Race and Inequality I Flashcards
(21 cards)
Race as socially constructed
Race is a socially constructed concept used to categorize humans based on perceived physical and cultural differences, not a biological reality
Race as a social structure
Race often functions as a hierarchical system, with dominant racial groups benefiting from social, political, and economic power
Racialization
Racialization is the process by which a society assigns racial meaning to certain groups, often leading to the construction of racial hierarchies and stereotypes.
Invention of race
the historical process by which the concept of race, as it is understood today, emerged as a tool for social categorization and hierarchy, rather than a natural or biological reality
Bacon’s Rebellion (1676)
Bacon’s Rebellion, while initially driven by class tensions and disputes with Native Americans, ultimately played a role in the development of a racialized society in colonial Virginia. The rebellion, involving both white and Black indentured servants and slaves, alarmed white planters, who then sought to solidify social control by reinforcing racial distinctions and increasing the reliance on enslaved Black labor
Jim Crow
Practices, laws or institutions related to the physical separation of black people from white people. Jim Crow laws in various states required the segregation of races in such common areas as restaurants and theaters.
According to Jim Crow law, anyone with even “one drop” of black blood in their lineage was considered black, regardless of how white their skin appeared
The Black–white binary
The black-white binary in sociology refers to a framework that often simplifies discussions about race and racism in the US by focusing solely on the experiences of African Americans and white people.
This perspective limits understanding of the diverse and complex realities of other racial and ethnic groups, such as Latinx, Native American, and Asian American communities.
Structural racism
refers to the systemic and deeply embedded patterns of racial discrimination and inequality that are woven into the fabric of society’s institutions, policies, and practices
Audit studies
Audit studies, a type of field experiment in sociology, are used to observe real-world behaviors and practices by testing for discrimination or other biases
Interaction orders
“interaction order” refers to the rules and conventions that govern how people behave in social situations (GOFFMAN), particularly when they are in close physical proximity.
It’s about the invisible order of everyday interactions, like how people behave when entering an elevator or on a crowded train
White interaction order
“white interaction order” is a term used to describe how white supremacy and the privileges associated with “whiteness” are present within and shape interracial interactions, particularly in white-majority societies.
Black interaction order
Black interaction order refers to the specific, often marginalized, social norms, expectations, and rituals that shape interactions among Black individuals and with others in a society characterized by racial hierarchy
Black Americans are part of two interaction orders: the dominant white one and the African American one. The black interaction order emphasizes egalitarianism and community rather than hierarchy and individualism
Double consciousness (Du Bois)
W.E.B. Du Bois’ concept of “double consciousness” describes the feeling of having to constantly view oneself through the eyes of the dominant white culture while also maintaining a sense of one’s own African-American identity. It’s the struggle of trying to be both an American and a Black person in a society that often doesn’t fully accept or understand Black identity.
Colorblindness
the belief that a person’s race or ethnicity should not influence their legal or social treatment in society
ethnicity
Cultural values and norms that distinguish the members of a given group from others. An ethnic group is one whose members share a distinct awareness of a common cultural identity, separating them from other groups
black flight
the migration of African Americans from predominantly black or mixed inner-city areas in the United States to suburbs and newly constructed homes on the outer edges of cities.
Civil rights legislation led to the emergence of a black middle class, which also left inner cities for the suburbs in the 1970s-1980s
white flight
large-scale migration of white people from areas that are becoming more racially or ethnoculturally diverse.
This phenomenon, which became popular in the United States starting in the 1950s and 1960s, refers to the movement of white residents, often from urban areas, to more racially homogenous suburban or exurban regions.
interaction orders of race (Rawls and Duck)
Rawls and Duck argue that the history of racial discrimination in America has created two interaction orders of race: the dominant white one and an African American one
Members of different interaction orders may not orient to the same objects and rules, i.e., they may interpret the same situation in different ways
This can lead to breakdowns in communication that erode trust and prompt ethnocentric, racist accounts.
pluralism
A model for ethnic relations in which all ethnic groups in the United
States retain their independent and separate identities yet share
equally in the rights and powers of citizenship
apartheid
The system of racial segregation established in South Africa.
scientific racism
The use of scientific research or data to justify or reify beliefs about the superiority or inferiority of particular racial groups. Much of the “data” used to justify such claims is flawed or biased.
