SOCI 201 - Introduction to Sociology PDF

SOCI 201- Introduction to Sociology Dr. Gbenga Adejare Department of Sociology Faculty of Arts “Race” and Ethnicity as Drivers of Social Inequalities  Previously, we discussed social inequality Today, our focus is on drivers of social inequalities – race and ethnicity Why Focus on “Race”...

SOCI 201- Introduction to Sociology Dr. Gbenga Adejare Department of Sociology Faculty of Arts “Race” and Ethnicity as Drivers of Social Inequalities  Previously, we discussed social inequality Today, our focus is on drivers of social inequalities – race and ethnicity Why Focus on “Race”? “Race” is a spurious and controvertible categorization of humans that lacks scientific backings It promotes social inequalities Development is hampered by racism and racializing tendencies  Introduction to “Race”: Why the Scare Quotes? “Race” was first applied to humans during European colonial expansion in the 16th and 17th centuries Use of the term reflects beliefs about biological superiority and inferiority in the context of colonial power Race does not exist as distinct biological entities among humans There is difficulty defining how many races there are Differences within supposed races often outnumbered those between races. It as been established that there is only one human specie - one race  Why the Focus on “Race”? Cont’d The work of Jane Elliott – Brown Eyes vs Blue Eyes At this point, what do you think about the concept of race?  “Race,” Racialization, and Visible Minorities Racialization is a social process in which human groups are viewed and judged as essentially different in terms of their Intellect, Morality, Values, and Innate worth Because of perceived differences in physical appearance or cultural heritage Visible minority is define as “persons, other than Aboriginal peoples, who are non-Caucasian in race or non- white in colour” The Racialization of Visible Minorities in Canada: A Brief History Master narrative is the story a nation tells about itself to celebrate its past and present. It evolves over time, reproduced and refined in schoolbooks, museums, government propaganda, and popular culture often gloss over or omit altogether certain unpleasant events that complicate the national self-identity E.g., the exploitation of Indigenous people or the repression of ethnic or religious minorities may be excluded, becoming what Foucault (1994) called “buried knowledge.” Ethnicity and Race Ethnicity and Race: What’s the Difference? Race is something you are born into. It is based on how you look in relation to others. Ethnicity refers to membership of a cultural group that has roots in a particular place in the world and is associated with distinctive cultural practices and behaviours. Most people identify with just one race but may have many ethnicities. Ethnicity is something you can opt into  Approaches to the Study of Ethnicity Everyone belongs to at least one ethnic group Ethnicity can become the source of conflict There are many ways to study ethnicity Five approaches that are particularly useful in understanding ethnic conflict: Essentialism Postcolonialism Epiphenomenal Instrumentalism Social Constructivism  Essentialism Essentialism (sometimes called Primordialism) is the view that every ethnic group is defined by a “laundry list” of traits carried down from the past to the present with little or no change Essentialism presents a static view of ethnic culture, in which culture does not change without the influence of outside forces Change does not come from within but outside forces Essentialism absolve colonial powers of blame  Post-colonialism Colonialism: the economic and political exploitation of a weaker country or people by a stronger one Postcolonialism is a framework that analyzes the destructive impact colonialism has on both the colonizer and the colonized It is usefully applied to study situations involving indirect rule, a governance policy in which a European nation uses the members of a tribe or ethnic group as its intermediaries in ruling African territory.  Ethnicity as Epiphenomenal Epiphenomenal” describes a secondary effect that arises from, but does not causally influence, a separate phenomenon Epiphenomenal theory suggests that any ethnic conflict is just a by-product of the struggle between economic classes There is a measure of truth in the epiphenomenal explanation, yet it fails to fully account for why the poor identified with the rich.  Instrumentalism Instrumentalism: focuses on emerging ethnicity rather than on long-established ethnic characteristics Traditionally presented as opposite to essentialism and compatible with the epiphenomenal Elite members who mobilize ethnicity for personal gain are called ethnic entrepreneurs E.g., Hitler’s construction and manipulation of the German “Aryan race”  Social Constructivism Social constructivism is the view that ethnicity is artificial, constructed by individuals to serve some agenda. It explains how ethnicity is constructed by the elite. It suffers as a theory of ethnicity by overstating the influence of the elite It looks at the motivation of the broader group, not just the elites  Indigenous Peoples in Canada The racialization of the Indigenous population of the Americas began in the sixteenth century in Europe They were viewed as different because of their way