Ethnic inequality - Marxist Explanations

Question 1

Which ethnic minority group fare better in the education system?

Answer 1

Indians fare better in education and labour market than other ethnic groups including the white British majority

Question 2

How do ethnic minorities as a whole fare compared to their White British counterparts?

Answer 2

Less well in education, work, health and housing and this may affect their life chances

Question 3

What did the ONS (2014) find about unemployment statistics for the 2011 consensus?

Answer 3

The highest rates of unemployment for women were Arab (64%), Bangladeshi (61%), Pakistani (60%) and Gypsy/travellers (60%)

Question 4

According to the ONS from the 2011 consensus, what type of male groups were most likely to work in low-skilled jobs?

Answer 4

Pakistani (57%), Black African (54%), and Bangladeshi (53%)

Question 5

According to the ONS from the 2011 consensus, what type of female groups were most likely to work in low-skilled jobs?

Answer 5

Gypsy or traveller (71%), Bangladeshi (67%) and White and Black Caribbean (66%)

Question 6

What did Wood et al (2009) find about discrimination?

Answer 6

There was discrimination in favour of white names over equivalent applications from candidates from a number of ethnic minority groups at 29%

Question 7

What did Heath and Yu (2005) find about ethnic penalties?

Answer 7

Examined the evolution of ethnic penalties from the GHS and LFS. Men who were first generation Black, Indian and Pakistani migrants faced ethnic penalties in terms of access to professional/managerial jobs

Question 8

What did Battu and Sloane (2004) argue?

Answer 8

Ethnic minorities in employment are more likely to be overeducated than the white group so employment rates might not give a complete indication of welfare for groups

Question 9

What did Dodd (2012) report on Muslim women in employment?

Answer 9

Many remove hijabs or make English sounding names to prevent discrimination and Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Black women are unemployed at 20.5%

Question 10

What did Cox (1970) look at?

Answer 10

The idea of race being a human creation and is developed by the exploiters against the exploited

Question 11

Where does Cox believe racism originates?

Answer 11

In the development of capitalism with is need to systematically exploit labour power. Early capitalism went hand in hand with colonialism

Question 12

How does Cox argue racism is developed to justify exploitation?

Answer 12

Because it cannot be developed by those who were exploited and it is not only white people who are capable of racism but it was white people who developed capitalism, therefore being the ones to first develop racism

Question 13

What is the advantage of Cox theory?

Answer 13

• His findings are useful as they detail the economics imperative of migration for the capitalist class

Question 14

What are the disadvantages of Cox theory?

Answer 14

• Critics argue it is too simplistic as it is difficult to prove that racism is a capitalist ideology
• Critics argue that Cox doesn’t treat race as an important factor because of his emphasis on economic differences

Question 15

What did Castles and Kosack look at?

Answer 15

Immigrant workers in Britain

Question 16

What did Castles and Kosack find about immigrant workers in Britain in general?

Answer 16

They were concentrated in low skilled and low paid manual jobs carried out in poor working conditions.
Many were unemployed

Question 17

What did Castles and Kosack claim is the reason for poor treatment of immigrants?

Answer 17

Due to the need in capitalist society for the reserve army of labour to keep wage costs low and these societies were inherently unstable

Question 18

How did Castles and Kosack see capitalist societies as inherently unstable?

Answer 18

They underwent periods of boom and slump and a reserve army of labour needed to be available to be hired and fired as the fluctuating fortunes of the economy dictates

Question 19

What happened according to Castles and Kosack after WW2 exhausted the reserve army of labour, women?

Answer 19

Countries in Europe turned to immigrant labour to provide a necessary cheap pools of workers who could be profitably exploited

Question 20

According to C&K what did the arrival of immigrants lead to?

Answer 20

The working class being divided into 2 groups with the indigenous white population becoming the top layer of the working class and the immigrant workers becoming a distinctive grouping at the bottom making them the most disadvantaged

Question 21

What did Castles and Kosack argue about the divide and rule tactic amongst the working class and immigrants?

Answer 21

It was beneficial to the ruling class as immigrants could be scapegoated (housing shortages) allowing the R.C to divert attention from the real cause of inequality, capitalism

Question 22

How else is the divide and rule tactic beneficial to the ruling class?

Answer 22

Mean’t the working class became too divided to unite and overthrow the capitalist system

Question 23

What are the disadvantages of Castles and Kosac?

Answer 23

• Critics would argue that not all ethnic minorities are disadvantages in the UK
• De-industrialisation has changed the nature of economic immigrants as now immigration laws are tighter so they tend to possess higher skills

Question 24

What statistics show that not all ethnic minorities are disadvantaged?

Answer 24

There are currently over 5000 Muslim millionaires in Britain

Question 25

What does Miles (1989) argue?

Answer 25

That racism initially justified the exploitation of non-Europeans but by the end of colonialism, racism was replaced by nationalism

Question 26

What is Miles influenced by?

Answer 26

Weberian theories

Question 27

How is Miles influenced by Weberian theories?

Answer 27

He suggests that both class and status explain racism, ethnic minorities are often treated as socially different leading to racism

Question 28

What creates radicalised class fractions?

Answer 28

From asserted cultural identity such as Afro-caribbeans embracing Rastafarian groups of Asians emphasising family ties

Question 29

How are radicalised class fractions reinforced?

Answer 29

When the white working class expresses prejudice, promoting hate which causes minorities to express their culture more

Question 30

What did Miles find to show that even if ethnic minorities achieve class mobility, they still face racism?

Answer 30

Ethnic minoritiess that enter the professional middle class often hold lower status positions and racism prevents white people of the same status seeing them as equal

Question 31

What is an advantage of Miles?

Answer 31

He recognises the importance of status and how it cuts across class lines which helps to explain apparent divisions across white majority and ethnic minority groups

Question 32

What is a disadvantage of Miles?

Answer 32

He downplays possible cooperation between groups in trades and trade union movements where people work together to ensure their rights as workers

Question 33

What was the Morecombe Bay Tragedy?

Answer 33

On the 5th Feb 2004, 23 chinese workers drowned when trapped in tides working in Lancashire and 10 years later campaigners say immigrant workers are still being dangerously exploited in the UK (they were working illegally

Question 34

What did the lead detective, Gradwell, say about the Morecombe bay incident?

Answer 34

Tens of thousands of illegal chinese workers are hiding in this country and the reason these people died was due to poverty , forced to move to the UK to work and send money home

Question 35

What is the evaluation of the Morecombe Bay Tragedy?

Answer 35

- Marxists argue this highlights the exploitation of migrant labour in a globalised economy and this was a result of the demand for cheap labour and tax enforcement of labour policies - Functionalists view it as a breakdown in instituational regulation