Prejudice and Discrimination Prejudice v Discrimination is an

Prejudice and Discrimination

Prejudice v. Discrimination is an action- unfair treatment, directed against someone can be based on: age, sex, race, physical appearance, clothing, sexual orientation, religion, etc. ▪ when the basis of discrimination is someone’s perception of race its known as racism Prejudice is an attitude- a prejudging of some sort, usually negatively

Learning prejudice from association • • We learn prejudice from the people around us Sociologist Kathleen Blee interviewed women who were members of the KKK and Aryan Nation: – Most women were recruited by someone who already belonged to the group – Some learned to be racist AFTER they joined the group • Racism not always the cause, sometimes the result of membership

Far-reaching nature of Prejudice • Psychologist Eugene Hartley asked people how they felt about several racial and ethnic groups – Included ones that were made up • Found that people who disliked real racial and ethnic groups also said they disliked the fake ones – Shows that prejudice doesn’t depend on negative experiences with others – Also shows that people who are prejudice against 1 racial also tend to be prejudice against others

Internalizing Dominant Norms People can learn to be prejudice against their own groups A national survey of black Americas conducted by black interviewers found that African Americans think that lighter-skinned African American women are more attractive than those with darker skins

Individual and Institutional Discrimination Individual discrimination- the negative treatment of 1 person by another Primarily an issue between the individuals Institutional discrimination- discrimination that is woven into the fabric of society Examples: Home Mortgages and Car Loans and Health Care

Home Mortgages and Car Loans • Race and ethnicity is a significant factor in getting a mortgage – Banks argue that it might look like discrimination but “the truth is whites have better credit histories” – Research was done and even when applicants were identical in income and credit, African Americans and Latinos were 60% more likely than whites to be rejected • Discrimination is built into the country’s financial institution

Health Care White patients are more likely to receive certain surgeries or tests than African Americans and Latinos Physicians don’t intend to discriminate

Intergroup Relations Genocide First people label a group of people as inferior and somehow less human ▪ Makes it easier to justify killing and still retain a good self -concept Population transfer Making life miserable so that the minority groups leave voluntarily- indirect transfer Expulsion of minority- direct transfer

Intergroup Relations Internal Colonialism The way in which a country’s dominant group exploits minority groups for its economic advantage Segregation The separation of racial or ethnic groups Allows the dominant group to maintain social distance from the minority

Intergroup Relations Assimilation The process by which a minority groups is absorbed into the mainstream culture ▪ Forced- refuses to allow minority to practice religion, speak language, etc ▪ Permissible- allows minority to adopt the dominant group’s patterns at its own speed Multiculturalism Permits or encourages racial-ethnic variations