 deaths & $200 mm in property damage  
  - Ford pays $ 21 mm to minorities for workplace discrimination  
  - 1988 Jesse Jackson finished 2nd in the Democratic Primary despite the fact that many people would not vote for him solely because of race  
  - Armenians & Azerbaijanis engage in ethnic warfare  
  - 1989 Miami cops shoot a black boy resulting in waves of riots & police attacks  
  - 1992 the Rodney King beating & subsequent trial, acquittal, riots, federal trial & convictions of officers occur  
  - 1994 the OJ Simpson trial takes place dividing the nation & creating an unheard of national conversation on race & justice  
  - 1995 Church burnings become so frequent that they gain national attention  
  - 1996 Texaco agrees to pay $1.5 b for discrimination primarily against blacks who aspire to own Texaco franchises  
  - the CIA crack scandal blows over  
  - 1991-93 an ethnic war in Yugoslavia btwn Serbs, Croats & Slovenians who are Muslim & Christian threatens to envelop all of Southern Europe culminating  in a successful UN peacekeeping action  
  - 1999 NYC cops shoot an off duty black cop  
  - 2005 youth  riots which are ethnically based erupt in France as a result of the frustration of the underclass  
 
 "Race & ethnic" conflicts around the world are often based on 'economic' conflicts as seen in:
 
 
 -  S. Africa where Dutch Whites opposed Mandella's ANC & Budulazies Inkaataa Freedom Party & the issues were both land reform & civil rights
 
  -  Northern Ireland where Irish Catholics are oppressed by British Protestants which & the issues were political econ control of  N Ireland  
  -  Israel where Jews, Palestinians, other Arabs, & Christians all oppose each other over land & political econ control w/in that land  
 
 In the US, there is less physical violence based on racism today than in the past, though there is more institutional racism
 
  The next period, the Post Industrial Age, witnesses the major form of discrimination being institutional discrimination  

 
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 Outline on  Discrimination in Other Countries
External
Links
  HISTORIC DISCRIMINATION AGAINST JEWS  
  Segregation has existed for many centuries
 
  During the Middle Ages, from the 400s to the 1500s, segregation was especially directed against European Jews
 
  In many countries, Jews had to live in city ghettos
 
  Laws prohibited Jews in the Middle Ages from owning land, joining labor guilds, or practicing medicine or law
 
  As a result, many Jews could earn a living only in occupations avoided by Christians, including money lending & tax collecting  
  Because of their expertise in all matters financial, the Jewish community was an important part of many societies  
 
 The stereotypes & prejudices about Jews related to finances are thus the result of their being forced into financial occupations & the reluctance of the majority to engage in these occupations
 
  Despite the discrimination they experienced, Jewish communities were often quite successful & often this success created animosity w/in the majority community  
  At times Jews were accepted & well integrated into a society & then they would be violently scapegoated in the form of genocide  
  SACRED DISCRIMINATION
 
  Segregation also can occur along religious lines, w/ sacred approval
 
  Prejudicial & discriminatory practices often are based, at least in part, on an ideology based in religious beliefs  
  Prejudice & discrimination was primarily based on nationalistic ideologies of one nation or city state against another until the Middle Ages when Christian religions became the primary ideology justifying prejudice, discrimination, as well as exploitation, imperialism, conquest, & slavery  
  Even today, the biases inherent in modern religions are still embraced by that particular religion's adherents as true & just while they view other religions' beliefs as not only wrong but evil  
  It is a sociological fact that every major religion today contains many biased, prejudiced, & discriminatory beliefs  & advocates practices in conjunction w/ these dysfunctional beliefs  
  An example is the complex Hindu system of separation by castes (social categories created by ancient religious laws) in India
 
  For about 2,000 years, the many castes remained strictly separated in almost all areas of life
 
  In 1948, the Indian govt began a campaign against the caste system
 
  Progress has been made in reducing the power of the caste system, but strong segregation continues to occur
 
  RACIAL & NATIONAL DISCRIMINATION
 
  In most countries, segregation & discrimination are based on national & racial differences
 
  For example, Koreans living in Japan are typically segregated, discriminated against, & regarded as inferiors by the Japanese
 
  In 1948, the govt of So Africa established a policy of rigid racial segregation called apartheid  
  This policy aimed to subordinate black Africans in every walk of life  
  In 1991, the govt repealed the last of the laws that formed the legal basis of apartheid, & in 1994 the country's white leaders handed over power to a new multiracial govt  
 
