Unit One Flashcards
What is the vague definition of Ethnicity?
Group or category often defined by culture, heritage or language
Collective Ethnic Identity
A certain consensus within the group about what constitutes it as such and differentiates it from other groups
Individual Ethnic Identity
The relationship of individuals to their own ethnic collectivity
Diachronic Elements include
Ancestry, homeland and cultures associated with one’s ethnic group
Synchronic Elements include
The ways in which an individual or ethnic collectivity is defined, evaluated and treated by others…what are the ways right NOW
Ethnic Identity Formation
The reciprocal process between individuals and groups
What are the three resources of ethnic groups
Expressive strengths, organizational strengths and instrumental strengths
What are examples of expressive strengths of an ethnic group
Folk customs, religion, beliefs and values
Ethnic Institutions
Sites or social spaces within which ethnic identity is produced and maintained overtime
Identities that are considered “US”, the protagonist are called our default because it is what we…
We expect people to be like us, it is what we understand and accept
Others/Them are defined by
not being like us. Unexpected.
Binary notions if Self/Other defines….
how society often thinks about race and ethnicity
Ascriptive Characteristics
Physical or genetic characteristics
“Racism is the doctrine that a mans behaviour is determined by stable inherited characteristics” was a quote from who, in what year?
Banton, 1970
The most popular example of scientific racism was by the
Nazis
Even today, race is still treated as…
a natural category
The Bell Curve was written by
Herrnstein and Murray in 1994
The Bell Curve argues what two main ideas?
1) General intelligence varies among ethnicity and “race” 2) Genetic and environmental factors explain variation among Asians, Whites and Blacks
“Social processes and practices whereby social relations among people are structured by the signification of human biological characteristics in such a was as to define and contract differentiated social collectives” is the definition of what? Who said this?
Miles and Brown (2003) on Racialization
Miles and Brown emphasize what about race?
The social constructedness of race
Why do some argue that social scientists ought to refuse to use the idea of “race”?
So as not to reify it
How does Statistics Canada define ethnicity?
By “objective” ancestry or roots
What is problematic about statistics canada and their use of ethnicity?
Tells us nothing about subjective, and cannot interpret individuals who identify with multiple ethnicities.
In 1991, what percentage of people reported “Canadian” as origin?
4%
In 2006, what ratio of people reported Canadian as origin?
1 in 3
In what year did the Canadian government stop attempting to measure the racial origin of Canadians?
1951
In 1996, why did the Canadian government re-introduce the race question?
Information need to better monitor the success of policies like the federal governments employment equity policy
Objective elements of ethnicity groups
presence of ethnic organizations/institutions, ancestry, customs and rituals
Subjective elements of ethnicity groups
ethnic boundaries: group inclusion and exclusion, solidarity and sympathy for other members, regional groups within ethnicity
External aspects of identity
speaking an ethnic language, practising ethnic traditions
Internal aspects of identity
Cognitive (self image, and image of group), moral obligation, affective (emotional attachments to group)
What happens in the deconstruction of ethnicity?
Some loss of meaning/use of some of the objective aspects of the ethnic identity. May result in alienation, negative views of the ethnic group
What happens in the reconstruction of ethnicity?
gaining of new meanings, new collective experiences often involved
What was the hypothesis for the Breton et al 1990 case?
that for each generation there would be a tendency to negotiate away the objective, external aspects of ethnicity as well as those subjective, internal aspects which may not be consonant with popular societal values and attitudes
What was the results for the Breton et al 1990 case?
The hypothesis was rejected as objectives measured suggested reconstruction more than the subjective ones (language, food, and friends)
What is considered the nonfactual element of empirical research?
A worldview or “lens”
How is theory considered a moral narrative?
It is an elaborate moral debate, allows multiple stakeholders to have a voice (‘own’ your moral and political concerns)
What are two top approaches in theory?
Primordial Approaches and Culture and Assimilation
What are three key components to the primordial theory approach?
Group membership (sharing genetic heritage), fixed and immutable ethnic and racial groups, and socio-biology
What is socio-biology in a a primordial theory context?
explains human behaviour through evolutionary pressures. Suggestions by Van den Berghe that to maximize the chances of survival, the individuals breed within their own kind, leading to in group bias
What did Van den Berghe suggest?
ethnicity is a population bounded by the tule or practice of endogamy
What three theorists resonate with the Culture and Assimilation theory?
W.I Thomas and F. Znaniecki as well as Robert Park
What did W.I Thomas and F. Znaniecki study?
Studied adjustment of recent immigrants to U.S and then studied peasants social reorganization
Who spoke of the race relations cycle?