of life, language and their approach to religion Indigenous people have been living in what is now Canada for at least 14,000 years 93 per cent of Canadian history is Indigenous alone Indigenous people have been studied most often not as founders but as problems  Indigenous Peoples in Canada: Indigenous Status Indigenous peoples are defined by a complex system of legal statuses that separates them from non-Indigenous peoples, and from each other Legal designations include registered Indian, Bill C-31 Indian, band member, reserve resident, treaty Indian, Métis, Eskimo  Indigenous Peoples in Canada: Indigenous Status, cont’d Legal differences stem from the Indian Act (1876) and are administered by the federal department of Crown- Indigenous and Northern Affairs Indian Act enshrined a sexist definition of “Indian” as: 1: any man of “Indian blood” reputed to belong to a particular band 2: any child of such a man, or 3: any woman married to such a man. Until 1985, the Indian Act only recognized men as “registered Indian”; women’s status was derived from the man to whom they were married; children's from their father  Indigenous Peoples in Canada: Indigenous Status cont’d In 1985 Bill C-31 passed enabling people who had lost their Indian status through marriage or through the marriage of their mother to apply to be reinstated Inuit have been in Canada for a shorter time and occupy Arctic territory Métis are the descendants of French fur traders and Cree women Indigenous People in Canada: What the Census Tells Us Indigenous people make up just under 5 per cent of the population of people living in Canada, but their population is growing at a rate over four times that of the non-Indigenous population  Blacks in Canada James McGill (1744-1813) is prominent for being an enslaver of Black and Indigenous people. Record shows that the establishment of McGill University is memorial to remind Canadians that McGill was deeply involved in colonial economy  Blacks in Canada Black communities have existed in Nova Scotia since the British Proclamation of 1779 Offered freedom to slaves who left their American masters to fight for the British in the American Revolution They endured incredible hardship and prejudice E.g., Viola Desmond (1914–1965) experienced racial discrimination. Segregation in Nova Scotia was legally ended in 1954 The Black One Thousand: Black Settlement in Alberta In the late nineteenth century, many black Americans migrated west to find a place where they would be free from prejudice and discrimination. The federal government granted Harrison Sneed, a minister from an all-black town called Clearview land far north in Alberta where white settlers did not want to live and farm In 1909 Sneed returned to Alberta with a group of 194 men, women, children and all their possessions A group of 200 black settlers followed shortly The Black One Thousand: Black Settlement in Alberta By 1914, the immigration that had resulted in the settlement of “The Black One Thousand,” as they were known, had ceased because: Wilfrid Laurier made a declaration that prohibited “any immigrants belonging to the Negro race from settling in Canada”  The Black Population in Canada Today Black population of Canada has declined several times 1792, nearly 1,200 black Loyalists left for the new African colony of Sierra Leone. 1871 and 1911, there was a slow decline in Canada’s black population, from 21,500 to 16,900, and from 22,200 to 18,000, between 1941 and 1951 1970s the black population began to increase consistently, rising from 34,400 in 1971 to 239,500 by the end of the decade 2016 census, close to 1.2 million people who identified as black were living in Canada The third-largest visible minority population in the country are Blacks  Asian Canadians As of the 2016 census, two-thirds of visible-minority Canadians were of Asian ancestry. South Asians and Chinese Canadians making up the two largest visible-minority populations in the country Asian Canadians do not always face the same barriers to success that other racialized minorities Chinese immigrants began to settle on Canada’s west coast in the mid-nineteenth century They were driven from China by poverty and political upheaval, and drawn to British Columbia by opportunities to work. Estimates range from 7,000 to 15,000  Head Taxes and an Act to Prevent the Employment of Female Labour Chinese immigrants were viewed by the predominantly white European settler population with suspicion verging on disgust. To stall the influx of undesirable immigrants, the federal government, in 1885, imposed a $50 head tax on any Chinese migrant entering the country. By 1900 the head tax was $100 and $500 by 1903 The new tax had a dramatic effect on Chinese immigration Chances of marrying a Chinese woman were greatly reduced Ratio of Chinese men to Chinese women in Canada in 1911 was roughly 28 to 1 Limited population growth among Chinese Canadians  Head Taxes and an Act to Prevent the Employment of Female Labour, cont’d The government of Saskatchewan, in 1912, create an Act to Prevent the Employment of Female Labour in Certain Capacities. E.g., white woman or girl are not to reside or lodge in, or to work in restaurant or other place of business owned, kept or managed by any Japanese, Chinaman or other Oriental person.  