 But much de facto racial segregation remains in South Africa  
  THE BEGINNING OF THE DECLINE OF DISCRIMINATION  
  By the end of the 1900s, racial & ethnic segregation had declined in some parts of the world  
  Several forces led to increased contact across class, cultural, racial, religious, & national lines  
 
 These forces included the end of colonialism, the expansion of literacy, the rapid growth of cities, & protest mvmts by subordinated peoples
 
 
 Other forces encouraging integration were mass migrations & the growth of transportation systems & of mass communication
 
  The first world nations of Japan, Euro, & No Am have experienced the greatest level of fairness & equity in history w/ regard to civil rights, but obviously these nations still have a way to go  
  Liberties continue to be expanded & violent & institutional acts of prejudice & discrimination are ever more brought into the public eye & punished  
  But while civil liberties continue to advance, minority groups (in the sociological sense) continue to experience a second class life in terms of income, education, medical care, etc. because the root causes of prejudice & discrimination are in the economic system, not the religious or cultural systems as it appears to be on the surface   
  According to the Justice in charge of crimes against humanity in the World Court in the Hague, it is likely that Idi Amin of Uganda will be the last dictator to perpetrate genocide & other crimes against humanity & get away w/ it, w/o being charged as a criminal  
  Today, criminals who commit crimes against humanity are at least charged & pursued by various international tribunals but unfortunately to date few receive much punishment  
  At best we can say significant pockets of freedom are developing in various societies while in many other nations continue discriminatory practices & are living tragedies of monumental proportions  

 
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 Outline on   Racial & Ethnic Demographics
External
Links
 
 -  Supplement:  Arab Americans: A Brief Profile 
Link
 
 -  Supplement:"What Race Are You?" 
Link
  -  Video:  The Gangs of New York 
Link
 
 As the history of the United States reflects, the door has been opened more widely for some groups than for other   
 
 The US racial/ethnic demographic is that of 281 million people in the US in 2000 there were five widely recognized groups 
 
 
 While the reached 300 million people in October of 2006, the basic demographic shares of racial / ethnic groups is about the same except that Hispanics & Asians are growing at a slightly higher rate than other groups 
 
 
 GRAPHS OF RACIAL/ETHNIC COMPOSITION   
 Link
 The Pie Chart on the 1990 Census Data on Race in US 
 
 Link
 The Pie Chart on the 2000 Census Data on Race in the US shows that we are made of of 63% whites, 13% blacks, 13 % Hispanics, 4 % Asians, & others 
 
 Link
 The Numerical Table on the 2000 Census Data on Hispanics in US 
 
 Link
 The Pie Chart on the Demographics of US Hispanics shows that the majority of US Hispanics are from Mexico 
 
  NATIVE AMERICANS   
  In the late 2000s, Native Ams make up about 1 % of the US pop   
 
 Native Ams were the original inhabitants of the Americas whose population was decimated as a result of the intended & unintended genocidal practices of Europeans 
 
 
 Before European contact, Native Ams lived in hundreds of distinct societies 
 
 
 Btwn 1871 & 1924, Native Ams were subjected to a policy of forced assimilation 
 
 
 Today Native Ams are encouraged to migrate from reservations to the cities in search of econ opportunity, but they remain far behind whites in educational & econ standing 
 
 
 Many tribes & individuals have recently come together to assert pride in their culture 
 
 
 WHITE ANGLO SAXON PROTESTANTS ( WASPs ) 
 
  In the late 2000s, WASPs  make up about  63 % of the US pop, & while their overall numbers are growing, they are growing slower than the rest of the pop   
 
 WASPs, mostly of English origin, have dominated the US since colonial days 
 
 
 Most WASPs who came to this country were highly skilled & motivated to achieve because they were escaping Euro exploitation 
 
 
 Especially in the last century, many WASPs strongly opposed subsequent waves of non Anglo immigrants 
 