Robert Park
The race relations cycle explained assimilation as
2 paths, several stages, all leading to assimilation
What were Milton Gordon’s 7 Processes of Assimilation?
Cultural or behavioural assimilation, structural assimilation, marital assimilation, identification assimilation, attitude receptional assimilation, behaviour reception assimilation, civic assimilation
Is Milton Gordon linear or inevitable?
Neither
Four criticisms against assimilation theories
1) Visible minority groups may not go through the same process 2) Assimilation may not be the end point of the process 3) Groups can end up in long lasting, irresolvable states of conflict 4) Gordon’s structural assimilation model has been criticized as too simplistic
What is Portes and Segmented Assimilation?
Immigrants can assimilate into different elements of society making different outcomes possible
What are some of the different possible outcomes for segmented assimilation?
Economically assimilated into dominant culture, into ethnic enclaves which retain ethnic identity, or lower classed with marginalized identities
What is the theory of Waters (2000)
Caribbean immigrants who resist “Americanization” are more likely to success. Attachment to an ethnic identity is not necessarily a barrier to assimilation
What was the theory of Boyd?
In Canada, “Visible Minority” youth from low resource homes tend to be disadvantaged and display the potential of segmented assimilation
The culture of poverty thesis suggests that
culture determines success
What are the internal and external problems with Culture and Socio-economic success?
There is internal variation within a group and external contexts constantly change - loyalty is not always a value that ends well
Can you study culture without reifying it?
Yes
What is political economy?
Differential distraction of property, power and resouces
Individuals exist in a web of unequal social relations beyond their immediate control and therefore social change requires:
concerted social action
“Race” and ethnicity are relational and therefore are define…
alongside class
Where does racism come from?
Unequal economic interaction
Why did slavery emerge?
Because of the need for cheap, unfree labour
Racist ideas are propagated by…
capitalists to divide and conquer groups of workers
There is much evidence that racism is a capitalist conspiracy: True of False?
False, there is little evidence to support this
What is split labour market theory?
Racism and ethnic prejudices are the by products of a competitive labour market
What did Calliste refer split marketing to?
The Canadian Railways in the early and mid 20th century
In terms of political economy, tensions and hostility are often produces by
struggles over markets, jobs, housing and other resources
Li in 1998 suggested what about Chinese businesses in Markham, Ontario?
That the hostility directed towards them stemmed from the success of chinese business owners in suburban shopping areas
People use race and ethnicity for what purpose?
To explain and provide meaning for events in a complec and changing world
Intersectional Analysis focuses on
the interaction of class, gender and ethnic/racial forms of domination and subordination as well as the ways in which each dimension is experienced
Intersectional Analysis suggests the dimensions of race and ethnicity are
interlocking and reinforcing
Is there a theoretical primacy for Intersectional Analysis
No, the system is interrelated in privilege and oppression
Critical Race Theory does what?
Criticizes liberal notions of objectivity, meritocracy, neutrality and colour-blindness. Suggests “race” saturates a wide variety of social practices, policies, ideology, and values, often in non-racialized language, found in work, educations, housing, health, legal system, etc
What is at the core of CRT’s research methodology?
Personal stories and experiences of minorities
Neocolonialism
New local elites collaborated with the old colonizers and the U.S
Post-Colonialism
Resistance to European hegemonic cultural ideas and practices. This lead to the reconstruction of the local and authentic identities of the colonized
Said suggested in 1978
Orientalism is a powerful political tool to misrepresent Arab cultures
Franz Fanon suggested
The language of the colonizers and the whole system of power it represented denigrated the indigenous cultures of the colonized. This left “black” people with a self-perception of inadequacy and inferiority to “whites”
Why do we only focus on the construction of marginalized groups?
The transformation of classes and nationalities of “europeans” into “whites” was the outcome of political, economic and ideological struggles
“Whiteness” is a way of…?
Looking at the world; and organizing social relations, government policies and geographical spaces
3 ways in which race and ethnic relations have been central to canadian nation-building
More than 800 “specific claims” filed by First Nations regarding decade old disputes over unfulfilled treaty promises, growing support for the Parti Québécois in the late 1970s, and lobbying efforts encouraging the federal government to apologize for events that occurred in the past
When did the British take control of New France?
1763
When was the Quebec Act and why?
1774, recognizing the seigneurial system of landholding
When was the racial framing for English/French conflicts in Canada?
19th and early 20th century
When was confederation to the quebec revolution?
1867
Despite the confederation in 1867, what did the economy look like
Control over major economic institutions tended to remain in English hands
When was the “Quiet Revolution”?
in the 1960s
What 3 things happened during the quiet revolution?
