- An ethnic group is a community of individuals who share a common cultural background
characterized by specific beliefs, values, customs, norms, and historical experiences.
- Members of an ethnic group define themselves as distinct from others based on cultural features such as language, religion, kinship, or geographic location.
- Key markers of an ethnic group include a collective name, a belief in common descent, a sense of solidarity among members, and an association with a particular territory, whether they have control over it. Ethnic Groups in Bangladesh Ethnogenesis:
- Ethnogenesis is the process by which new ethnic identities emerge in response to changing social conditions.
- It reflects how individuals or groups reconfigure their ethnic identities over time.
For example, Irish descendants may have initially identified as Celtic but now identify as Irish Americans.
Similarly, the descendants of enslaved Africans in the U.S. developed a unified identity that has evolved through various labels, such as colored (early 1900s), Negro (1930s–1960s), Black (late 1960s to the present) and African American (1980s to the present).
This shows that ethnic identities are not fixed but can shift based on historical and social contexts. What Is Race?
- Race is historically defined as a classification
system used to group humans based on shared physical and biological features, such as skin color, facial structure, and body type.
- Scholars in the 18th and 19th centuries sought
to divide humanity into distinct racial categories based on these traits.
- It was often assumed that physical traits
correlated with deeper biological and intellectual differences, giving rise to racial classifications.
- Despite lacking scientific validity, racial
categories were used to justify discrimination, fostering inequality and social divisions. Racial Classification
► Carolus Linnaeus' Four Races (1735):
- Linnaeus classified humanity into four races: Americanus (Native American), Europaeus (European), Asiaticus (East Asian), and Africanus (African). - These categories resemble some racial labels still used in modern censuses.
► Johann Blumenbach's Five Races (1795):
- Blumenbach proposed five races: Caucasian (white), Mongolian (yellow/East Asian), Ethiopian (black/African), American (red/Native American), and Malayan (brown/Pacific Islander). - He controversially argued that the Caucasian race was the original human form, from which others had "degenerated.“
► Three-Race Theory (Early 20th Century):
- The idea of three races—Caucasoid, Negroid, and Mongoloid—became popular, corresponding to regions of Europe, Africa, and East Asia.
Efforts to classify human populations often failed to account for the genetic diversity and complexity within regions, leading to arbitrary and inconsistent categorizations. The Problem of Identifying Race:
- Scholars could not agree on the number of races or the traits that defined them, leading to confusion and inconsistency.
- Physical traits, such as skin color, eye shape, or hair texture, are inherited independently and do not align neatly to form distinct races.
- Early racial divisions were based on visible traits like skin color, ignoring genetic complexity and leading to subjective groupings.
- Genetic variation occurs across all human groups, making race a poor and oversimplified way to describe human diversity.
The fundamental point is the classification of human populations into racial categories is inherently arbitrary and subjective, rather than scientific or objective. Race is Real, but Socially Constructed:
- While race isn’t based on biological or scientific facts, it is a real concept shaped by social and cultural definitions.
- Racial categories change over time and vary between societies. For example, the concept of “whiteness” in the United States expanded over time. Immigrant groups like the Irish, Italians, and Jews, once considered racially different, are now included in the “white” category.
- Racial categories like “white” and “black” are as real as nationalities like “American” or “African,” even though they are not based on biology.
For example, In a mixed-race marriage between a black and a white parent, the child inherits 50% of their genes from each parent. Despite this, American culture typically classifies the child as black. This arbitrary classification overlooks the equal genetic contribution from both parents, illustrating that racial categories are socially constructed rather than based on biology. A Melting Pot Or A Salad Bowl?
- The term "melting pot" refers to a metaphor used to describe a society where diverse cultures, ethnicities, and identities blend to create a unified national culture.
- This concept suggests that immigrants and minority groups come together, interact, and assimilate into the dominant culture while contributing their unique elements, resulting in a new, hybridized cultural identity.
- Over 400 years, the United States has dealt with integrating diverse immigrant groups into society. This has led to debates on whether minority cultures should assimilate into the mainstream or retain their unique identities.