 
 The WASP's power is gradually declining as we enter the 21st C 
 
  WHITE ETHNIC AMERICANS   
  White ethnic Ams come from European nations other than Britain   
  Most white ethnic Ams experienced substantial prejudice & discrimination when they arrived here in the 19th C   
  White ethnic Ams experienced discrimination & exploitation based on ethnicity, religion, & nationalism   
  Many white ethnic Ams have now fully assimilated & achieved substantial success   
  AFRICAN AMERICANS   
  In the late 2000s, African Ams  make up about 14 % of the US pop, &  their overall numbers are growing, & they are growing faster than the rest of the pop   
  African Ams came to this country as indentured servants or slaves   
  This denial of basic human rights was a sharp contradiction to the promise of the American republic, a fact which sociologist Gunnar Myrdal referred to as "the American dilemma"   
  In 1865, the 13th Amendment to the Constitution outlawed slavery, but after Reconstruction Jim Crow laws perpetuated the subordinate status of African Ams   
  In the first part of the 20th C, a mass migration of African Ams to the cities of the North occurred, followed by the civil rights mvmt of the 1960s   
  Even today, African Ams continue to be econly disadvantaged as a group, a problem exacerbated by the loss of factory jobs that has accompanied Am's move to a service econ   
  The educational gap btwn whites & blacks has narrowed substantially in recent years   
  The political clout of African Ams has increased substantially in recent decades   
  ASIAN AMERICANS   
  In 2000, close to 4 percent of the American population was made up Asian Americans   
  In the late 2000s,  Asian Ams make up about 5 % of the US pop, & their overall numbers are growing, & they are growing faster than the rest of the pop   
  Enormous cultural diversity marks the Asian Am category of people   
  Asian Americans have a "model minority" image   
  CHINESE AMERICANS   
  Chinese immigration began w/ the Gold Rush of the 1800s   
  When the econ soured, discrimination increased & harsh laws were enacted limiting further immigration   
  In response to violence & discrimination, most Chinese Ams clustered in closed ghettoes called Chinatowns   
  Assimilation & upward mobility marked the era that began w/ World War II   
  Chinese Ams currently outpace the national average econly & educationally, although many living in Chinatowns continue to experience poverty   
  JAPANESE AMERICANS   
  Japanese Americans also came to this country in the last century to work, & soon experienced legal & social discrimination   
  During the Second World War, many were confined in relocation camps   
  After the war, many made a dramatic economic recovery, & today this group is above the national average in financial standing   
  Their upward social mobility has also strongly encouraged cultural assimilation & interracial marriage   
  RECENT ASIAN IMMIGRANTS   
  More recent Asian immigrants include Koreans & Filipinos   
  Large scale Korean immigration followed the Korean War   
  Korean Americans often own & operate small businesses   
  After the Vietnam War, there were many immigrants from SE Asia, esp Vietnamese & Cambodians   
  Filipinos enjoy relatively high incomes   
  HISPANIC / LATINO AMERICANS   
  In the late 2000s, African Ams  make up about 15 % of the US pop, & their overall numbers are growing, & they are growing faster than the rest of the pop  
  Today in the US, there are nearly equal percentages of blacks & Hispanics   
  Today in the US, Hispanics in the US are primarily of Mexican origin & Mexicans are more Spanish than Native Am   
  Although the Hispanic population is increasing all over the country, most Hispanic Americans live in the Southwest   
  MEXICAN AMERICANS   
  Most Mexican Ams (or Chicanos) are recent immigrants, though some lived in Mexican territory annexed by the US in the last century   
  Mexican Ams are well below the national average in econ & educational attainment   
  PUERTO RICANS   
 
 Puerto Ricans are American citizens & travel freely btwn the island & the mainland, especially in New York City 
 
 
 They are the most socially disadvantaged Hispanic minority 
 
  CUBAN AMERICANS   
  Many Cubans fled the 1959 Marxist revolution & settled in Miami & other US cities   
  Most were well educated business & professional people & have done relatively well in this country   
  ARAB AMERICANS   
  In the late 2000s, Arab Ams make up less than 1 % of the US pop & total around 2 mm   
  Arab Americans are another US minority that is increasing in size   
  "Arab" (an ethnic category) is not the same as "Muslim," a follower of the Islamic religion   
  A majority of the people living in most Arab countries are Muslim, but some Arabs are Christians or followers of other religions   
  Because Arabs have come to the US from so many nations, they are a culturally diverse population   
  Included in the Arab Am population are people of all social classes   
  There are large, visible Arab Am communities in a number of US cities   
  The number of officially recorded interracial births has tripled in the last three decades   
 
 Although members of Am society attach considerable importance to race, biologically speaking, race has less & less meaning in the US 
 

 
Top  
The Pie Chart on the 1990 Census Data on Race in US
 
 


 
Top  

The Pie Chart on the 2000 Census Data on Race in the US

The Pie Chart on the 2000 Census Data on Race in the US shows that we are made of of 63% whites, 13% blacks, 13 % Hispanics, 4 % Asians, & others


 
Top  
The Numerical Table on the 2000 Census Data on Hispanics in US


 
Top
  

Pie Chart on the Demographics of US Hispanics, 2002

The Pie Chart on the Demographics of US Hispanics shows that the majority of US Hispanics are from Mexico

