Ethnicity and Racialization (Ch. 6)

Question 1

race

Answer 1

socially constructed category of people who share PHYSICAL characteristics that members of society consider important

Question 2

racialization

Answer 2

singling out people based on real or imagined physical characteristics, then treating them unequally (used as a verb to signal an ongoing action)

Question 3

ethnicity

Answer 3

shared cultural heritage

Question 4

minority

Answer 4

• category of people, distinguished by physical or cultural traits, that is set apart and subordinated by society (ie. women, people of colour) - not always less numerically (ie. over 1/2 world’s pop. is women, yet still considered “minority” because they have less power)

Question 5

dominant group

Answer 5

the group in power (ie. white people)

Question 6

subordinate groups

Answer 6

groups without power

Question 7

visible minorities

Answer 7

non-white people other than aborginals

Question 8

social meanings of race

Answer 8

• ranks people in hierarchy - negative (believed innate) characteristics assigned to subordinate racial groups (biological determinist theory) - positive characteristis assigned to dominant group - ethnicity and race central in power relations - no genetic difference btwn different races, but there is social significance

Question 9

racism

Answer 9

• strucutred form of antagonism and denial of equal treatment against members of subordinate racial groups - hurts victim’s life chances

Question 10

prejudice

Answer 10

negative ATTITUDE toward someone based on their group membership

Question 11

discrimination

Answer 11

negative ACTION toward someone based on group membership -> denial of equal treatment

Question 12

oppression

Answer 12

prejudice + discrimination + power

Question 13

poverty and race

Answer 13

in Canada, twice as many minorities live in poverty than non-minorities

Question 14

power elites and expansion of capitalism

Answer 14

colonization -> science/eugenics -> multiculturalism/point system -> globalization/migrant labour

Question 15

colonialism in general

Answer 15

• expansion of European economies (capitalism) - used biological determinist arguments -> “white man’s burden” -> civilizing the “savages” - colonialism -> wealth for Europeans -> basis for capitalism

Question 16

colonialism in Canada

Answer 16

• used violence, forced immigration, etc. on aboriginals - loss of land (forced onto reserves) and culture (forced into residential schools) - Indian Act: criminalized culture (potlach), couldn’t own property/vote, “status” Indians

Question 17

immigration legacies

Answer 17

• black slaves, chinese labour (head tax), Japanese internment camps, Southeast Asian (“Hindu invasion”), anti-semitism -> segregation, no voting rights, no property rights, occupational restrictions

Question 18

“us vs. them”

Answer 18

• social dichotomy where “us” = white people, “them” = everyone else - without this idea, racism wouldn’t exist

Question 19

islamophobia

Answer 19

• prejudice and discrimination against/hatred of Islam and Muslim people (almost 1/2 Canadians have unfavourable views -> niqab controversy) - contributes to “us vs. them”

Question 20

xenophobia

Answer 20

• intense irrational fear/dislike of people from other countries - anti-immigrant sentiment

Question 21

whiteness and citizenship

Answer 21

• Europeans desired, Asians, Africans, etc. not desired - Points system established in 60’s to select immigrants on “objective” criteria -> education, job skills, work experience, knowledge of English/French… hidden inequality as your social location determines these things

Question 22

liberal explanation for racism

Answer 22

• assimilation: racism is result of certain groups clinging to traditional values - racism = cultural problem, focus on psychological characteristics of oppressed - biological determinist argument -> assumes race is a concrete born concept and blames victims

Question 23

change thoerist perspective on racism

Answer 23

• how does racism benefit capitalism? - underpayment of racialized groups keeps wages down - racialized groups are part of reserve army/underemployed - pit workers against each other due to race (ie. Chinese foreign workers) - islamophobia maintains military industrial complex due to fear factor