Three main approaches have emerged:
1. Assimilation (adopting mainstream culture),
2. Multiculturalism (preserving diverse cultures), and 3. Amalgamation (blending cultures to form a new identity) 1. Assimilation:
Assimilation advocates for minority groups to quickly adopt mainstream customs, languages, and identities, abandoning their native ones.
- Proponents argue this promotes national unity and prevents ethnic conflict.
- The "English as the Official Language" movement in the U.S. highlights concerns about national cohesion. This concern arises particularly because the 2010 Census revealed that 21% of the population, which is over 60 million people, speaks a language other than English at home. Among these, 38 million people speak Spanish.
- Assimilationists view linguistic uniformity as crucial for maintaining a strong national identity in the face of increasing diversity, with over 300 languages now spoken in the U.S. 2. Multiculturalism:
Multiculturalism promotes ethnic and cultural diversity as a societal asset, encouraging respect for cultural differences rather than assimilation.
- This approach posits that diversity itself doesn't cause conflict, advocating for tolerance over cultural abandonment.
- It's exemplified in U.S. cities like New York and Los Angeles, where distinct ethnic neighborhoods coexist (Chinatown and Little Italy border, Little Tokyo, Koreatown, Filipino town, Little Armenia, and Little Ethiopia).
- The goal is peaceful coexistence while preserving unique cultural identities.
- Canada officially adopted multiculturalism in the 1988 Canadian Multiculturalism Act, which recognizes citizens' rights to maintain their cultural heritage within Canadian society. 3. Amalgamation:
Amalgamation advocates for the blending of diverse cultural groups in a multiethnic society.
- It encourages free intermingling, interaction, and cohabitation among different ethnic groups, leading to cultural exchanges and eventually inter-ethnic relationships and marriages.
- Amalgamation aims for a "melting pot" effect. This process creates a new hybridized cultural identity by combining elements from both dominant and minority cultures.
-The goal is a unified national culture, but one that emerges from the fusion of all integral groups rather than the dominance of one. Roots Of Ethnic Conflict:
Ethnicity, based on perceived cultural differences, can foster peaceful multiculturalism or lead to discrimination and conflict.
- Cultural perceptions can significantly impact social interactions, both positively and negatively.
- Ethnic differentiation stems from various factors including political, economic, religious, linguistic, cultural, or racial differences.
- Ethnic conflicts often arise from perceived injustices in resource distribution, competition for economic or political power, and reactions to discrimination or prejudice.
- These issues can result in violence when groups feel their identity is devalued or threatened. Prejudice and discrimination: Prejudice and discrimination are key factors in ethnic conflict.
Prejudice: - Involves devaluing a group based on assumed traits or behaviors. - Relies on stereotypes (fixed, often unfavorable ideas about group characteristics). - Leads to interpreting individual behaviors as confirmation of group stereotypes.
Discrimination: - Refers to harmful policies and practices against a group. - Can be de facto (practiced but not legally sanctioned) or de jure (legally enforced) - De facto example: Harsher treatment of minorities by police and judicial system in the U.S. - Historical de jure examples: Apartheid in South Africa
These practices create and reinforce social inequalities, potentially sparking tension and conflict between ethnic groups. Discussion Session: Race
- How does your cultural background influence your understanding of
race?
- What are some common stereotypes associated with different racial
groups?
- How do these stereotypes impact individuals and society?
- How do you think race is represented in movies, TV shows, or social
media? Discussion session about Ethnic conflict:
Discussion Questions:
- What are some common causes of ethnic conflict?
- How do ethnic conflicts impact individuals and communities?
- What can be done to prevent ethnic conflicts and promote peace?
References:
Nina, B., Laura, G., & Thomas, M. (Eds.). (2017). Perspectives: An Open Invitation to Cultural Anthropology. Chapter nine (Race and Ethnicity) pp. 220-222
Kottak, C. P. (2012). Cultural anthropology: Appreciating cultural diversity. McGraw-Hill.
Chapter six (Ethnicity and Race), pp. 126-128, 145 Thank You
