ETHNICITY
Ethnicity - Introduction
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Ethnicity: group of people w/ a
common identity based on a distinct
but shared culture (i.e. common
homeland, language, religion, or
race).
Comes from Greek word “ethnos”
which refers to a unique and
cohesive group…i.e. us v. them
Ethnicity v. Race
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Ethnicity and race not necessarily same
thing
Race = genetic traits, biologically inherited
physical characteristics
Ethnicity involves more than biological
characteristics. May include that, but
goes well beyond to include person’s social
and cultural identity….i.e. people of same
race can form many different ethnicities
Ethnicity
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Ethnocentrism: one’s conviction of ethnic
superiority (like racism for an ethnic
group)
Ethnic groups usually have ties to a
particular homeland – often leads to
ethnic cleansing or violence is to try to
control piece of land
Ethnicity is strongest tie for local diversity
against globalization. Even if glob engulfs
relig and lang, ethnicity will likely remain
Ethnicity
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Ethnic groups can be difficult to
identify….usually self-identified. Do
we see ourselves as a unique and
cohesive group…i.e. us versus them?
Ethnic Distributions
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In United States:
• 13% African American
• 13% Hispanic (surpassing AA)
• 4% Asian American
• 1% American Indian
• (white/Caucasian not an
ethnicity)….why not?
Segregation
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De jure seg V. de facto seg
• De jure = legalized (Plessey v.
Ferguson, apartheid in S. Africa)
De Jure Segregation
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Overturned by Brown v. BOE
Nelson Mandella in S. Africa
Ethnic Clusters
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Ethnic enclave: voluntary residential
segregation based on ethnicity (i.e. ethnic
neighborhoods…Hispanic barrios, China
town, little Havana)
De Facto Segregation
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Not legal – just happens. Ethnic
clustering or ethnic enclaves
• i.e. white side of town, black side of
town, etc.
Segregation by Scale
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Seg can happen on 2 scales – within
the region of a country or within
neighborhoods of a city
Regional Seg in U.S.
• African Am in SE and cities
• Hispanics in SW
• Asian Am in west (Hawaii, CA)
• Am Indians in SW and plains
De Facto Seg by Scale
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Seg within cities…..east side, west side,
etc.
• African Am highly clustered in cities (@ ¼ of
all Americans live in cities, but ½ of all African
Am in cities)
• Ex: Chicago = 1/3 AA, Ill 1/12 AA
• Ex: Detroit = 4/5 AA, Michigan 1/14 AA
• Ghetto: when ethnic groups were forced to
live in parts of city usually in crowded,
undesirable areas. Term came from Middle
Ages w/ forced Jewish neighborhoods
Ethnicity transformed into
Nationalities
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Nationality: a group of people who
share a legal attachment and
personal allegiance to a particular
country (is distinct from race and
ethnicity, but often overlaps)
• i.e. we’re all American but diff races
and ethnicities
Nation-States
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Nation-state: geo-political ideal - a
state who’s territory corresponds to
that occupied by a particular
ethnicity that has been transformed
into a nationality (i.e. Czech
Republic, Japan)
• Self-determination: idea that ethnicity
has right to govern themselves…has led
to creation of new nation states and
violence (i.e. Yugoslavia)
In reality…nation states are rare
• Multi-nation states: a country that
contains 2 or more ethnic groups w/
traditions of self-determ that agree to
co-exist and share power peacefully
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UK w/ 4 nationalities (Eng, Scot, Wales, N
Ire)
Russia = largest multi-nation state w/ 39
United States
Canada – French and English speaking
provinces
In reality, nation states are rare...
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Multi –State Nations:
When a cohesive ethnic group is
scattered among different countries
- Kurds
- Jews
- Serbs in Austro-Hungarian empire
Resurgence of Ethnic Identity
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Last 20 yrs has seen resurgence of ethnic
identity. During Cold War, Comm.
