Sociology - Chapter 10

Race & Ethnicity

Biological race is a meaningful concept because people of different races have different genetic markers.

false

An ethnic group is basically the same as a racial group.

false

Canada can claim to be a kindler, gentler nation to the United States because we don't have a history of slavery like they do.

false

Prejudice is a prerequisite for discriminatory behaviour.

false

Racism is a significant issue in Canada.

true

If you have an unfavourable attitude toward a category of people, such as Syrian Canadians, and treat them unfairly, what are you practising?

prejudice and discrimination

What kind of differences among ethnic groups limits the importance of cultural differences?

social structural differences

The construct of ethnicity distinguishes people in terms of cultural markers. What type of marker does the construct of race use to distinguish people?

physical

What inspired the rejection of the term "Indian" by First Nations peoples?

pride

What proportion of Indigenous Canadians identify as Métis?

one third

What does the case of the Québécois illustrate?

conquest

Which issue did the modernization of the Quebec state fail to address?

persistent ethnic stratification

Which theory helps explain the animosity of European Canadians against Asian immigrants in the late nineteenth century?

split labour market

Which of the following best explains why many second- and third-generation immigrants continue to participate in their ethnic communities?

advantages of membership

Imagine that a group of German immigrants to Canada use modern communications technology to stay in close touch with events in Germany. What are they participating in?

a transnational communiity

Two centuries ago, Canada practised expulsion, conquest, slavery, and segregation. Which of the following characterizes race and ethnic relations in Canada now?

segregation, pluralism, and assimilation

Which term best describes the concept of "race"?

social construct

Which of the following terms is not a racial category?

Irish

Your friend argues that you should not even be discussing race in class, because it is just a label that we give to people. You counter that we should continue to discuss it, for which of the following reasons?

Race is used to perpetuate social inequality.

How are people registered under the Indian Act regarded by the Canadian government?

They are wards of the state.

Race is more important as a biological category than a social category.

false

Biology is to race as culture is to ethnicity.

true

Ethnic identity is a matter of free individual choice.

false

race

a social construct used to distinguish people in terms of one or more physical markers, usually with profound effects on their lives.

racialization

the process by which race becomes socially constructed, based upon things like language and ethnicity.

prejudice

an attitude that judges a person on their group’s real or imagined characteristics.

scapegoat

a disadvantaged person or category of people whom others blame for their own problems.

discrimination

unfair treatment of people because of their group membership.

ethnic group

people whose perceived cultural markers are deemed socially significant.

racism

the belief that a visible characteristic of a group, such as skin colour, indicates group inferiority and justifies discrimination.

symbolic ethnicity

a nostalgic allegiance to the culture of the immigrant generation, or that of the old country, that is not usually incorporated into everyday behaviour.

micro-aggressions

small forms of racial or ethnic discrimination that occur in the course of daily interaction and are often not noticed by people committing them.

critical race theory

theory that holds that racial and ethnical prejudice and discrimination are embedded in institutionalized ideologies and practices, not necessarily in the conscious actions of individuals, so it is possible in principle that (1) individual members of a majority group are not prejudiced against minority group members, while (2) legal, educational, health, and other institutions operate in a way that discriminates against the members of the minority group, and (3) many members of the majority, while free of any personal prejudice, nonetheless justify the existing social hierarchy because they are blind to institutional racism.

assimilation

the process by which members of minority racial and ethnic groups adopt the values of the dominant majority culture, making them less distinguishable as a group.

internal colonialism

one race or ethnic group subjugates another in the same country; the subordinate group is segregated from the rest of society in terms of jobs, housing, and social contacts.

institutional racism

organizational policies and practices that systematically discriminate against people of some racial group or groups.

Expulsion

the forcible removal of a population from a territory claimed by another population.

genocide

the intentional extermination of an entire population defined as a race or a people.

pluralism

the retention of racial and ethnic culture combined with equal access to basic social resources.

conquest

the forcible capture of land and the economic and political domination of its inhabitants.

transnational communities

communities whose boundaries extend between or among countries.

split labour market

theory that holds that where low-wage workers of one race and high-wage workers of another race compete for the same jobs, high-wage workers are likely to resent the presence of low-wage competitors and conflict is bound to result, creating or reinforcing racist attitudes.

slavery

the ownership and control of people.