Changes to the structure of the province by declaring quebec ability to negotiate for more power, increased secularization, and by 1991, quebec was the only province to have control over immigration matters
When was the Royal Proclamation?
1763
What did the Royal Proclamation recognize?
Aboriginal rights tot land in in “Indian Territory”
The Royal Proclamation resulted in what? (3)
No lands to be taken without Aboriginal People’s consent, agreements to give up land could not be made between individuals, and proclamation gave rise to land surrender treaties
What was the point of view of the Royal Proclamation to the British/Canadians?
treaties were about how to extinguish aboriginal people
Aboriginal peoples and federal government currently disagree over
the interpretation of their terms
Between the aboriginal peoples and federal government there have been instances of…? (3)
government negligence, malfeasance, or simple incompetence
Often, in terms of giving up portions of their reserve land, aboriginal peoples were…
often coerced or tricked into doing so
Indian people were seen to be in need of careful guidance which resulted in what act in 1857?
The Act for the Gradual Civilization of the Indian Tribes of Canada
Government resocialization strategies varied depending on what of the aboriginals?
gender and age
What happened to the assimilation policy in the late 1800s to early 1960s?
Policies and practiced were introduced to eradicate traditional culture and religious practices. Jail terms were also used
When was the the Amendment to the Indian Act and what did this provide?
1895, participating in or assisting in the organization of any Indian cultural events considered serious offences
When the residential school systems were put in place, what did the government provide?
per capita grants to churched to operate the schools
The setting of residential schools were created in a way that minimized
the previous ways of life
What happened to the children in the residential school systems?
Children were taken out of their family environments and isolated several hundred kilometres away from their communities
When did residential schools begin to phase out?
in the 1950s and 1960s
By January 2001, what happened in terms of residential school?
6,700 survivors had launched law suits
British elites recruited individuals and families to increase:
The size of the population and ensure a white settler society
Immigrant recruitment selection, and control were areas of conflict because:
Had to determine who would be allowed in and under which conditions depending on class, gender, sexuality, and racial categories
The Immigration Act of 1910 prohibited:
the entry of “prostitutes”, “mentally defective”, “diseased” and the “physically defective”
The 1919 amendment defined:
Perceived political loyalty and certain behaviours as grounds for deportation
Within the context of institutional racism, British, white Americans and northern european immigrants were seen as:
both good workers and desirable future citizens and therefore were encouraged to come to Canada
In terms of institutional racism, Eastern and Southern Europeans were considered
“in-between” people who, while posing short term problems, could be admitted as a last resort
Non Europeans and non white groups were regarded as what for immigration?
unable to assimilate and racially unsuitable for life in Canada
Explain the Chinese Head-Tax
in the early 1880s, 15700 Chinese males arrived in Canada to work on railroad construction. Those who arrived later were affected by the working class anti-Chinese sentiments through the Chinese Head Tax which accumulated $23 million
What was the Continuous Journey of Stipulation?
An order in council passed in 1910 which was designed to curtail further indian immigration
What happened in 1914 when a Sikh businessman chartered the Komagata Maru to bring 376 passengers to Canada?
They were all escorted out of Vancouver
The Vertical Mosaic
Described by Porter, when ethnicity and social classes correlated with racism influencing immigrants access to occupations
To limit their civil and political rights, what didi the government put into place?
A variety of legal mechanisms to restrict employment opportunities
Exclusionary movements
sought to prevent the arrival of what were deemed to be undesirable immgrants
How can one suggest that racism is inherently connected to the dynamics of capitalism?
Capitalists are interested in promoting “racial” ideologies and divisions as a strategy to divide and rule the working class
What is an argument against racism deriving from capitalism?
Racism eventually resulted in the exclusion of immigrants from certain industries to work in Canada, making it difficult for employers to exploit their labour
The split market theory suggests
that the source of racial tension in economic competition among workers who sell their labour power at different prices
What is an argument against split market theory
It is not clear whether differences in the price of labour were the result of historical accidents or whether they themselves were a consequence of racism. Understandings of fixed biological human difference predated capitalism.
When did Canada discard some of the more blatantly racists immigration legislation?
After the war
The 1952 Immigration Act prohibited the entry of people for reasons such as
nationality, citizenship, ethnic group, occupation, class, habits, modes of life, origin and so on
When was the point system adapted?
1967
Why was the Points System adopted>
to rationalize immigration selection and make it fairer, opening the door to a greater proportion of immigrants from asia, africa, south america
How would one explain the deracialization of immigration control?
Some say it was initiated by liberal, enlightened bureaucrats…however they still had racist attitudes. International political considerations played an important role in the public abandonment of racists immigration selection criteria and practical economic considerations about the kind of workers the economy needed were effective.
