Fluent Essays

This past week we focused on race and racism. These are very difficult subjects, and the topics of race and racism are multi-layered. Addressing race and racism in the context of a college classroom presents us with a unique set of challenges. But it seems now, more than ever, we need to engage in open, honest dialogue about these issues.1. On Monday during class, I administered a racial privilege quiz. The point of the quiz was to identify people with racial advantage and disadvantage. This quiz was like a diagnostic. It was meant to determine if, in your everyday life, you have signs and symptoms of racial advantage or disadvantage. What score did you receive on the quiz? Do you think that score accurately represents the forms of racial advantage and/or disadvantage you experience in your daily life? Why or why not? (Note: For this essay option, you do not have to integrate course readings, unless you believe it is necessary). This essay must be between 500-600 words .11_soc.pdf .13_soc.pdf Unformatted Attachment Preview Introduction to Sociology May11th, 2020 Let’s  Talk  About  Writing Tip  #1   Write  like  you  care Tip  #2 Don’t  worry  about  being  a   “good  writer” Tip  #3 Edit Week  7:  Race  Matters Today,  we  are  going  to  take  a  quiz.     25  Questions For  each  question,  there  are  5  possible  answers Strongly  agree   Agree   Sometimes  Agree/Sometimes  Disagree   Disagree   Disagree  strongly     12.  Whenever  there  is  an  act  of   domestic  terrorism,  I  can  rest  easy   because  nobody  will  label  all  people  of   my  race  as  terrorists.   16.  I  am  rarely  asked  to  speak  for  all  the   people  of  my  racial  group.   18.  I  can  take  a  job  with  an  affirmative   action  employer  without  having  my   coworkers  on  the  job  suspect  that  I  got   the  job  because  of  my  race. 21.  I  can  be  reasonably  sure  that  if  I  ask   to  talk  to  the  person  in  charge,  I  will   be  facing  a  person  of  my  race. 22.  I  can  easily find  academic  courses   and  institutions  that  give  attention  only   to  people  of  my  race.   23.  I  can  be  pretty  sure  of  finding   people  who  look  like  me  who  would  be   willing  to  talk  with  me  and  advise  me   about  the  next  steps  in  my  professional   career.       24.  If  I  need  legal  or  medical  help,  I  can   be  sure  that  my  race  will  not  work   against  me.   25.  If  I  have  low  credibility  as  a  leader,  I   can  be  sure  that  my  race  is  not  the   problem.   Add  up  your  total: Strongly  agree  (+2)   Agree  (+1)   Sometimes  Agree/Sometimes  Disagree  (0) Disagree  (-­‐1)   Disagree  strongly  (-­‐2)   RACIAL   PRIVILEGE   QUIZ  RESULTS: Between  25  and  50 -­‐ Racially  Privileged   Between  1  and  24 -­‐ A  Little  More  Privileged  Than  Disadvantaged Between  -­‐24  and  -­‐1 -­‐ A  Little  More  Disadvantaged  Than  Privileged   Between  -­‐25  and  -­‐50 -­‐ Racially  Disadvantaged   LIMITATIONS  OF  THE  RACIAL  PRIVILEGE  QUIZ -­‐ Do  the  results  represent  the  condition  of  interest   (highlighting  racial  advantage  and  disadvantage)  and   not  some  other  condition? -­‐ Captures  only  limited  range  of  possible  experiences   where  race   matters   -­‐ Rates  of  False  Positives  and  False  Negatives? What’s  the  point?   Slide  1 Introduction to Sociology May 13th, 2020 Slide  2 What  Unites   Us?   What  Divides   Us?   Slide  3 The  Idea  of  Race Nobody  questions  that  individual  human  beings  are   different   The  idea  of  race  is  that  external  differences,  which  are   rooted  in  biology,  are  linked  to  internal  differences  (i.e.   intelligence,  athletic  ability,  and  other  kinds  of  aptitudes) But  there  are  no  clear  cut  races,  only  a  range  of  physical   variations  among  human  beings.   Slide  4 Defining  “race” A  group  of  people   who  share  a  set  of   characteristics  – typically,  though  not   always,  these  are  physical  characteristics  – and  are  believed  to  share  a  common   bloodline. Slide  5 Characteristics  of  “racism” (1)  Distinct  bloodlines  and  physical  types; (2)  Bloodlines  are  linked  to  distinct  cultures,   behaviors,  and  abilities; (3)  Superior   and  inferior   races.   