 
Top  

 
Internal
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 Outline on the  Summary of Gender, Race, & Class Strat
External
Links
 
 THE DREAM OF EQUALITY IN THE WORKPLACE, THROUGHOUT SOCIETY, IS MOVING TOWARD REALITY
 
  Before the 1940s, the WW II era, college & hi level jobs were only available to white, upper class males   
  During the 1940s, after WW II, college opened up to middle & lower class white males, resulting in the econ boom of the 40s, 50s, & early 60s   
  Some white women attended college during the 1940s, after WW II, to become teachers, secretaries, nurses, & wives   
  Black universities grew significantly during the 1940s, after WW II   
  As a result of the Civil Rights Mvmt & other cultural changes, educational opportunities & occupational opportunities began to open up in the 60s, & have continued this 'opening' through today, resulting in the dream of equality moving toward reality, thus creating a middle class & reducing levels of strat   
  The growth of the middle class & the decrease in hi levels of strat occurred as the the first world nations of today shifted from an agricultural, 3rd tier nations, to indl, leading nations where bias & the resulting strat declined   
 
 THERE ARE NOW MORE WOMEN IN THE WKFORCE THAN MEN, BUT THEY STILL HAVE LOWER PAYING JOBS BECAUSE SEX ROLE SOCIALIZATION CREATES 'MEN'S JOBS' & 'WOMEN'S JOBS' 
 
 
 The three most popular occupations for women are still nurse, teacher, & secretary; all which are relatively low paid 
 
 
 Today women earn about 60 - 75 % of what men earn, & there has been little change in the last decade 
 
  Women's wages have, compared to men, equalized the greatest at the lower levels, thus they appear more equal in more transparent, lower level jobs   
  Wages, salaries, benefits, etc. are 'more private' the higher one's career, & thus it is easier to disguise pay inequity at the higher levels of occupations   
 
 THE GLASS CEILING DENOTES THAT DISCRIMINATION INCREASES DRAMATICALLY AT OR ABOVE THE MID MGT LEVEL 
 
 
 The concept of the glass ceiling denotes that the "old boy network" is the most powerful at the top 
 
 
 Women will break the glass ceiling as they get more education, training, & experience 
 
 
 THE EFFECTS OF RACE & GENDER DISCRIMINATION IS MAGNIFIED BY CLASS STRAT IN THAT THE HI AMT OF DISCRIM IN THE UPPER CLASS BRINGS UP THE OVERALL AVERAGE OF DISCRIM 
 
  Wealth is more unequally stratified than income w/ the upper fifth of the pop earning about half the income & owning about  80% of the wealth   
 
 In the 1990s, whites on average had 10 times the wealth of blacks or hispanics 
 
  The 10 times disparity of wealth among whites, blacks, or hispanics is distorted by the fact that the upper fifth of the pop is mostly white & the upper 5 % of the pop is nearly all white   
  Middle & lower class income & wealth strat is much less than the overall average   
  Thus, class distinctions distort racial distinctions, ie they magnify them   
 
 The wages of Black college grads have risen faster than those of White college grads, but are still behind 
 
 
 The wages of Black high school grads have fallen even further behind White high school grads 
 
 
 Affirmative Action has helped created a Black middle class, but has done little to help the large Black underclass, & has barely broken "the glass ceiling" of upper level jobs 
 
 
 Inequality in wages by race has been exasperated by the concentration of Blacks & Hispanics in regions & urban areas w/ high unemployment 
 
 
 OVERT RACIAL DISCRIMINATION HAS TRANSFORMED INTO INSTITUTIONAL, & OTHER SUBTLE FORMS, WHICH LIMIT EQUAL OPPORTUNITY 
 
 
 While some violent, oppressive discrim does still exist, today most of it occurs subtly in orgs, w/o acknowledgment, & it attempts to remain hidden
 
  The legislatures & judicial systems are attempting to eliminate these forms of subtle discrim, but like conflicts of the past, powerful interests align on both sides each arguing that 'progress' can only be achieved by embracing their policies   
 
 DUAL LABOR MKTS, CAREER LADDERS, ETC. ARE MORE ACCURATELY DESCRIBED AS ADVANCEMENT MAZES IN WHICH INSTITL BIASES OF THE PAST MAY LIMIT EQUAL OPPORTUNITY 
 
 
 Dual labor mkts, career ladders, & other normal process of rationalization of occupations, i.e. ensuring that the most qualified candidate succeeds & is rewarded, make it difficult to tell when discrimination occurs 
 
