How do sociologists define, explain, understand race Essay

How do sociologists define, explain, understand race - Essay Example This paper declares that the two terms race and ethnicity have been invariably used interchangably by laymen. Sociologists, though identify distinct variations in he usage of the two terms. Ethnic groups possess a common history, distinctive culture and perspective, which contribute to their individuality. These virtues like langugae, daily traditions, ancestry are not inherited biologically, but are rather learned culturally. Essentially, ethnicity is what the world teaches and inculcates in a human being, while race is the set of vritues he is born with. An ethnic group is marked by self-consciousness, in that its members see themselves as a people, and are seen as such by others. This essay stresses that the practice of racism manifests itself in various forms even in the present society, be it the discrimination against African American or even against foreign immigrants. The Ku Klux Klan, an organization propagating white supremacy in the United States of America, was probably the most extreme rendition of this racism. This group was involved in public lynching of many blacks. A research conducted by the University of Chicago demonstrated that there was widespread discrimination in the workplace against job applicants whose names were merely perceived as "sounding black". The Asian Americans are put under greater scrutiny and checks in their daily ife and have become the focus of ridicule and accusation. Their ethinicity often becomes the cause of their public humiliation and discrimination. The Americans, have generalised the blame to the whole of the Asian community.(more particularly the Muslim) community. This attitude often creates problems for these i mmigrants in their personal and professional life. In late October 2001, the State Department issued a classified cable imposing a twenty-day mandatory hold on all non-immigrant visa applications submitted by men aged eighteen to forty-five from twenty-six countries, most of them Arab or Muslim. All such applicants were to be subjected to special security clearances. There are many other, similar