UNIT 4

ETHNICITY AND RACE

I. You have to read and translate the following concepts and terms

Race, ethnicity, minority group, prejudice, antagonism, stereotype, racism, discrimination, institutional discrimination, pluralism, assimilation, segregation, negroids, mongoloids, chicanos, latino, caucasians, ethnic group, subordination, internal colonialism, de facto discrimination, superiority, tolerance, exploitation, colonized peoples, immigration.

II. Now you have to read and translate the following English text into the Russian language

Ethnicity and Minority Groups

Ethnicity refers to cultural differences (such as language or history) that set one group apart from others. There is a considerable diversity across cultures and time as to what differences are considered socially significant. There is nothing natural or obvious about what a society considers to be important aspects of physical or cultural differences. Furthermore, these differences must be learned, we are not born with the ability to differentiate groups of people.

Disadvantaged ethnic groups are often called minority groups, which may or may not entail physical differences. Racial differences denote physical variations singled out as significant in a society, but human beings cannot be separated into biologically distinct races. Racism is prejudice based on socially significant physical differences. A racist believes that some people are superior or inferior because of these differences; but it is important to note that racial differences and racism are social constructs, not based on innate characteristics.

Ethnic Antagonism; Prejudice; and Discrimination

The term prejudice refers to opinions or attitudes of one group about another, while discrimination refers to behavior toward the other group. Believing that members of some group are less intelligent is an example of prejudice; refusing to hire them on the basis of such belief is discrimination.

The current ethnic composition of many parts of the world is the result of huge population shifts that occurred during several hundred years

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of colonialism.

Colonialism gave rise to modern racism; in fact, the very idea of different races arose as a result of European encounters with different cultures. Several factors contributed to the development of racism:

•The concept of blackness in European culture had negative symbolic associations, which served to reinforce a sense of difference and superiority with respect to African peoples.

•The concept of race was introduced as a supposedly scientific concept in the early nineteenth century, and so made it seem as though observed differences were based in nature.

•Racist thinking provided a convenient ideology to justify both ethnocentrism and the exploitation of colonized peoples.

III.You have to complete the sentences with the words on the right in its appropriate form

1.____________ movements have caused a lot of separate serious military conflicts in different parts of the

world.

2.If people say that their race is better than others, racism they are called_______________________.

3.In all civilized countries, any_______________ discriminate against people of other nationalities is prohibited by

law.

IV. This time you have to read and translate the following English text into the Russian language

Ethnic Relations in the United States

At first the majority of colonists were of British descent, but they were quickly followed by several waves of immigration from other countries. Each successive group faced considerable discrimination from the established groups, and often settled in their own distinct ethnic

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neighborhoods.

African Americans: The most significant discrimination was against blacks, most of whom were initially brought over by force to be slaves. Even after the Civil War, African Americans faced legalized segregation and discrimination. As agricultural jobs in the South were lost to mechanization, employment opportunities increased in the industrializing North; this induced many blacks to migrate, so that today the majority of African Americans no longer live in the South. Most open manifestations of segregation and discrimination ended as a result of the civil rights movements of the 1950s and 1960s. Segregation persists, however, and disparities between whites and blacks remain large.

Latinos: California, Puerto Rico, and most of the Southwest were taken by conquest, and brought with them considerable Spanish-speaking populations. Descendants of formerly Mexican territories, together with subsequent immigrants from Mexico, are known as "Chicanos," while the term "Latino" refers to any Spanish-speaking resident, including Cubans, Puerto Ricans, and Central and South Americans.

Asian Americans: Prejudice and discrimination against Chinese and Japanese was, until recently, nearly as intense as that against blacks. Immigration was closed to the Chinese as soon as inexpensive labor was no longer needed to build railroads, and during the Second World War Japanese American families lost their houses and businesses and were forced into prison camps. Since that time, however, discrimination has diminished and Asian American prosperity has increased steadily.

An important distinction must be drawn between those minorities that came to America as willing immigrants, and the colonized peoples who either were here already (Native Americans, Mexican Americans) or were brought by force (African Americans, Chinese) and who were generally incorporated by violence. Racism targeted at these latter groups has been most persistent and most destructive. Gender discrimination compounds the difficulties facing women of color; about half of African American and Latino families that depend primarily on women's incomes live in poverty.