 
 Normal processes of rationalization of occupations allocate rewards according to skill, but histl practices may distort this allocation
 
 
 THE CULTURAL DIVISION OF LABOR DENOTES THAT PEOPLE CHOOSE OCCUPATIONAL ROLES BASED ON CULTURAL IDENTITY, WHICH IN SOCIETY TODAY IS A FUNCTION OF GENDER, RACE, CLASS, & OTHER FACTORS
 
 
 In the 'post racial world' of today, many people still live & work in cultural enclaves, & thus occupation, & thus strat, are all still conditioned by the opportunities & rewards of these cultural enclaves 
 
 
 Society today is trying to eliminate some differences of culture, gender, race, class, etc. esp as related to histl discrim practices of the past, which simultaneously embracing those unique, positive aspects of each one of our differences 
 
 
 The ultimate challenge for society is to sort difference from discrimination wherein the former is a justification for the stratification of society's rewards & the latter is not 
 

 
Internal
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Outline on the  Social Mobility of Blacks
External
Links
  Social mobility patterns vary among races 
 
  There is a race as well as a sex bias in the occupational structure   
  Class divisions for Blacks are said to be rigid, i.e. there is little movement out of the lower classes   
Link
 Table:  Outflow Mobility for Black Men from Head of Family's Occupation to Son's Occupation, 1962 & 1973 
 
  An analysis of the Chart on Outflow Mobility for Black Men shows that there has been improvement in every category from 1962 to 1973. but this table does not take account of the poor & unemployed   
  The Chart on Outflow Mobility for Black Men demonstrates that blacks have increased outflow mobility in the upper occupations in that there is increase intergenerational mobility of the father's occupation by the sons 
 
  In 1962, occupational inheritance at the top of the occupational ladder was severely limited for blacks 
 
  In 1962, only 13.3% of black fathers in upper non manual positions could pass that occupational level on to their sons while in 1973, 44 % could pass on that occupational level   
  The lack of occupational inheritance for blacks was especially damaging because a failure to inherit a higher level occupation means that the son's travel down the occupational scale 
 
  In the 1960s blacks had no intergenerational mobility because families found it difficult to pass on wealth & status   
  In the 1960s a black middle & upper class did not exist   
  In the 1970s, the situation marginally improved & blacks estbed themselves in both the middle & upper classes 
 
  Intergenerational inheritance has increased to allow for the establishing of a small middle class in all races   
  44 % of black sons of fathers w/ upper non manual occupations inherited that status 
 
  Still, nearly 60 % of blacks inherited a lower manual occupation even when their fathers were in a upper non manual occupation   
  Those blacks able to break into the higher occupational positions are able to form a stable black middle class 
 
Link
 Chart:  % of Races Matriculating from High School to College:
 
  An analysis of the Chart on the % of Races matriculating from High School to College demonstrates that fewer blacks matriculated from high school to college in the 80s than in the 70s   
Link
 Chart:  % of Races w/ Four Years of College   
  An analysis of the Chart on the % of Races w/ Four Years of College demonstrates that the gains in education made by Blacks & other minorities eroded in the 1980s & 1990s   
  "The anger of lower class blacks is likely to be directed toward middle class blacks as toward the white power structure in the next round of riots, which are sure to come if political and economic conditions for lower class blacks remain the same in coming decades." 
Harold Kerbo
 

 
Top
  
Table: Outflow Mobility for Black Men from Head of Family's Occupation to Son's Occupation, 1962 & 1973
Kerbo 0411
 
Son's Current Occupation
Father's Occupation
Upper Non manual
Lower Non manual
Upper Manual
Lower Manual
Farm 
Total
1962
Upper Non manual
13.3
10.0
13.7
63.0
0.0
100
Lower Non manual
8.3
14.0
14.0
63.7
0.0
100
Upper Manual
8.2
10.9
10.9
67.0
3.0
100
Lower Manual
6.7
9.1
11.1
71.0
2.1
100
Farm
1.2
5.4
7.1
66.3
19.9
100
Total
4.5
7.7
9.4
67.9
10.5
100
1973
Upper Non manual
43.9
11.8
8.3
36.0
0.0
100
Lower Non manual
19.5
20.8
13.4
45.5
0.8
100
Upper Manual
16.3
13.9
15.8
53.7
0.2
100
Lower Manual
12.1
12.2
13.7
61.0
1.0
100
Farm
5.1
6.8
16.5
63.2
8.4
100
Total
11.6
10.8
14.7
59.4
3.5
100
An analysis of the Table on the Outflow Mobility for Black Men from Head of Family's Occupation to Son's Occupation, 1962 & 1973 shows that blacks have increased outflow mobility in the upper occupations in that there is increase intergenerational mobility of the father's occupation by the sons

