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While going through the PBS website called Power of Illusion, we found many things that were new to us and that surprised us. The things that were new to us was the idea of race is actually a modern idea. Ancient societies did not divide people according to physical differences. Another idea that was new to us, was the adding of race to our census was not added until 1790, additionally the race of “Mexican” was not added until 1930. What surprised us the most was that us as humans actually have not been around long enough to put ourselves in subcategories based on our race or ethnicity.…
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The documentary, "The Divide", was very informative and enlightening. It focused on a specific area in America (Siler City) and the many effects that race has on it. The video focused on Siler City, North Carolina because it has been a hotspot of racial controversy over the years. Many issues have risen in Siler City that are prime examples if not better examples of problems involving race throughout the country. The Mexicans that are immigrating to Siler City are doing so mainly to work and provide a better life for themselves or their families. In Mexico they are not able to work throughout the year because their crops are in seasons. If the Mexicans…
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RACE Definitions/Concepts Racial Formation: idea of how race is created. Race: socially constructed categorization process that describes phenotype, not genotype. Ethnicity: nationality/origin. Whiteness: ideology tied to social status, provides privilege for those labeled white; process by which non-white “other” created for benefit of whites. Racism: about structural advantages/disadvantages placed on people based on perceptions of their race. Can be individual or institutional. Covert: not hiring someone due to skin color. Overt: designated drinking fountains/bathrooms. Ex: Federal Housing Agency in ‘50s, Freddie May/Freddie Mac loans through GI Bill, media/local community demonizes young black men. Larger system that influences individual actions (structure vs agency). Privilege: special advantage/benefit. Can be based on: race, gender, ethnicity, class, ability, sexual orientation, religion. Race as a social construction: changes based on political, economic, cultural, and historical events. No taxonomic significance; rely on “folk” taxonomy: unscientific notion that you can identify someone’s raced based on stereotypical physical features. Ex. Sammy Sosa: black in the US, mulatto (mixed) in Dom Rep, white in Haiti, Taino (indig.) in Puerto Rico. Ex. One Drop Rule: created b/c white slaveowners had children w/ their slaves, wanted them to be slaves (economic purpose). How race impacts people’s outcomes? 2 examples. Takaki Origin of slavery = class conflict. Uprisings, rebellions solidarity among land/slave owners. How white/white class conflict generated led to institutionalization of slavery and a new racial order: many English settlers came as indentured servants. Freemen enacted legislation to lengthen time of servitude, made it harder for servants to become landowners. “Giddy multitude”: discontented class of indentured servants, slaves, landless freemen (white and black). Bacon’s Rebellion exposed volatility of class tensions, accelerated process.…
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Zora Neale Hurston states “I feel like a brown bag… in company with other bags, white, red, and yellow” (Hurston 185-186). Each one of these colors represents a different race, brown being African- Americans, white being Caucasian, red being Indians and yellow being Asians. The wall that they all lean upon is the world in which they live in. She continues to go on and say “Pour out the contents and there is discovered a jumble of small things priceless and worthless” (Hurston 186). These ‘contents’ that are being poured out of the different colored bags are the characteristics in a person. Zora states that everyone is the same on the inside- being made of worthless and priceless things. While there is difference on the outside we were all composed of the same thing. In Stereotyping, Prejudice, and Racism Jana Noel provides information stating that “while children do see differences among people, they do not make judgments based upon those differences” (Noel 43). Perhaps the mindset of superiority because of race brings on thoughts about whether or not the prejudice runs deeper than skin color or not.…
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Viewing this documentary was an extremely valuable experience in my understanding of not only some of the material we’ve been discussing in our course, but also in developing a much more developed grasp on the full extent of our nation’s ugly history of racism. While, by and large, I was already keenly aware of many of the events and incidences discussed throughout the three-part documentary including the assimilation and forced removal of Native Americans, slavery, manifest destiny, the idea of the “white man’s burden”, and the study of eugenics, there were so many different aspects to these events that you simply do not learn in grade school.…
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Race is a factor of life that is constantly being judged by society. Society has created individuals who judge others on skin color, and ethnicity; spawning hate and spreading acceptance of different set of standards to each race. “Largely about what wealthy… white men wear in silicon valley and wall street” (Sengupta 228). Race is part of the identity, most of the time it determines how you are treated by others, how one’s life is lived, and which stereotypes are carried. “... from racist people who think all Asians look the same! or ...Why on earth would you say something like that?” (Chung para. 9). Race is the…
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The ethnicity of a person is shown by where a person is from and their culture and their language. A person that is called “black” does not show how a person has ethnicity but if a person had parents from a country in Africa and was born in the same country in Africa and learned about the culture and language that makes a person ethnic. When people say a person is generally white or black it does not show their ethnicity. It shows lack of understanding of where a person is actually from and if they know their ethnicity or not. The second epiphenomena of race that Omi and Winant stated is nation. The nation shows how people who are not together in the world actually come together to become a nation. People do this to try and come together with common elements of culture, language or history to inhabit a territory or country. Although these people come together, it does not mean that they agree on these same views. The last epiphenomena of race that Omi and Winant stated is Class. Class is important because from Karl Marx’s idea on class to now, class is still in the world today. In America, there are different classes such as Upper class, upper middle class, middle class, lower middle class and lower class. Depending on what job a person has and sometimes what nationality a person is, it categorizes them into the class system. The system is set up so that the people that…