Slide  6 Racism is  the  belief  system  that  one  racial  group  is   condemned  by  nature  to  inferiority   and  that   another  group  is  destined  to  superiority   Racism is  any  set  of  beliefs  that  organic,  genetically   transmitted  differences  between  human  groups   are  associated  with  the  presence  or  absence  of   certain  socially  relevant  abilities  or   characteristics Slide  7 “Race  Prejudice  as  a  Sense  of   Group  Position” Slide  8 The  thesis  of  this  article  is  that  racial  prejudice   (racism)  exists  within  group  positions  rather   than  as  a  set  of  feelings  which  members  of  one   racial  group  have  toward  members  of  another   racial  group Slide  9 In  the  vast  sociological  literature  on  race,   the  notion  of  “racism”  is  dominated  by  the   idea  that  such  prejudice  exists  as  a  feeling  or   set  of  feelings  lodged  in  the  individual.   Slide  10 This  customary  way  of  viewing  racial  prejudice   overlooks  and  obscures  the  fact  that  racial   prejudice  is  fundamentally  a  matter  of   relationships  between  racial  groups.   Slide  11 In  order  to  better  understand  racism,  we  need   to  develop  a  basic  understanding  of  the   processes  through  which  racial  groups  form   images  of  themselves  and  of  other  racial   groups.   Slide  12 To  characterize  another  racial  group  is,  by   opposition,  to  define  one’s  own  racial  group.   This  is  the  equivalent  to  placing  the  two  groups   in  relationship  to  each  other,  or  defining  their   positions  vis-­‐à-­‐vis  each  other.   Slide  13 In  matters  of  racism,  there  is  a  self-­‐assured   feeling  on  the  part  of  the  dominant  racial   group  of  being  naturally  superior  or  better.   This  is  commonly  shown  in  the  disparaging   views  that  members  of  dominant  racial  groups   have  toward  subordinate  racial  groups Slide  14 There  might  be  a  feeling  that  other  races  are  of   fundamentally  different  stock.  The  idea  that   they  – members  of  other  races  – are  not  of  our   kind.   This  strong  group-­‐based  feeling  justifies  social   exclusion  of  the  other  racial  group.   Slide  15 It  is  important  to  recognize  that  this  sense  of   group  position  transcends  the  feelings  of   individual  members  of  a  racial  group,  giving   such  members  a  common  orientation This  sense  of  group  position  is  a  norm  and   imperative  – indeed  a  very  powerful  one Slide  16 To  the  extent  that  people  feel  themselves   belonging  to  that  group  they  will  come  under   the  social  influences  of  the  sense  of  position   held  by  that  group.   Thus,  even  if  individual  members  may  have   personal  views  and  feelings  different  from  the   sense  of  group  position,  they  will  have  to   devise  beliefs  that  align  with  group  position  of   their  racial  category   Slide  17 In  conclusion… the  origin  of  racial  prejudice  (racism)  is  not  in  the   area  of  individual  feelings  but  rather  in  the  definition   of  respective  positions  of  racial  groups Slide  18 On  Monday,   we  took  a  racial  privilege  quiz     Slide  19 You  Answered  25  Questions For  each  question,  there  were  5  possible  answers Strongly  agree   Agree   Undecided/neutral   Disagree   Disagree  strongly     Slide  20 RACIAL  PRIVILEGE  QUIZ  RESULTS: Between  25  and  50 -­‐ Racially  Privileged   Between  1  and  24 -­‐ A  Little  More  Privileged  Than  Disadvantaged Between  -­‐24  and  -­‐1 -­‐ A  Little  More  Disadvantaged  Than  Privileged   Between  -­‐25  and  -­‐50 -­‐ Racially  Disadvantaged   Slide  21 RACIAL  PRIVILEGE  QUIZ  RESULTS What  were  your  results?   Do  you  think  that  score  accurately  represents   the  forms  of  racial  advantage  and/or   disadvantage  you  experience  in  your  daily   life?   Why  or  why  not? LIMITATIONS  OF  THE  RACIAL  PRIVILEGE  QUIZ Slide  22 -­‐ -­‐ -­‐ Do  the   results   represent   the   condition  of  interest  (highlighting   racial   advantage   and  disadvantage)  and  not   some  other   condition? Captures  only  limited   range  of  possible   experiences   where  race   matters   For  people  who  are  bi-­‐racial,   they   can   think   in  terms  of     two  distinct  racial   experiences   -­‐ The   importance  of  context/place -­‐ Troubles   interpreting  the   prompt -­‐ Rates  of  False  Positives  and  False   Negatives Slide  23 What’s  the  point?   Slide  24 Slide  25 Everyone  gets  treated   poorly  sometimes.   So  when  is  that  poor   treatment  the  result  of   racism?   Who  gets  to  decide?   Slide  26 Slide  27 Are  people  who  hold  racist   views  irrational,  incorrect  or   stupid?   Or…is  there  a  kind  of   rationality  behind  holding   racist  beliefs?   Slide  28 Slide  29 The  way  to  get  rid   of  racism  is  to   stop  talking  about  it.   Agree  or  Disagree?   Slide  30 ... Purchase answer to see full attachment