 
Top
  
Chart:% of Races matriculating from High School to College:
Kerbo 0411
External
Links
 
1975
 
 
Male Whites   57  %  matriculated from HS to College
 
 
Female Whites   49    
Male Blacks   50    
Female Blacks   46    
1985
 
 
Male Whites   55
 
 
Female Whites   52
 
 
Male Blacks   44
 
 
Female Blacks   44
 
 
In relation to blacks' social mobility, an analysis of the Chart on the % of Races matriculating from High School to College demonstrates that fewer blacks matriculated from high school to college in the 80s than in the 70s

 
Top
  
Chart:% of Races w/ Four Years of College
Kerbo 0411
External
Links
  
1970
    
Blacks  13 % attended college  (peak enrollment)    
1985
    
Hispanics  11 %   (peak enrollment)    
1987
    
Whites  23 %    
Blacks  11    
Hispanics    8    
An analysis of the Chart on the % of Races w/ Four Years of College demonstrates that the gains in education made by Blacks & other minorities eroded in the 1980s & 1990s

 
Internal
Links

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 Outline on  Race & the Workplace
External
Links
  SEGREGATION IN THE WORKPLACE WAS ONCE COMMONPLACE, BUT IS NOW MORE SUBTLE IN THE FORM OF 'INSTITUTIONAL RACISM'   
  During the 1960s, big businesses were inefficient & unfair in their hiring practices   
  By the end of the twentieth century, white men in the US still held 58 % of mgt jobs   
  Decisions about promotions are often made informally, behind closed doors by an executive group composed mostly by white men 
 
  SUBJECTIVE CRITERIA MAKE SUBTLE RACISM / DISCRIMINATION & PRESERVATION OF THE 'OLD BOY SYSTEM' POSSIBLE   
  Subjective decisions & evaluations are the method through which all types of discrimination enter into the workplace today, especially institutional discrimination, which is the most common type today 
 
  See Also:  Evaluation Criteria in the Workplace   
  See Also:  Discrimination   
  Overt expressions of racism have declined in the US & developed world in the 1980s & 90s but more subtle everyday expressions of racism are still common 
 
  Many people & groups make efforts to marginalize minorities & women, to identify them as the carriers of social problems, & to reject complaints about prejudice & discrimination as invalid (Essed, 1991) 
 
  Equal treatment for minorities & women often comes only when those w/in an org work actively to demand such changes (Baron, Mittman, & Newman, 1991) 
 
  TOKENISM OCCURS WHEN ORGS MEET MINIMUM INTEGRATION GOALS, BUT HAVE NO INTENTION OF FULL INTEGRATION   
  Kanter, 1977, notes that women & minority workers are highly visible representatives of their group when then enter new occupations 
 
  Tokenism is the policy of making only a superficial effort or symbolic gesture toward the accomplishment of a goal such as racial or gender integration   
  Tokenism occurs when there are only a few workers who are different because of race, gender, religion or any other identifiable cultural trait 
 
  Tokenism puts a worker under a spotlight & the pressure to overachieve 
 
  Tokenism need not be a bad experience as everyone has encountered a situation where they, for some reason, felt out of place or outnumbered, & yet were welcomed & accepted  
  W/ tokenism, there is often open hostility from majority workers who feel their position threatened by the incursion of "lower status" workers (South, et al, 1983) 
 
  EVOLVING CHANGE MEANS THAT AS EACH WKPLACE FACES INJUSTICES, SOME STRUGGLES ARE WON & SOME ARE LOST, FOR NOW   
  While women & minorities have continued to make progress, in that more sectors of society have become integrated & have less open & hostile discrimination, these changes & income changes have been slow 
 
Link
 The Table on Median Family Income by Race, 1964 to 1997, indicates that during the last 40 yrs. blacks have earned btwn 50 & 60 % of what whites earned
 
  Farley, 1984, found that from 1959 to 1982 white income grew 1.1% & black income grew by 1.3% but because whites had more income initially, white income grew by $4,200 & black income grew by $2,600 thus increasing the absolute income gap 
 
