Chapter 7 Key Issue 1

Where are Ethnicities Distributed?

ethnicity: identity with a group of people who share the cultural traditions of a particular homeland or hearth

race: identity with a group of people who share a biological ancestor

• traits that character race usually are genetically transmitted from parent to offspring
  • lactose intolerance, skin color, hair type and color, blood traits, etc.

racism: the belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race

racist: a person who subscribes to the beliefs of racism

Ethnicities in the United States

• every 10 years, the US Bureau of the Census asks people to classify themselves according to the ethnicity that they most closely identify with
• Hispanic and Hispanic American are terms to describe all people from Spanish-speaking countries
  • some people of Latin American descent prefer Latino and Latina
  • some people from Mexico call themselves Chicanos or Chicanas
• the census displays the difficulty in distinguishing between ethnicity and race
• Asian American is viewed as an ethnicity
• Asian is viewed as a race that encompasses people from many countries in Asia
• African American is viewed as an ethnicity, and identifies a group with an extensive cultural tradition
• black is viewed as a race and encompasses everyone with dark skin
• not all black people are African Americans, but Americans are quick to judge and immediately assume a black person is African American
• Hispanic is an ethnicity, not a race, which makes it hard for Hispanics to choose which race they are

Ethnic Clustering: State Scale

• African Americans
  • comprise 85% of the population in Detroit
  • Detroit has less than 10% of Michigan’s total population
  • Detroit has more than 50% of the state’s African American population
  • comprise 7% in the rest of Michigan
• Hispanics
  • comprise 25% of New York City
  • NYC contains 40% of the state’s total population
  • NYC contains more than 75% of New York’s Hispanic population
  • comprise 6.25% of the rest of New York
  • comprise nearly 50% of Los Angeles’s population
  • the percentage in other California cities is less than or about equal to the overall state average
  • El Paso and San Antonio are more than 50% Hispanic
  • the rest of Texas has a percentage below or about equal to the state’s average of Hispanics (which is about 33%)

Distribution of Ethnicities in the United States

Ethnic Clustering: Regional Scale

• ethnicities have a distinctive distribution in the US
• Hispanics
  • clustered in the Southwest
  • make up more than 33% of Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas
  • make up more than 25% of California
  • California has 33% of all Hispanics
  • Texas has 20% of all Hispanics
  • Florida and New York both have 17% of all Hispanics
• African Americans
  • clustered in the Southeast
  • make up at least 25% of Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, and South Carolina
  • make up more than 33% of Mississippi
• Asian Americans
  • clustered in the West
  • make up more than 40% of Hawaii
  • 50% of all Asian Americans live in California
  • make up 12% of California

Ethnic Clustering: Urban Scale

• about 90% of African Americans and Hispanics live in metropolitan areas, compared to 75% for other Americans
• Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, and other Midwest cities attracted people from Southern and Eastern Europe to work in the steel, automotive, and other industries
  • neighborhoods around the clusters were named or their predominant ethnicities
  • descendants of immigrants moved and brought their religion, food, and other traditions with them
• in cities like Detroit, African Americans comprise the majority and live in previously European neighborhoods
• Chicago has African American neighborhoods in the south and west, but also has Europeans, Latin Americans, and Asians
• African Americans live in south-central Los Angeles
• Hispanics live in east Los Angeles
• Asian Americans live in south and west Los Angeles

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