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Since the Civil War, all slaves had the right to be treated as equals, but instead are treated like tiny insects. They were no longer slaves, but were they really racially free? the answer to that is no. However, even if they aren’t racially free, they are still human. Granted, racism has changed since the 1930s, but really, how much? In Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, a family was forced into fighting for themselves and their rights, because no one would do it for them. Now, people don’t have to do that, because it’s not only racism that has changed, but the world. Do you see a little girl with her head down walking through town just because she is afraid that people will comment that she is black and will hurt her? No? Exactly. You may say, well what about 9/11? That was an act of racism, wasn’t it? As a reply, one might say, yes it was an act of racism, but not one that had targeted the entire country, and revert family living everywhere, just certain parts of the country. Now, the only common racist problem would be the lives of innocent African-American lives being taken, but if we just forget about race, and forget about what makes a race, then the country would be just fine. As far as I’m concerned, there are no people anywhere who aren’t allowed to use a bathroom because their…
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Today’s social construction has been highly influenced by the ideology of race. Race has created this process of racialization, which is when a group becomes labeled as physiologically different and inferior. Racialization involves oppression, violence, and discrimination. The term race has created a social construction and ranking system.…
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Equality and equal opportunity are two terms that have changed or have been redefined over the last 100 years in America. The fathers of our constitution wanted to establish justice and secure liberty for the people of the United States. They wrote about freedom and equality for men, but historically it has not been practiced. In the twentieth century large steps have been made to make the United States practice the ideals declared in the Constitution and Bill of Rights. The major changes following Rosa Park 's refusal to give up her bus seat to a young white man and the Brown v. Board of Education trial in 1954. These Supreme Court rulings altered American society and began the desegregation and integration movements. In the 1950 's many writers took interest in writing about segregation, desegregation, integration and black history in general. Many historians write about segregation still existing today and the problems in which integration never had the chance to correct.…
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By watching the film I have a deep understanding, I know racial distinction is not just by appearance, we don't really know what is race, actually the race is not important, but the race is still bringing great influence on people's lives. This film is about race, not about attitude and behavior of the individual, and in the past in the history of the institutional and policy in the United States is still on the basis of race, through sacrifice others bring interests for groups. The biggest benefit is the white, white we see at the time of life is so happy, but not because of their hard work, but because of their laws, courts, customs, even if the housing is a race.…
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Race is a quality that everyone has. To be seen as Caucasian, African American, Asian, and etc; has everything to do with race and sometimes racism. Stephen Kumalo and his son Absalom set off on a journey through South Africa facing people driven by racial injustice. Under desperate circumstances, Kumalo showed that you cannot let the color of your skin and racism stop you from conquering your goals. Stephen Kumalo said in the “I have nothing against the white Men; I believe that all races are equal”. This type of race issues is mirrored in two recent events. The Washington Post details an act of racism and racial injustice in an article titled “Donald Trump’s false comments connecting Mexican immigrants and crime”. This article details President Candidate, Donald Trump, Speaking bad about Mexicans. Another example of racial injustice and racism, Similar to the race issues in Kumalo’s journey is a story from New York Times of a young black male in Baton Rouge who was shot because of his race.…
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In the beginning of the documentary we were asked a couple of questions what is race and if race existed and before taking this class and watching the movie I would have said yes race does exist because growing up I believed race was what we were not who we are. A lot of people have suffered because of race especially black people because we have never and never will achieve the whiteness per say as everyone else who have come to this country. Overall I like the documentary because I think it has or will open up people eyes and make them realize that there is no validity behind the word race. There were several parts I didn’t like and made me mad because I believe people from different ethnicities’ would not have been mistreated if the European people were not so afraid or felt that they were superior to everyone else..…
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Every human is all equality the same way no matter what their race or gender. No one is considered different with race just have their own genes and family. Genes does determine a lot about one’s personality but it doesn’t change who they are. Everyone is the same no matter what race they are. But in the 1930’s racism is completely different story when it comes to who is different.…
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When I hear the word “race”, the first thing that I think of is a person’s skin color, facial features and the texture of their hair. Although I am colorblind, I can’t help but to think of this when I hear the word race. This is due to the fact that the majority of the time when we fill out an application or any paperwork of importance the question of race is raised. I’m not sure why it matters, your experience and education seems more important to me. It seems as if some people still want to separate us depending on the color of our skin. Being that there’s so many races mixing, there’s no such thing as a pure race. Race seems to be unimportant to me. Ethnicity is a word that I prefer and enjoy when speaking of culture. Ethnicity makes me think of everybody’s struggle dating back from their ancestors to the present. Where did your ancestors originate? Where did you come from? Ethnicity is ones background and cultural differences. For example just because I am considered black doesn’t mean that I am from Africa; which means that I will be considered an African American. I thought for years that I was an African American till an African man that I was friends with broke it down to me and gave me some knowledge to read. He is considered an African American because he’s from Africa and now resides in America. I am considered to be a black American because I’m from America. This is weird being that my ancestors were American Indians. Your ethnicity is the group that others place you. I do have my personal opinion on all of this and why America still tries to identify us by race. Since my opinion was asked I felt the need to tell the truth on how I feel. Race and ethnicity are important in America because some people in the government still strives for division and don’t want us to come together as one. It seems as if the government gets more powerful when we separate ourselves from each other. If we all were to come together I…
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