Preview

What Race and Ethnicity Means

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
390 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
What Race and Ethnicity Means
What race and ethnicity means to me

When I hear the word “race”, the first thing that I think of is a person’s skin color, facial features and the texture of their hair. Although I am colorblind, I can’t help but to think of this when I hear the word race. This is due to the fact that the majority of the time when we fill out an application or any paperwork of importance the question of race is raised. I’m not sure why it matters, your experience and education seems more important to me. It seems as if some people still want to separate us depending on the color of our skin. Being that there’s so many races mixing, there’s no such thing as a pure race. Race seems to be unimportant to me. Ethnicity is a word that I prefer and enjoy when speaking of culture. Ethnicity makes me think of everybody’s struggle dating back from their ancestors to the present. Where did your ancestors originate? Where did you come from? Ethnicity is ones background and cultural differences. For example just because I am considered black doesn’t mean that I am from Africa; which means that I will be considered an African American. I thought for years that I was an African American till an African man that I was friends with broke it down to me and gave me some knowledge to read. He is considered an African American because he’s from Africa and now resides in America. I am considered to be a black American because I’m from America. This is weird being that my ancestors were American Indians. Your ethnicity is the group that others place you. I do have my personal opinion on all of this and why America still tries to identify us by race. Since my opinion was asked I felt the need to tell the truth on how I feel. Race and ethnicity are important in America because some people in the government still strives for division and don’t want us to come together as one. It seems as if the government gets more powerful when we separate ourselves from each other. If we all were to come together I

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    In the article “Racial Formations,” Omi and Winant described race as being constructed in a social, political, and historical context, which is constantly changed by evolving socio-political climates. Historically, conceptualizations of race began to differentiate between White and non-White, which was often rigidly reinforced. Race became a way to stereotype and categorize people in order quick assumptions, which continues to be deeply ingrained in U.S. culture. Omi and Winant advocate that rather than aiming to eliminate the concept of race, we should aim to understand race as an unstable and complex concept that is continually transformed.…

    • 549 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Currently, Race is defined as, a group of people sharing the same culture, history, language, etc.; an ethnic group. We need to evaluate Race as a social construct rather than a cultural and biological idea. Race needs to be redefined so that it does not hold a profoundness similar to how biological or cultural characteristics would. As we identify the futility of categorizing people by superficial and generic qualities, we begin to accept the complexity of more important human distinctions in an ethnological means. Considering Race as a recent way of thinking strips away its power within societal norms of a westernized culture. Exhausting the power Race has over our thinking will improve the way we interact with one another. When we stereotype…

    • 168 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Even though I was learned a lot so far about race and ethnicity my beliefs and views on race are still the same. I believe everyone should be treated equal and have the same amount of opportunity to succeed and provide for themselves and their families. I don’t think that is the case all the time. For example, an employer who is looking to hire someone may call a white American over a black American. The implicit association test is a tool that people are attempting to use to prevent people from being bias when hiring for a job or making a big decision. Which I believe is a step in the right direction on becoming more equal as a…

    • 1045 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Zuckerberg's Hoodie Essay

    • 414 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Race is a factor of life that is constantly being judged by society. Society has created individuals who judge others on skin color, and ethnicity; spawning hate and spreading acceptance of different set of standards to each race. “Largely about what wealthy… white men wear in silicon valley and wall street” (Sengupta 228). Race is part of the identity, most of the time it determines how you are treated by others, how one’s life is lived, and which stereotypes are carried. “... from racist people who think all Asians look the same! or ...Why on earth would you say something like that?” (Chung para. 9). Race is the…

    • 414 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Three Epiphenomena

    • 1120 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The ethnicity of a person is shown by where a person is from and their culture and their language. A person that is called “black” does not show how a person has ethnicity but if a person had parents from a country in Africa and was born in the same country in Africa and learned about the culture and language that makes a person ethnic. When people say a person is generally white or black it does not show their ethnicity. It shows lack of understanding of where a person is actually from and if they know their ethnicity or not. The second epiphenomena of race that Omi and Winant stated is nation. The nation shows how people who are not together in the world actually come together to become a nation. People do this to try and come together with common elements of culture, language or history to inhabit a territory or country. Although these people come together, it does not mean that they agree on these same views. The last epiphenomena of race that Omi and Winant stated is Class. Class is important because from Karl Marx’s idea on class to now, class is still in the world today. In America, there are different classes such as Upper class, upper middle class, middle class, lower middle class and lower class. Depending on what job a person has and sometimes what nationality a person is, it categorizes them into the class system. The system is set up so that the people that…