Japanese Canadian Soldiers in World War I Japanese Canadian soldiers volunteered to serve in the Canadian Expeditionary Force in World War I Japanese people had been in Canada since the 1870s During the Second World War, roughly 22,000 Japanese Canadians were placed in internment camps and dispossessed of their property  Not Wanted on the Voyage: The Komagata Maru In 1904, South Asian began to arrive in small numbers, many of them settling in Port Moody, east of Vancouver By 1906, their numbers had increased considerably, with as many as 5,000 Sikhs entering the country between 1905 and 1908 However, due to pressure from both white British Columbians and British government officials in India Canada passed a law requiring that all Asian immigrants entering Canada possess at least $200 They also prohibited the landing of any immigrant arriving directly from any point outside of India In July 1914, the Komagata Maru a ship containing 376 passengers: 340 Sikhs, 24 Muslims, and 12 Hindus was force to leave Canada after facing severe food and water shortage as they were unable to pay $200 to enter Canada Landmarks in the Sociological Study of “Race” Standpoint theory (By Dorothy Smith) argues that the perspective sociological researchers bring to their work is strongly influenced by their social location, their perspective as it is shaped by gender, age, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and other social characteristics. W.E.B Du Bois was the first African-American sociologist and founder of NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) Studied central problems concerning Africans in the US and elsewhere Advocated for legal actions against lynching, among other causes W.E.B. Du Bois: First Black Sociologist W.E.B Du Bois(1868–1963) was the first African- American sociologist and founder of NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) Studied central problems concerning Africans in the US and elsewhere Advocated for legal actions against lynching, among other causes  Daniel G. Hill: First Black Canadian Sociologist Daniel G. Hill (1923–2003) is considered the first Black Canadian sociologist and received his MA and PhD from U of T in 1960 His work includes Negroes in Toronto: A Sociological Study of a Minority Group (1960) and The Freedom Seekers: Blacks in Early Canada (1981) Applied his sociological training to a numbers of social causes Crenshaw, Collins, and Intersectionality Theory Intersectionality refers to the way different social factors—race and ethnicity, gender, sexuality orientation, class, age, and disability —combine to shape the experience of a minoritized group. Intersectionality theory was first developed by Kimberlé Crenshaw, and then elaborated shortly thereafter by critical sociologist Patricia Hill Collins in Black Feminist Thought: Knowledge, Consciousness and the Politics of Empowerment (1990). Dimensions of inequality create an interlocking matrix of domination Current Issues in the Study of Race and Ethnicity Racism can be understood as the product of four linked elements: 1. Racialization: construction of certain groups of people as different and biologically superior or inferior 2. Prejudice: pre-judgment of others on the basis of their group membership 3. Discrimination: differential treatment—rewarded or punished—of individuals based on their group membership 4. Power: manifested when institutionalized advantages are regularly handed to one or more groups over others Different Kinds of Racism 1. Racial bigotry: open, conscious expression of racist views by an individual 2. Systemic or Institutional racism: racist practices, rules, and laws have become institutionalized E.g., Chinese Exclusion Act (1923–47), Indian Act (1876) 3. Polite, smiling, or friendly racism: racism hidden behind smile or words that seem friendly E.g., microaggressions, which are casual remarks, gestures or misguided compliments that reflect racial prejudice Master Narratives and Buried Knowledge Racism is often downplayed or omitted in the master narratives that a country constructs about its history Historical mistreatment, exploitation, and destruction of minorities is excluded from textbooks and other narratives Colonialism is reframed as peaceful co-operation between Indigenous peoples and settlers These events become what Foucault called buried knowledge  Carding and Racial Profiling Racial profiling is often at play in the practice of carding, in which police stop, question, and document people when no offence has been committed Race-Based Hate Crime in Canada The documentary by the British Columbia Teachers' Federation – History of Racism in Canada A hate crime is an act of aggression or intimidation motivated by prejudice against an identifiable group defined by its race, religion, or sexual orientation, designed to harm or terrify not just the victim but the group to which the victim belongs E.g., advocating genocide, inciting or promoting hatred, or causing damage to property associated with an identifiable group (for instance, a place of religious worship) Concluding Thoughts/Questions How useful is race for social reconstruction? Should less attention be given to one’s ethnic identity in order to foster inclusive symbiosis? Are the current gains from discussing race and ethnicity sustainable enough for creating a better world for all? Whose duty is it to make the desired change?