Olimpia’s Key Terms & Phrases:
Merrill Core 80A & 80B
Sources: Michael Omi and Howard Winant Racial Formation in the United States From the 1960s to the
1980s. New York: Routledge, 1994. Beverly Daniel Tatum Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting
Together in the Cafeteria? And Other Conversations About Race. New York: Basic Books, 1997.
About the author: Olimpia Blanco is a Merrill student and CA. In the Fall of 2013 she created this list of
definitions for our class discussions of the film Crash.
Race
According to Omi and Winant in Racial Formation in the United States race is a very definite social
construction which alters over the course of time due to historical and social pressures. Omi and
Winant's definition of race throws out both the popularized concepts that race is 1) a biological
fact and 2) an illusion. Instead, they assert that race is a very real social classification that has both
cultural ramifications as well as enforcing a definite social order (54-55).
Race is socially constructed
When we say that race is a social construct or race is socially constructed we are saying that “race”
is a socially constructed identity where the content and importance of racial categories is
determined by social, economic, and political forces. Omi and Winnant in Racial Formation in the
United States developed racial formation theory as a way of thinking about “race” as a fluid,
changing, category of difference that has been determined by specific social, economic, and
political forces.
Racialization
Is the process whereby a group or people begin to be seen as a “race.” The discursive production
of racial identity to a previously unclassified relationship, social practice, or group includes the
extension of dehumanizing racial meanings and stereotypes. A current example of this process is
the way historical forces (post-911 period) can combine with fear to create and sustain racial
groupsin the U.S. Muslim and Arab-Americans are an example of a newly racialized other.
Racism
As defined in the book Why Are All the Black Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?. There are two
definitions that stand out, one is a “system of advantage based on race” (David Wellness) This
definition of racism can be useful since it allows us to see that racism is not just a personal
ideology but a system which involves institutional policies and practices, and cultural beliefs as
well as the beliefs and actions of individuals. (7) The other definition provided is racism as
“prejudice plus power” Racial prejudice combined with social power (access to social, cultural, and
economic resources and decision making) leads to the institutionalization of racist policies and
practices. (7-8)
“Active Racism”
Blatant, intentional acts of racial bigotry and discrimination.
“Passive Racism”
More subtle, can be laughing when a racist joke is told, not challenging exclusionary
hiring practices, accepting omissions of people of color from the curriculum as
appropriate, asking your Asian-American dorm-mates to “speak Asian” for you so you can see
what it sounds like up close and avoiding difficult race related issues.
“Cultural Racism”
The cultural images and messages that affirm the assured superiority of Whites and the
assumed inferiority of people of color- like smog in the air. Sometimes so thick it’s visible,
other times less apparent, but we are always breathing it in (6)
Hegemony
The dominance or leadership of one social group or nation above others.
Racial Hegemony”
According to Omi and Winant, racial hegemony developed in the United States after many
years of racial dictatorship. According to the authors, a racial dictatorship draws a “color
line,” which becomes society’s main way of dividing people, and then institutionalizes that
line, mainly through politics and more importantly, the laws formed by politicians (66).Omi
and Winant argue that, in contrast to the coercion of a racial dictatorship, an Italian named
Antonio Gramsci placed great importance on the concept of hegemony, which is even more
powerful because it includes the element of consent of the oppressed in addition to
coercive, violent oppression. They say that “although rule can be obtained by force, it
cannot be secured and maintained...without the element of consent” (67). Continuing, they
note that if society can make racial oppression seem like “common sense” that there is a
racial minority and it is oppressed, the ruling group will have little trouble staying in
power (67).