    • 1120 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Define Race By Law

    • 2289 Words
    • 10 Pages

    What is Race? When some people use the "race" they attach a biological meaning, still others use "race" as a socially constructed concept. It is clear that even though race does not have a biological meaning, it does have a social meaning which has been legally constructed. I define a "race" as a vast group of people loosely bound together by historically liable, socially significant elements of their ancestry. Races are social products. It follows that legal institutions and practices, as essential components of our highly legalized society, have had a hand in the construction of race. Throughout the history, race has been constructed by many branches of society that empowered the ideology of difference. Specifically, in law,…

    • 2289 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Faculty and students/learners will be held responsible for understanding and adhering to all policies contained within the following two documents:…

    • 1051 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    I think race matter in America and that we are far from post-racial society. Think of different scenario happening around the country where people from different race are discriminated because of their race. Without going far, why would we have to fill out our race on job application here at ASU on student employment website? If we are in post racial society that wouldn’t be the case because my race has nothing to do with my qualification to the job I am looking for. I do agree that race is social construct and doesn’t have genetic basis, but in America race has become a major difference between people. In my country there are different race (white, Asians …..), but I never considered myself as different or one race to be a problem till I came…

    • 217 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    race and ethnicity

    • 1226 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Does race and ethnicity play a role in how art is made? What is considered to be Asian American art? These are the questions one would ask in order to better understand the relationship between race and ethnicity and how it ties in with Asian American art. Every piece of artwork has a story, a message expressed to the audiences. These messages may portray more than one influence, but the main influence that inspires the creation of the art is through the artist’s race and ethnicity. Through race and ethnicity, the artist can express their experiences, history, and concerns of Asian American. It may be expressed through music, literature, and even in humor.…

    • 1226 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Race has always been something that people around the world categorize themselves and also other individuals to specify who they truly are as a person. This is based on the different appearances that people see within their own society. This conception is currently reflecting on fundamental misunderstandings about the true nature of racial classifications. Race is more of a social classification rather than a biological one. Race is very powerful that many others do not see it to be. Race is a social vision that gives individuals different types of access to resources and also opportunities to follow. In our world in the past and also currently today, white people have more advantages in our community due to the creation that our government and society gives them. This topic affects everyone, whether we are informed about it or not.…

    • 828 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Essay On Race In Society

    • 489 Words
    • 2 Pages

    It is important to understand that race and ethnicity are entirely different, yet over the years they have been used interchangeably.…

    • 489 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Race & Ethnicity

    • 969 Words
    • 4 Pages

    grandparents. I was the first in my family to no have followed such tradition as my…

    • 969 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Hyphenated Americans

    • 2367 Words
    • 10 Pages

    During the development of the United States, there were specific ideas of what the country would represent. As laws and systems began changing in the country, things that should have naturally evolved did not. Overtime, America has become a country that is made up of people from different cultures and backgrounds. Properly accounting for the ethnicity of each individual would represent the uniqueness of the United States to the rest of the world and bring it closer together as a country. Until there is uniformity in the characterization of the citizens of America, equality cannot ever be truly attainable. Solutions to this problem are out there, but putting them into effect seems to be taking a back seat to issues that are deemed more essential. When defining race, having broad categories such as “white” or “other,” and then requiring others to be labeled so much more specifically, creates a perilous divide between citizens. Hyphenating only some races and then generally grouping others together is unfair for everyone.…

    • 2367 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    It's important to understand different race and ethnicities because we live in a very diverse nation and we should be able to appreciate those who are different by getting to know a little bit about their culture. In the society we live in today we have all kinds of people and it's always good to know about them. Our history is important and we have to follow some traditions and it's fair enough to learn something new and appreciate it.…

    • 80 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    How important can race and ethnicity be to a specific individual? For some it can be very important in shaping their own way of life, but for others, it can be more or less a simple title with no effect on their lifestyle. Race more often than not categorizes people in groups based on skin color, physical characteristics and sometimes country of origin, while ethnicities group people into categories based off of similar thinking through ideas like religion, traditions and customs. By analyzing racial and ethnic diversity of individuals, we can view how these factors are reproduced throughout life and see how they correlate with other parts of a person's identity. Race and ethnicity can be huge identifying factors for someone; however, as a…

    • 1509 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays