1. Race and Ethnic Group Stratification:
Beyond “We” and “They”
Soc 100
Dr. Santos

2. What Characterizes Race and Ethnic Groups?
Minority groups
Distinguishable
Excluded or denied full participation
Defined and valued differently
usually less favorably
Stereotyped, ridiculed, condemned, or otherwise defamed
Develop collective identities

3. What Characterizes Race and Ethnic Groups?
Minority groups are formed historically and sustained by ideology & social practice
Dominant groups are not always a numerical majority, but always hold power
Ethnic and racial groups are the most common minority groups in the world, but also castes, indigenous tribes, oppressed nationalities

4. The Concept of Race
Race is a group within the human species that is identified by a society as presumably having certain biologically inherited physical characteristics that are significant
Racial classifications have been based on numerous physical characteristics, usually accompanying European colonial expansion in the American, Asia, and Africa.
Became highly “academic” in the 19th century

5. Origins of the Concept of “Race”
Race relation problems are social-historical in origin
Racist doctrines lack any scientific basis
Pre-Darwin: climate theories, polygenesis vs. monogenesis
In the 1970s, the United Nations issued a “Statement on Race” that stated:
All people are born free and equal both in dignity and in rights
Racism stultifies personal development
(Racial) conflicts cost nations money and resources
Racism foments international conflict

6. Social Construction of Race: Symbolic Interaction Analysis
Social significance is the idea from Symbolic interaction theory that social consequences constitute reality: “when people believe something is real, then it becomes real in its consequences.”
All individuals classify objects, including humans
People assigned group membership, in part, on physical appearance as an easy classificatory scheme
Classifications are used to scientifically study humans
Classifications can provide individuals with an identity

7. The Significance of Race versus Class
Racial stratification was the central stratification system in the US for many years
Inequality between Blacks and Whites persist
Residential segregation persists
Wealth & income inequality persist
Socioeconomic indicators show persistent inequality
The class division of Black America is growing
Two in five African Americans are middle-class
A Black underclass persists in inner-city areas

8. Ethnic Groups
Ethnic groups are groups where membership is based on shared cultural heritage and is often connected with a national or geographic identity
Many racial groups are ethnic groups
Some ethnic groups concentrated in ethnic enclaves
The federal government plays a central role in creating ethnic groups & regulating ethnic relations

9. Processes that Keep Minorities Unequal from the Dominant Group
RESULT
Stratification
Minority status
Prejudice
Poor self-concept, negative relations with others
Racism
Negative attitudes, stereotypes, self-fulfilling prophecy
Discrimination
Poor jobs, income, education, housing
Negative Contact
Hostilities, war, conflict between groups

10. Prejudice and Racism: Micro-Level Analysis
Prejudice are attitudes (thoughts and feelings) that prejudge/devalue a group, usually negatively and not based on facts
Stereotyping is the categorization of large numbers of people by prejudiced individuals
Often distorted, oversimplified, or exaggerated ideas
Passed down over generations through the culture and tradition
Applied to all members of a group
Used to justify prejudice, discrimination, and unequal distribution of resource
A self-fulfilling prophesy is the incorporation of stereotyped behavior into an individual’s view of themselves

11. Explanations of Prejudice: Micro-Level Analysis
Frustration-aggression theory is a theory which states that acts of prejudice and discrimination are motivated by anger and frustration individuals feel when they cannot achieve their work or goals
Scapegoating is a form of aggressive action motivated by frustration against minority groups because an individual is unable to vent frustration toward the real target or cause

12. Racism
Racism is any attitude, belief, or institutional arrangement that favors one racial group over another; this favoritism may result in intentional or unintentional consequences for minority groups
Ideological racism
Symbolic racism
Institutional racism

