Lesson 5: 'Race' and Racism Flashcards
Learning Objectives
- Why and how do sociologists study ‘race’ and racism in modern society?
- What are the historical roots of ‘race’ discourse in European/Western history?
- ‘Race’ and racialization
- Whiteness, ethnicity
What is “Race and Ethnicity” studied as?
- Component in formation of identities
- Category of social difference and division - inclusion and exclusion
“Sociological Perspective” of “Race”
Sociology examines “Race” as a socially constructed category
Genetics:
Idea of race as valid objective/ biological category/ separate genetic human lineages- refuted in Sciences
Evidence Modern Genetics
Genetic differences exist but there are no valid scientific grounds to separate human groups into biologically different races: hence sociology and social scientists believe race is socially constructed
Refusal of the biological concept of Race
- Genetic make-up of people in human groups varies
- Genetic differences exist within populations that share physical traits
- Skin colour is determined by minor genetic differences
Biological concept of Race
The Scientific community has widely abandoned the biological concept of race
Some social scientists critical of using the term - “race” and it makes it real.
ALTERNATIVE: Racialisation- how do people become labeled on the basis of racial ideas/ ideologies?
“Race” discourses in historical context/ History of “racism”
Earliest use of the term race as a category of difference: 17th century
Modern concept developed in 18th/19th century
‘Scientific’ Discourse:
European Enlightenment: about assumed inequalities between human groups – labelled as ‘races’
Rise of Western Colonialism/Imperialism
‘Race’ in historical context: Enlightenment
- Period influenced by idea reason/ rationality
- Critiques religious authority and the monarchy
- Demystification (kind of like debunking) of the world: central ideas, knowledge, progress through education, control of nature. (Education and reason being a main reason): rising importance of science/ study mankind
Race and Enlightenment:
The term “race” was commonly used since heyday of Enlightenment (18th century).
At its core was a belief in the use and celebration of reason, the power by which humans understand the universe and improve their own condition.
Mosse: Ideas, theories of race developed by Enlightenment thinkers = one of foundations of modern Racism
Hence they created this idea of the better/ more valuable race
Enlightenment Race Discourse
Enlightenment Thinkers studied humans:
Categorized them into groups – ‘races’
Formulated theories (manmade) about ‘natural’ inequalities between groups of people labelled as ‘races’
COMMON IDEA: Most shared idea/ideology: of a ‘naturally given’ superiority of the ‘white race’
Problem: Enlightenment concept of human progress excluded people who had been labelled as ‘other races’
Who was influential in terms of the Enlightenment theories of “race”?
- Immanuel Kant, (German philosopher)
- created the concept of “What is Enlightenment” in 1784
IDEA OF ENLIGHTENMENT: “Have courage to use your own reason!”
Race Concept: Immanuel Kant (German brudda)
PROBLEM: idea of human progress was not applied universally and this paralleled into the construction of a hierarchy of “races”- which was:
- different races hold different abilities in terms of developing culture/ civilisation
Bottom Kant’s race hierarchy:
American Indian. Acquire no “culture”
Above them: Negroes of Africa have “passion” – no capacity to control it. “culture of slaves”, “children” need direction
Above them: Asian Hindus partly capable to become civilised - only “culture of skill” not “culture of science” – always remain “pupils”
Kant continued
Like many Enlightenment thinkers, he placed on top of his race hierarchy: “race of the whites” having “talents” essential for “culture and civilisation”
“Whites” being constructed as a ‘race’ in which “mankind” should reach its “highest perfection” - the lighter the skin colour = perfection
Were considered as only race capable to achieve progress
What kind of theory is this? How would you label it?
Colonialism
Ideology of “white superiority” justified European Colonial Imperialism - domination of native colonised people
White supremacy dogma was an underlying issue for centuries of oppression and discrimination of Black people esp seen with (slavery, racial segregation, Apartheid)
Enlightenment race theories used race to legitimate racist claim of white dominance and privilege
Dogma
Dogma means the doctrine of belief in a religion or a political system.
Do we still live in the shadows of Enlightenment?
Are Ukrainians more deserving of sympathy than Afghans and Iraqis? Many seem to think so’ (The Guardian, 2022)
Ukraine as ‘relatively civilised, relatively European’
More emphaty becase they ‘look like us’
Racism: beyond ‘individual pathology’
Racism as individual, institutional and structural
Individual Racism - Individuals’ negative perceptions and treatment (e.g. racial/ethnic slurs)
Institutional Racism - Organisational procedures and practices that discriminate against people on the basis of their assumed group membership or identity (explicit or implicit)/ passed down through word of mouth
Structural Racism - Systems of interlocking institutional racisms: labour market, housing market, education system, immigration system, criminal justice system
(see Anthias, 1999; Murji, 2007)
Institutional Racism
- Frequently ‘muted’, not explicit
- Equality legislation and institutions claiming meritocratic approaches but institutional racism can take place implicitly
- Even policies and laws can be ‘racist’ even if they aren’t meant to be- they could still have racist outcomes
- Colour-blind racism as dominant ideology of neoliberal societies
- Institutional Racism seen in the news “UK universities making slow progress on equality
EXAMPLE:
But the British government says it is possible to strip people of their citizenship if they have another nationality to fall back on - for example if they have dual citizenship, or if it is possible to get citizenship somewhere else, such as the country their parents come from.»
Examples of Institutional racism
Employment sector, institutional racism, police, media, racist attacks (example: murder Stephen Laurence 1993)
Result Inquiry Case: fundamental errors investigation was marred by a combination of professional incompetence institutional racism
Weber and Goffman’s explanations for racism
Weberian – minority ethnic groups seen as low status groups, e.g. an ‘underclass’ (Rex and Moore, 1967)
Impact on economic resources (‘class’) and political rights
Goffman’s (1963) ideas of ‘stigma’ relevant
According Erving Goffman, the term ‘stigma’ describes the ‘situation of the individual who is disqualified from full social acceptance’.
Racialisation
Racialisation is literally race-making, as racial hierarchies don’t have a biological basis, but are socially constructed
A process of homogeneization (essentialism)
1) individual and social differences become obscured by racial caregorisation
2) ‘Race’ becomes the defining feature of a group’s values and behaviour (and of its ‘nature’)
A process of ranking
1) Racial differences are homogenizing, but also hierarchical
2) They are tied to notions of (racial) superiority and inferiority
You can think of racialisation as the ‘opposite’ of intersectionality!
Homogeneity
The quality or state of being all the same or all of the same kind.
A homogeneous society refers to a social setting where the majority of its members share common cultural, ethnic, religious, and linguistic backgrounds.
