chapter 5 notes Flashcards
identity
“how we make sense of ourselves”
How do we establish identities?
we construct our identities through experiences, emotions, connections, and rejections An identity is a snapshot of who we are at a point in time Identities are fluid, constantly changing, shifting, becoming Identities are also constructed by identifying against (defining the other and then defining ourselves as “not that”)
race
a categorization of humans based on skin color and other physical characteristics –racial categories are social and political constructions because they are based on ideas that some biological differences are more important than others
race as a social construct
The term “black” Britain refers to afro-caribbeans and africans and people from india Russia black describes Chechens (Chechnia= part of Russia) Latin America Racial classification = “class”, where wealthy are “white” and middle are “mixed race” or “Mestizo”, and lower are “black”, regardless of actual colour
racism
Racism is intolerance of people perceived to be inferior Vancouver’s Chinatown Chinese immigrants came to Vancouver in mid-1800s City had anti-Chinese practices: Chinatown was treated as dirty and requiring inspections; residences were deemed unsanitary The city had an ideology of racism Today: relation improved and Chinatown is a tourit attraction “ideology of racism”
ethnicity
The personal and behavioural basis of an individuals identity that generates a sense of social belonging a constructed identity that is tied to a place … it is often considered “natural” because it implies ancient relations among people over time ethnicity is spatial and subjective If you mom is Australian and your dad is Kenyan, what is your ethnicity? Australian, Kenyan, both (hybrid), neither? … subjective! defines a community of people Multidimensional – no single trait Shared traits (cultural, social, physical or other), which differentiate a group of people from other groups Ascription: when people assign a certain identity to others
ethnicity in canada
At least two cases where territorial claim and ethnicity come together: Quebec and the… reserve lands of first nations Indigenous peoples and identity: Ancestral ties to pre-colonial societies Self-identification as a member of an indigenous group status in society as a non dominant group
ethnocentrism
The “tendency to evaluate other cultures against one’s own,” often with a sense of superiority May lead to conflict between ethnic groups in close contact within north America citie it has resulted in ethnic segregation (ghettoization, or ‘Chinatown’)
host society
A larger, dominant, majority group that hosts an ethnic minority within its territory The minority may be temporary (eg guest workers) or permanent (migrants)
charter cultures
: the first effective culture or ethnic group to settle in an area, establishing their culture in that area
ethnic clusters
areas of concentration by later minority groups that establish themselves within regions of dominance by another group
ethnic islands
areas of ethnic concentration within rural areas
areal expressions of ethnicity
Ethnic neighbourhoods: develop in urban areas Ethnoburbs: ethnic suburbs where a single ethnic group is unlikely to form a majority Multiethnic mixed residential and commercial Globalization brings new immigrants Socially stratified: both low wage and wealthy residents
Urban Ethnic Diversity and Social Distance
Major cities diverse ethnically New ethnic groups have tended to form separate immigrant neighbourhoods Duration of these ethnic areas depends on degree to which assimilation/acceptance is possible Social distance is the measure of the perceived difference between the ethnic group and the dominant group
Estimated % of US population by race and ethnicity until 2050
In 2000, the U.S. Census Bureau calculated race and Hispanic origin separately. Estimates are that by 2050, the “White, non-Hispanic population will no longer be the majority”.
