Passage Two

Social and Cultural Aspects of“Race”and“Ethnicity”

1．Race and ethnicity both represent social or cultural constructs for categorizing people based on perceived differences in biology(physical appearance)and behavior．Although popular connotations of race tend to be associated with biology and those of ethnicity with culture，the two concepts are not clearly distinct from one another．

2．While diverse definitions exist，ethnicity may be defined as the identification with population groups characterized by common ancestry，language and custom．Because of common origins and intermarriage，ethnic groups often share physical characteristics which also then become a part of their identification—by themselves and/or by others．However，populations with similar physical appearance may have different ethnic identities，and populations with different physical appearances may have a common ethnic identity．

3．Ethnic group unity needs to be reinforced by a constant emphasis on what traits set the members apart from others，rather than what they share in common with the outsiders．This is a universal means of boundary maintenance，or defense，between ethnic groups．Ethnic symbols are convenient markers for making“we-they”distinctions and are the focal points for racism and other unpleasant manifestations of ethnocentrism．They also mask in-group differences．In the United States，for instance，they help propagate the myth that there is a single，coherent American Indian ethnic group．The same goes for Hispanics，European Americans，African Americans，Asian Americans，and Pacific Islanders．

4．Whether or not individuals in minority ethnic or“racial”groups prominently emphasize their ethnic symbols may vary with the situation．They may not emphasize them if they are trying to identify with or join the dominant culture in their society．That is to say，they may deemphasize the things that make them different if they wish to assimilate into the dominant ethnic group．For instance，the children of many immigrants to the United States prefer to speak in the local colloquial dialect of English rather than in their parents'native language．Likewise，they choose to dress and act like other Americans in their schools．This has the effect of making them less different from their neighbors while estranging them from their parents．

5．Assimilation can be speeded up by marriage across ethnic or“racial”boundaries．As intermarriage becomes common，ethnic/racial differences often are progressively blurred．Not surprisingly，many ethnic/racial group organizations are opposed to intermarriage—they see it as a tool of ethnocide．The effect of intermarriage on reducing ethnic group identity can be seen in the reduction of discrimination against each of the European immigrant group in North America after several generations．In the case of Jews，discrimination lasted longer but has also reduced dramatically with the progressive increase in marriage to non-Jews．In the early 1960's，only 6%of American Jews married outsiders．By 1985，the rate had grown to nearly 25%．By the mid 1990's it was 52%．Over these four decades，discriminatory barriers to Jews largely disappeared．Of course，there were social changes in America that also contributed to the reduction in institutionalized discrimination．

Forms of Discrimination

6．Prejudice and discrimination based on presumed ethnic/racial differences are universal—they are found in various forms in all societies．Acts of prejudice range all the way from benign classification of people to cruel persecution．However，the term racism has come to be imprecisely applied to all of these behaviors．Kwame Appiah，a British and Ghanaian scholar of African American issues，has made a useful distinction between kinds of prejudicial behavior．He uses the term racialism for the more benign forms of discrimination such as categorizing people for reference purposes on the basis of age，gender，and ethnicity/ race．He reserves the term racism for harmful discrimination such as not hiring someone because of their“race．”This distinction will be followed here．

7．We are all racialists．It is normal to categorize people in our daily lives based on a number of traits．It can be a useful aid in predicting behavior．For instance，when you are lost in a strange city，you very likely approach an adult rather than a young child for help because you surmise that the adult will know more．Similarly，when you want to take an out-of-town guest to a good traditional Mexican restaurant，you may ask a Mexican American friend for recommendations．However，when categorizing leads to behavior that harms another person，it becomes racism．

8．No one ethnic/racial group has the monopoly on racism．Even members of groups that are aggressively discriminated against by others may think and act in a vicious racist manner．Racism has been a common element in American history．However，the most pervasive racist acts are not being carried out in America today．Far from it，over the last two decades，they have been in such places as the former Yugoslavia，Israel，India，Pakistan，Indonesia，Rwanda，South Africa and Sudan．In all of these countries，ethnic identities have been strongly emphasized as a government policy．The result has been the rise of tribalism and even genocide in some regions．Throughout history，there have been numerous atrocities carried out in the name of ethnic/racial purification．If racism and ethnic persecution are indeed as much a part of human nature as ethnocentrism，we can expect that such atrocities will occur in the future as well．

9．While racism is universal，its focus usually changes in the transition from small-scale societies to large-scale ones．The smallest societies are almost always biologically and culturally homogenous without ethnic group distinctions．In such societies，the target of racism is other societies．Strangers are often thought of as being not quite human．In contrast，large societies are often heterogeneous and have many ethnic groups．The targets of racism are mostly other ethnic groups within the same society．In Italy，for instance，Northern Italians often look down upon Southern Italians and stereotype them as being ignorant，dishonest，and lazy．Southern Italians often view Northern Italians as being impersonal，dull，and not trustworthy．A similar north-south stereotyping occurs in China．

Questions for Understanding

1．In terms of social/cultural construct what do you think race and ethnicity may share in common?

2．What might be the results of the racial and ethnic categorization?

3．What does one do when he/she wants to be assimilated into thedominant cultural group?

4．What do you think the author of this passage intends people to do in order to reduce racism?

5．Do you agree that racism or ethnocentrism is the intrinsic nature of culture?Who might benefit from this“theory”created?

【注释】

[1]Emile Durkheim:埃米尔·迪尔凯姆(1858～1917)。到目前为止，最重要和多产的社会学家，由于采用实证主义的方法，被誉为把社会学科学化的人。迪尔凯姆强调社会事实中外在性和强制性的特征源于某种社会性因素。

[2]George(Herbert)Mead:乔治·赫伯特·米德(1863～1931)，美国社会学家、社会心理学家及哲学家，符号互动论的奠基人。

[3]Erik Erikson:艾里克·艾里克森(1902～1994)，美国神经病学家，著名的发展心理学家和精神分析学家。他提出人格的社会心理发展理论，把心理的发展划分为八个阶段，指出每一阶段的特殊社会心理任务，并认为每一阶段都有一个特殊矛盾，矛盾的顺利解决是人格健康发展的前提。

[4]Andrew Weigert:安德鲁·维吉特，印第安纳圣母大学社会心理学教授。研究领域包括社会心理学、宗教、理论、环境和现代身份。