V. Now you have to discuss the following questions

1.What is your ethnicity?

2.If is it true that ethnicity is wholly learned, are you free to refuse your ethnic identity or to change it?

3.Can you have more than one ethnicity?

4.Can you choose not to have an ethnic identity?

5.Why are some ethnic groups traditionally based on colour (back, white),

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while others refer to national origin (Chinese, American)?

6.Who decide of the name of an ethnic group?

7.Who should decide?

VI. This time you have to match the words with their definitions.

Traditional models of political ethnic harmony have included:

VII. In this exercise you have to cross out the incorrect one

1.Ethnicity / Assimilation refers to cultural practices and outlooks of a given community that set them apart from others.

2.Communities of people who are disadvantaged in a particular society are often called Minority groups / Prejudices.

3.Racist / Race refers to physical variations singled out by the members of community or society as being socially significant; someone who believes that some individuals are superior or inferior based on these distinctions is Racist / Race.

4.Apartheid / Prejudice refers to opinions or attitudes that are held about other groups, Assimilation / Discrimination while refers to concrete behavior towards other groups.

5.The politically enforced racial separation that existed in South Africa until recently was known as Pacific Rim / Apartheid.

6.In 1964, the Melting pot / Civil Rights Act was passed by Congress, and

comprehensively banned discrimination in public facilities, education, and employment on the basis of race, ethnicity, or gender.

7.The term Latino / Apartheid refers to anyone from Spanish-speaking areas living in the United States.

8.The idea that newer immigrant groups would take on the attitudes and language of the dominant white society characterizes a model of ethnic

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harmony known as Assimilation / Discrimination.

9.The Pacific Rim / Melting pot refers to the old idea that different cultures and outlooks could be stirred together to form a single, new, conglomerate culture pattern.

10.The West Coast of North America is linked with Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and South Korea as a network of economic power called the Civil Rights Act / Pacific Rim.

VIII. This time you have to read the sentences below and say whether they are true or false.

1.Much of what is now California was once part of Mexico.

2.An individual is not born with ethnic differences; they must be learned.

3.Red-haired people in the United States constitute a minority group in the sociological sense of the term.

4.Sociologists find the concept of biological race to be a useful and accurate classification.

5.Modern racism is directly connected to the historic experience of colonization.

6.Many immigrants in the early twentieth century found the conditions in the United States worse than they had been in the areas they had left behind them.

7.During the Civil War, most Northern leaders were more interested in sustaining the Union for political and economic reasons than they were in abolishing slavery.

8.Before 1964 it was legal for white Americans to discriminate against black Americans.

9.Cuban immigrants are mainly political refugees rather than economic migrants.

10.The ideal of assimilation and the concept of the melting pot have proven to be accurate models for the construction of ethnic harmony in the United States.

Study this rule

We use ‘should’ and shouldn’t to give advice

IX. This time you have to work in pairs. Ask your partner what you should do

Example: “I want to know what my rights are. What should I do?” —

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“You should study law”

1.“I want to learn about conflict prevention. What should I do?”

2.“I want to break the stereotypes of people from other cultures. What

should I do?”

3.“I want to learn to be tolerant. What should I do?”

4.“I want to help people with disabilities. What should I do?”

5.“I want to express my sympathy for people who suffer from discrimination. What should I do?”

6.“I want violence on TV to be prohibited. What should I do?”

7.“I want to take an active part in the government. What should I do?”

8.“I want to be able to carry out conflict research and implement conflict management techniques. What should I do?”

X. Now you have to make the right choice

1.All the following are characteristics of minority groups EXCEPT

a.its members are disadvantaged, compared to the majority population.

b.it has a sense of group solidarity.

c.its members often live physically and socially isolated from the majority.

d.it is always defined by physical difference as well as ethnic identity.

2.Which of the following concepts is modern in origin?

a.prejudice

b.discrimination

c.race

d.all the above

3.White home buyers who decline to look for a house in black neighborhoods because of fear of declining property values rather than hostility against blacks are expressing

a.discrimination, but not prejudice directly.

b.prejudice, but not discrimination directly.

c.discrimination as well as prejudice

d.neither discrimination nor prejudice.

4.Racism against European colonists resulted from all the following EXCEPT

a.traditional symbolic meanings of black and white.

b.the diffusion of the concept of race.

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