13. Discrimination: Meso-Level Analysis
Discrimination is actions taken against members of a minority group
Individual discrimination is action taken against minority group members which can take the form of exclusion, avoidance, or violence
Institutional discrimination intentional and unintentional actions engrained in the normal or routine part of the way an organization operates that have consequences that restrict minority group members
Side-effect discrimination
Past-in-present discrimination
Discrimination and prejudice are often found working together and reinforce one another

14. Dominant and Minority Group Contact: Macro-Level Analysis
The form of dominant and minority group relations in a nation depend on several factors:
Who has more power
The quest of the dominant group for scare resources, including land, labor, and commodities
The cultural norms of each group: ethnocentrism
The social histories of the group
The times and circumstances

15. Types of Group Relations

16. Theoretical Explanations of Dominant-Minority Group Relations: Conflict Theory
Privileged people perpetuate prejudice and discrimination against minority group members to keep privileges and resources
Three critical factors contribute to hostility over resources
If two groups of people are identifiably different then “we” versus “they” thinking may develop
If the groups come into conflict over scarce resources that both groups want for themselves, hostilities are very likely to arise
If one group has much more power than the other, intense dislike between the two groups and misrepresentation of each group by the other is virtually inescapable

17. Theoretical Explanations of Dominant-Minority Group Relations: Conflict Theory
Split Labor Market theory -- characterizes the labor market as having two levels
Primary labor market, held by native workers
Secondary labor market, reserved for inmigrants

18. Theoretical Explanations of Dominant-Minority Group Relations: Structural Functional Theory
A cheap pool of labors who are in and out of work serves several functions for society
A cheap pool of labor provides a labor force to do “dirty work”
They make occupations which service the poor possible
They buy goods others do not want
They set examples for others of what not to be
They allow others to feel good about giving to charity

19. Theoretical Explanations of Dominant-Minority Group Relations: Structural Functional Theory
Prejudice, racism, and discrimination are dysfunctional for society in many ways
They result in a loss of human resources
They cost society due to poverty and crime
They maintain hostilities between groups
And they fuel disrespect for those in power

20. Theoretical Explanations of Dominant-Minority Group Relations: Cultural Explanations
Prejudice and discrimination are passed on from generation to generation through cultural transmission through socialization, institutional structures, and media stereotypes
Stereotypes limit the opportunities available to minority group members

21. The Effects of Prejudice, Racism, and Discrimination
Individual Effects
Unequal life chances, health, and access to property
Victims can also have low self-esteem from devalued status in society
Organizations and communities
Lose the talents of individuals they exclude
Government subsidies cost millions but made necessary by lack of opportunities for minority individuals
Cultural costs
Attempts to justify racism by stereotyping and labeling

22. Minority Reactions to Prejudice, Discrimination, and Racism
Five common reactions to dealing with a minority group status:
Assimilation
Acceptance
Avoidance
Aggression
Change-oriented Collective Action

23. Policies to Reduce Prejudice, Racism, and Discrimination
Micro-Level Policies
Individual or Small Group Therapy
Meso-Level Policies
Organized group contact
Macro-Level Policies
Lobbying, educational information dissemination, canvassing
Government agencies
Civil Rights Commission, Fair Employment Practices Commission, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
Legislation
Nonviolent Resistance
Protest marches, rallies, watchdog monitoring, and boycotts

24. Policies to Reduce Prejudice, Racism, and Discrimination

25. Policies to Reduce Prejudice, Racism, and Discrimination
Affirmative Action is a social policy created to change the unequal distribution of resources
Strict affirmative action is a policy that involves affirmative or positive steps to make sure that unintended discrimination does not occur
Quota systems are policies that require employers to hire a certain percentage of minorities
Preference policies are policies based on the belief that sometime people must be treated differently in order to treat them fairly and to create equality

26. Global Movements for Human Rights: Macro-Level Policies
Global issues and ethnic conflicts in the social world are interrelated
The United Nations passed a Declaration of Universal Human Rights after the Holocaust to ensure that every global citizen is awarded particular human rights
National governments and privately funded advocacy groups work for international human rights