Voiceover:There are many
inequalities in a population, based on race and ethnicity. Just to get some
terminology out of the way, let's figure out the difference
between race and ethnicity. Race is a socially-defined
category that is based on physical differences
between groups of people. Racial formation theory
looks at the social, economic and political forces that result in socially-constructed racial identity. Sometimes these differences
are real, but sometimes they are only perceived
or are defined by history. In the 1800s, if a person
in the United States had a black ancestor,
they could be considered black even if they appeared white. Honestly though, since all
humans are 99.9% identical, genetically, there really
isn't enough wiggle room in human DNA for there to be
a genetic foundation for race. Yet, it is incredibly
important on a social level. Every culture places
a different importance on specific physical characteristics. For example, in the US, race is identified by broad categories of skin color, but hair color is considered unimportant. In South America, there are more specific categories of skin color. The Latin American race in
the US may be broken down into five, or even six, different categories of races in South America. Ethnicity is also socially defined, but, instead of using physical
characteristics, these groups are defined by a shared
language, religion, nationality, history or
some other cultural factor. Ethnic groups are less
statistically defined than racial groups, and the
definitions can change over time. Sometimes the ethnic
minority can even be absorbed into the majority after
a generation or two. A minority consists of
a group that makes up less than half the total population and is treated differently
because of some characteristic. In the 1900s, native-born
Americans did not consider Irish, Italian or Jewish
immigrants to be white, which actually resulted
in a discrimination against them and limited
where they could live. Discrimination is the unjust
treatment of a category of people simply because
they belong to that category. It often results from prejudice, which is when someone has
some preconceived opinion that isn't based on reason or experience. Let's get back to those immigrants. While the immigrants
weren't considered white, the children of those
immigrants were considered white because they were culturally
American, so their skin color could be used to determine
their ethnic identity. As we begin to look at socially
defined groups of people, please keep in mind that what I'm saying doesn't apply to everyone in that group. Just like the English language,
there are always exceptions. We need to be sure not to
stereotype everyone in a group. We can look at statistical
values for a group, but these are only guidelines,
trends to keep in mind as we look at the population as a whole. There are a lot of statistical differences between both different races
and different ethnicities. Racial differences especially
can cause some drastic events, such as genocide or population transfer, where a group is forcefully
moved from their territory, or inter-colonialism, where a
minority group is segregated and exploited, or assimilation, where the minority group is
absorbed into the majority. Pluralism, on the other
hand, actually encourages racial and ethnic variation in a society. Statistically, families,
education, income, birthrates and life expectancies all vary between racial and ethnic groups. There's a wide-spread
disparity in health care between racial and ethnic groups as well. Many Americans simply can't
afford basic health care, which then affects the
life span of these people. Statistically, minorities
tend to have shorter life span because of limited access to
health care, lower-income jobs that can have greater
dangers in the workplace, a higher prevalence of
toxins in the environment, as well as personal behaviors,
like drinking or poor diet. Throughout history, dominant groups have racialized minority groups. This means the dominant group ascribes some racial identity to
members of a minority group that they do not identify for themselves. You can see this in the labor
force in the United States. There's a myth in the United States that everyone has equal
opportunities in life, including access to education. In reality, different races tend to be stereotyped for certain jobs. Minorities are expected
to have lower-paying jobs, while majorities are expected
to have higher-paying jobs. Asian Americans and whites,
overall, have more access to education than African
Americans or Latin Americans. What it usually comes down to is economic and cultural factors. The cost of education can
be too high for minorities, who statistically tend
to work lower-waged jobs. Perhaps culturally, for some
people, starting a family is more important than
continuing an education. This perpetuates the trend of
difficulties for minorities, but it isn't just the
cultural differences. Our society is structured so that racial and economic subordination
develops and is sustained. In order to get a
higher-paying job, you need a good education, so when
education is not a priority, or isn't available, or
when it is simply withheld because of discrimination,
the jobs available are unskilled or
semi-skilled low-paying jobs. An interesting discrimination
among different races and ethnicities is present in
the criminal justice system. While laws may not seem racist, the punishment for similar
offences vary drastically. For example, the punishment
for crack cocaine, which is less expensive and
used by low-income users, is much tougher than for powdered cocaine, which is much more expensive. This separates the rich from
the poor in the justice system, handing out tougher sentences
to low-income criminals, who, statistically, are minorities. There are also higher
unemployment and dropout rates for minorities, providing fewer
options, other than crime. If you look at the
percentage of people in jail who are minorities, it's much
higher than the percentage of minorities who live
in the United States. These numbers don't line up. Percentage wise, more minorities
are being incarcerated than their white counterparts.