  Hispanic families earn about 60% as much as white families 
 

 
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Table on  Median Family Income by Race, 1964 to 1997
HS 0205
Year
Blacks
Whites
Black Income
as a % of 
White Income
1964
$ 4,646 
$ 8,557 
    50 %
1965
4,849
9,047
50
1966
5,624
9,722
58
1967
6,083
10,274
59
1968
6,688
11,151
60
1969
7,485
12,220
61
1970
7,834
12,772
61
1971
8,035
13,316
60
1972
8,564
14,410
59
1973
9,070
15,715
58
1974
9,989
16,730
60
1975
10,954
17,803
62
1976
11,531
19,386
59
1977
11,932
20,887
57
1978
13,574
22,918
58
1979
14,529
25,581
57
1980
15,814
27,330
58
1981
16,552
29,343
56
1982
16,900
29,720
57
1983
16,610
29. 474
56
1984
16,884
30,294
56
1985
17,734
30,799
58
1986
18,247
31,935
57
1987
18,098
32,274
56
1988
19,329
33,915
57
1989
20,209
35,975
56
1990
21,423
36,915
58
1991
21,548
37,783
57
1992
21,103
38,670
55
1993
21,542
39,300
55
1994
24,698
40,844
60
1995
25,970
42,646
61
1996
26,552
44,756
59
1997
28,602
46,754
61
Table on Income by Race, 1964 to 1997, indicates that during the last 40 yrs. Blacks have earned btwn 50 & 61 % of what Whites earned
Blue indicates the lowest % of Black/White Income
Red indicates the highest % of Black/White Income
US Dept. of Commerce, Census, 2000; Statistical Abstract of the US, 1999, Washington, DC; US Govt Printing Office

 
Internal
Links

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 Outline on   Causes of Contemporary Racial / Ethnic Inequality
External
Links
  -  Video:  Crash 
Link
  -  Project:  Crash 
Link
  -  Supplement:  Time Mag: Kids & Race 
Link
  Summary of the Causes of Racial / Ethnic Inequality:
A.  Social Psychological Theories
      1.  Authoritarian Personality
      2   Projection & Scapegoats
      3.  Social Learning
B.  Social Structural Theories
      1.  Functionalism
      2.  Conflict Theory
           a. Internal Colonialism
           b. Split Labor Market
           c. Marxist Theory		  
  Modern racism arose in the middle ages, during the Age of Exploration, as an ideology to support conquest & genocide  
  The causes of racism have roots in the middle ages, but the causes of contemporary racism are different than the causes of ancient racism  
  A. There are THREE social psychological theories which explain social differentiation
 
  1. An authoritarian personality type is related to social differentiation by 7 traits.  Authoritarians
a.  see life in clear compartments of black & white & see no gray
b.  are more likely to support aggression against non conformers
c.  believe that the world is a dangerous place
d.  are cynical
e.  worry about sexual "goings on"
f.  are superstitious
g.  resist looking inward
 
  Authoritarian personality theory views prejudice as a personality trait in certain individuals   
  Adorno found that authoritarians are more likely to be racist
 
  Adorno's research found that the authoritarian personally type scored a good deal higher on anti Semitic & anti black prejudice than did other people  
Link
 Examples of authoritarianism & discrimination  
  2. Projection & scapegoats: We project our fears, weaknesses onto others & then scapegoat them for those projected qualities  
 
 A scapegoat is a person or group against whom an individual displaces feelings of anger or frustration  that cannot be expressed toward the true source of the individual's feelings
 
  Scapegoats are people or groups who serve as effective targets of people's anger, but who are not the true source of that anger  
  A scapegoat is a person or category of people, typically w/ little power, whom people unfairly blame for their own troubles  
  Scapegoat theory holds that prejudice results from frustrations among  people who are themselves disadvantaged  
 
 Projection is the process by which a person denies or minimizes personal shortcomings by exaggerating the extent to which these same shortcomings occur in others
 
  Projection is the process of exaggerating the faults of others, so that your own faults can be denied or minimized  
  The personalities of people who are prejudiced are such that they exaggerate the faults of others so they can deny or minimize their own faults  
  We project our weaknesses onto others, treating them as scapegoats  
Link
 Examples of projection, scapegoating, & discrimination  
  The Ku Klux Klan & similar groups have often drawn the bulk of their support from working class whites, who feel economically threatened by blacks, other minority groups, immigrants, etc.  
  3. Social learning, also known as socialization, is the process by which attitudes, beliefs & behaviors are learned from significant others  
  People are prejudiced because they grow up in prejudiced environments or subcultures where they learn prejudice from their significant others  
Link
 Examples of social learning & discrimination
 
  Discrimination resulting from authoritarianism, scapegoating & social learning are the result of normal personality needs that become exaggerated / extreme; i.e. fetishized
 
  Very often, when people whose prejudices are based on social learning move to environments where their significant others are relatively unprejudiced, their prejudice falls  
  A personality need is the psychological need for a particular attitude, belief, or behavior, that arises from the particular personality type of an individual
 
  Thus from the social psychological theories of racism, the question arises, can therapy cure discrimination which arises from personality needs?
 
  Social learning theory holds that attitudes & beliefs can be changed by changing behaviors; i.e. if people interact on an equal basis, they will view each other as equals  
  B. There are TWO social structural theories which explain social differentiation
 
  To explain why entire countries have patterns of race relations that change over time, or why one country has racial harmony while another has racial conflict requires a social structural theory  
  1. Functionalists believe that  ethnocentrism functions to builds solidarity & cohesiveness & helps us understand & organize society, but often becomes exaggerated & universal  
  The culture theory variation of functionalism argues that prejudice is embedded in culture  
Link
 Examples of ethnocentrism  
  2.  There are THREE conflict theories which explain social differentiation  
  The conflict theory of prejudice proposes that powerful people use prejudice to justify oppressing others  
  a. Internal colonialism theory holds that part of capitalism's history is colonialism  
  Colonized groups are scapegoated as 2nd class citizens & this build solidarity & allows justification of conquerors  
  Colonized groups are viewed as second class citizens whose souls are to be saved or as the soulless to be destroyed  
Link
 Examples of internal colonialism & discrimination  
  The inter ethnic conflict in Northern Ireland is based, on the surface on theological differences, but may be effectively understood in terms of internal colonialism  
  b. Split labor market theory holds that racism is fomented to split up the labor force: keep labor fighting amongst selves rather than against the ruling class  
  Split labor market theory focuses in part upon economic conflicts w/in the majority group, pointing out that such conflicts may have an important effect on majority minority relations  
  There are THREE interest groups according to split labor market theory which include
- employers (owners of capital)
- higher paid labor
- lower paid labor		  
  According to split labor market theory, the majority group members, who hold the higher paying jobs, attempt to protect their position by demanding hiring discrimination against minorities  
Link
 Examples of split labor markets & discrimination  
  c. Marxist theory holds that SLMT is correct but incomplete & so adds that racism benefits the rich & the elites of society  
Link
 Examples of Marxist explanations of discrimination  

 
Top  
Examples of Authoritarianism & Discrimination

KKK
Nazis
Any right wing extremist groups


 
Top  
Examples of Projection, Scapegoating, & Discrimination

Goat was driven into the wilderness as a gift:  to purge the sins of the tribe
       then to sacrificing it, burning it, etc.
Goat:  symbol for the devil or evil
Then drove off people, sacrificed them, burned them

Jews have been scapegoated for millennia
Any foreign people in a nation are often scapegoated
Chinese were scapegoated in California during a depression in the late 1800s


 
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Examples of Social Learning & Discrimination

SMIPNN     - selective exposure     - modeling     - identification     - positive reward     - nurturance     - negative punishment
Nazi, KKK. etc. use powerful ceremonies, reverent educational settings, etc. to teach hatred & superiority

Dad rewarding son for making racist comments
Dad punishing son for having friend from another race


 
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Examples of Ethnocentrism: 

Our team is number 1! 
Racist:  Anyone who is different that me is bad:  Our race is # 1 
Very Exaggerated belief:   Giving the characteristics of one to all 
I saw this person steal:  They all steal 


 
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Examples of Internal Colonialism & Discrimination: 

In almost every country, foreigners, different ethnic groups are live & interact in their own enclaves 
Black Ghetto 
China town 
Little Korea 
Most cultures cannot accept people that maintain their own culture & resist assimilation 
This is one reason that Jews have been scapegoated for millennia, they always resisted assimilation, whereas many other cultures accepted it 


 
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Examples of Split Labor Markets & Discrimination: 

KKK & similar groups drawn almost exclusively  from poor, unemployed whites
Freedom trains:  after the Civil War, notices put up in Southern towns:  factory jobs in the North
Ethnic groups used to break up labor movement
Mollie McGuires were Irish:  hated other ethnic groups, esp Scots
Chicago Packing Plants in 1900:  various E European group
Today:  Mexican workers in Packing Plants


 
Top  
Examples of Marxist Explanations of Discrimination: 

Blacks built the South 
Indians lost their lands 
Chinese built the West, etc. 

Racism is tied to nationalism: 
    wars are usually conflicts 
    amongst the rich 
    fought by the poor 
    w/ racial superiority as one major justification 


 
 

The End
 
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