dominated E. Eur and repressed ethn and
cultural differences. After fall of Comm
ethnicity rebounded- led to breakup of
several states and ethnic violence
• Ex: Yugoslavia – ethnic cleansing
• USSR – dismantled along ethnic lines
• Czechoslovakia (Velvet Divorce)
All divided along cultural/ethnic divides
Ethnic Violence
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Over 90% of world’s countries contain
more than 1 ethnicity (i.e. nation state is
rare ideal)
Sub Sahara Africa and Balkans esp
plagued w/ ethnic violence (lots of
ethnicities and country boundaries don’t
match) – Scramble for Africa imposed
boundaries across ethnic/tribal groups
Examples of Ethnic Violence
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Ethiopia and Eritrea - 30 yr civil war, 665,000 Eritrean
refugees fled to Sudan
Sudan – civil war since 1980s
• Black Christian rebels in South V. Arab Muslim govn’t
forces in North
• Oppressive fundamentalist govn’t
• Over 2 mill dead, 1 mill refuges
Examples of ethnic violence
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Somalia: 6 major ethnic groups
(clans)
• Gov’t collapse in 1990s, war between
clans for power vacuum
• Famine, 300,000 dead, refugees
• US sent in troops (Black Hawk Down)
Examples of Ethnic Violence
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Lebanon - @ 60% Muslim, 30%
Christian, 10% other
• Militant Muslim sect – Hezbollah
• Civil war
• Kurds – ethn divided among several
states (25 mill divided betwn 6
countries) – multi state nation
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Fought for ind in Turkey and Iraq
Examples of Ethnic Violence
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Great Migration – India, Pakistan,
Bangladesh
• British leave in 1847, ethnic fight
• Hindus – India, Muslims – E.W. Pakistan
• India has hundreds of lang and ethnic
groups and Hinduism has been
centripetal force
• @ 17 mill moved – some killed by
extremists on both sides
• Still fight over Kashmir – in the north
Examples of Ethnic Violence
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Sri Lanka – Sinhalese V. Tamils
• 60,000 dead since fighting began in
1983
• Sinhalese – 74% Buddhist in S.
• Tamils – 18% Hindus in N.
• Tamils feel discriminated against,
ongoing fighting
Ethnic Cleansing
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In worst cases ethnic violence can
lead to ethnic cleansing – process by
which more powerful ethnic group
forcibly removes less powerful ethnic
group in order to create ethnic
homogeneity. Can be achieved by..
• Forced migration - push out, burn
homes, destroy towns
• Genocide: premeditated effort to kill all
from certain ethnic group (Holocaust)
Yugoslav Map
Yugoslavia – the Balkans
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Yug had 5 ethnicities – Serbs, Croats,
Slovenes, Macedonians, Montenegrins
• Communist – Josip Tito subdued ethnic
animosities, forged Yugoslav identity…fireball
erupts after Tito’s death & fall of Comm
(1980s)
• Croats helped Nazi Germans round up and kill
Serbs during WW II
• Tito – at right – held
Yugoslavia together
for several decades
Yugoslavia – Cont’d
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Ethnic cleansing in Bosnia – 40% Muslim,
32% Serb, 18% Croat – Serbs and Croats
want to join with Crotia and Serbia. To
strengthen claim, ethnically cleanse
Bosnian Muslims.
Kosovo: S. province of Serbia and
Montenegro was 90% Albanian. Serbs use
ethnic cleansing to push Albanians off land
into nation of Albania. US and NATO
bombed Serbia and forced Serbia to
withdraw from Kosovo.
Yugoslavia – cont’d
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At left Serbian
leader Slobodan
Milosevic – charged
with war crimes
and crimes against
humanity. Died of
a heart attack
while awaiting trial
at the Hague
Yugoslavia - contd
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Results of ethnic violence
Bosnian Serbs = 33% pop got 50%
country
Bosnian Croats = 18% pop got
25%country
Bosnian Muslims = 44% pop got
27% country
Balkanization – the breakdown of a
state through ethnic conflict – i.e.
shatterbelt
E. Europe After Fall of Comm
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USSR –
dismantled
Czechoslovakia
velvet divorce
Yugoslavia –
split
Balkanization
All ethnic
divisions
Ethnic Cleansing
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Rwanda and Burundi
• Hutus V. Tutsi
• Tutsi – minority but treated better
under colonial rule (lighter skin, taller,
got govnt jobs and education)
• Independence – Hutu majority
ethnically cleanse Tutsi minority
• Spirals into civil war…million dead,
millions of refugees
GENDER
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Gender: cultural reference to socially
created distinctions (not biological)
between masculinity – femininity
Gender Equity women’s welfare (i.e.
education, health care, career, social
roles, political power, etc.) Women’s
welfare lags far behind in much of
the world
Measures of Gender Equity
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Infanticide: killing babies (usually girls)
Enfranchisement: political power, voting
rights
Dowry Death: dowry is gift from bride’s
family to groom’s (India). Substantial
monetary gifts often expected. If groom’s
family not satisfied w/ gift, may cast bride
out or kill her.
Measures of Gender Equity
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Maternal Mortality Rate: # of maternal
deaths per 1,000 births
• Single greatest health disparity betwn MDCs
and LDCs
• WHO – 530,000 women die each yr from
pregnancy related causes (99% of these in
LDCs)
• Leading causes – pregnancy complications,
abortions, delivery
• 1 in 16 women in Af die from maternal causes
• These deaths are preventable – malnutrition,
lack of prenatal care, etc.