ETHNIC
IDENTITIES
G671
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
INDIVIDUALLY


Briefly write down what you think the differences
are between race, ethnicity and nationality.
Ext: - Give examples for each.
RACE, ETHNICITY & NATIONALITY
Concept
Meaning
Race
Biological differences, linked to
phenotypes (physical
characteristics) and genotypes
(underlying genetic differences).
Race is an increasingly outdated
concept.
Ethnicity
Groups within society that share
things like culture, traditions,
language, religion, race,
ancestry etc.
Nationality
A sense of ‘belonging’ to a
particular nation through origin,
birth or naturalisation.
Culture
Clothes,
religious
values,
food,
tradition
Ethnicity
(Modood;
2005)
Language
Descent &
Geographical
Origin
Sense of
Identity
ETHNICITY
Modood (2005)
 Ethnicity involves many factors. These can be
influenced by where a person was born, where
they live now and where their ancestors were
from.
 An ethnic identity means that someone has
some kind of cultural attachment to others and
often a shared sense of pride.
 “In the contemporary UK, ethnicity has become
something that everyone has.” (Banton; 2000)
DISCUSS



Which ethnic groups are present in the
contemporary UK?
In pairs, select an ethnic identity that is
present in the UK and identify some norms
and values associated with it, using the
following headings: Food, Language,
Religion, Tradition, Values
(5 mins – then present)
Keyword: ‘Super-diversity’
RACE & ETHNICITY
Sometimes, racial differences can form part of an
individual’s ethnic identity.
 For example, Modood (1997) found that AfricanCaribbeans in the UK were more likely to
describe skin-colour as part of their ethnicity
than South Asians, who claimed religion was
the defining feature of their ethnicity.
 However, ethnic differences go deeper than racial
factors. For example, Polish and British people
are technically part of the same (‘Caucasian’)
race, so differences between the two must be
cultural, not biological.

ETHNIC MINORITIES & ASSIMILATION




In the contemporary UK, we usually think about
ethnicity in relation to ethnic minorities.
Often we think about ethnic minorities in relation to
their skin colour, but this ignores the huge variety of
White minority-ethnic groups also present in the UK
(e.g. Greek Cypriots, Jews, Gypsies, Irish).
Assimilation assumes that ethnic minority groups
arriving in the UK will abandon their own culture
and adopt that of their ‘immigrant hosts’ – British
Culture.
This rarely occurs and it is debated as to whether or
not assimilation has any place in a multicultural
society.
IN PAIRS


Suggest a minimum of three ways in which the
UK could ensure that immigrants are assimilated
into British Culture.
Ext: - Is it right that we insist immigrants are
assimilated?
INDIVIDUAL ACTIVITY

Take a UK Citizenship Test.
http://www.ukcitizenshiptest.co.uk/
http://www.officiallifeintheuk.co.uk/test/

(You need 75% correct answers to pass the actual
test!).
DISCUSS

What is ‘British Culture’?*

*Not just ‘English’ culture, remember!
WHAT IS BRITISH CULTURE?
Fish & Chips
 St. George
 Cup of tea
 Christianity
 Football
 The English Language
 Tennis
 Haggis
 The Royal Family

WHAT IS BRITISH CULTURE?
Fish & Chips – (debated; probably Portuguese –
though chips themselves either French or Belgian)
 St. George - Palestinian
 Cup of tea - Chinese
 Christianity - Israeli
 Football - Chinese
 The English Language - German
 Tennis - French
 Haggis - Scandinavian
 The Royal Family – German/Greek

INDIVIDUAL ACTIVITY (15 MINS)
You have been hired as a sociologist to write an
article for a magazine imagining what society in
the contemporary UK would be like without rich
ethnic diversity.
 Write a short article, as above, considering the
following factors: Food, Language, Media,
Dress/Style, Religion, Education, Sport…

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
RACISM
Discuss:

What is racism?

What different forms can it take?

Have you ever experienced racism?

If so, how did it make you feel?
RACISM

Individuals often make stereotypical and
imagined assumptions about other ethnic groups.
These reinforce assumptions about their own
cultural identities. If a group is powerful, these
assumptions might be racist and result in
prejudice and discrimination. (Miles; 1989)
RACISM

Different classes express racism in different ways.
The upper classes stress their superior breeding,
while working-classes practice territorial
racism, seeing ethnic minority culture as
threatening their communities and jobs. (P.
Cohen; 1988)
https://
www.youtube.com/watch?v=6MYHBrJIIFU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pXn3fZQEZlQ
RESISTING RACISM
Experiencing Racism can strengthen a
person’s sense of ethnic identity:


Young Pakistanis often adopt a strong Islamic
identity as a defence against racism and social
exclusion. (Jacobson; 1997)
Young African-Caribbeans often adopt identities
based on ethnic history and pop culture (e.g.
Gangsta rap and hip-hop) to challenge racism
and exclusion (Gilroy; 1993)
HYBRID IDENTITIES
Hybridity refers to a “mixing of cultures”. This
can blur the differences between ethnic groups.
 Young people often experiment with different
‘masks’ and styles, so hybrid identities are rarely
fixed. (Back; 1996).
 Johal & Bains (1998) found some young people
had Dual Identities – e.g. Brasians – different
identity with friends, peers, school.
 Code Switching – is when people switch
between these identities (e.g. Behaving one
way with family and another with peers).

GLOBALISATION
Globalisation encourages ethnic hybridity.
 The expansion of mass media enables people to
consume products from different parts of the
world.
 Hybrid cultures can be based around any issue…

GLOBALISATION & HYBRIDITY
Music
E.g. Brasian
Food
E.g. Curry
Clothing
E.g. Saris
Leisure
E.g. Diwali
Apache Indian;
Jay Sean; Asian
Dub Foundation
Based on Indian
Cuisine; now a
‘national’ UK dish
Stocked in high
street stores in
UK
Celebrated in UK
by range of
ethnicities.
GLOBALISATION & HYBRIDITY
List a minimum of 10 things that Britain has
taken from American culture.
 What other ethnic hybrids exist in the
contemporary UK? How and where were they
formed?

Time and
Space
Terrorism
Changes
to
Ethnic
Identities
Media
Migration
THE CREATION &
REINFORCEMENT OF ETHNIC
IDENTITIES
1. FAMILY
THE FAMILY


What is the origin of your family name?
(Research it if unsure...)
How can a person’s family name inform
their ethnic identity?
Children
raised to be
obedient,
loyal and
respect
elders
Children
taught to be
bilingual as
‘mother
tongue’
considered
crucial
Choice of
education
left to
parents
Socialisation
by 1st Gen
Asian Parents
(Ghuman; 1999)
Religious
training
considered
vital to
reinforce
values
Choice of
marriage
partner
left to
parents
FAMILY
Discuss:
How does ‘traditional’ British socialisation differ
from Ghuman’s observations of traditional Asian
socialisation?
Ghuman observed that many of these practices
continued for second-generation Asians...
 ...But not all of them, and increasingly, a
generation gap was opening with children caught
“between two cultures”.

http://putlocker.is/watch-east-is-east-onlinefree-putlocker.html
THE FAMILY



Languages spoken at home; food eaten at
home; clothes selected for children.
Family Values (For example, Francis & Archer,
2006, showed how British Chinese families
valued educational success of children and went
to great lengths to help ensure that success).
Structural differences: Different family
structures are more or less often found in
different ethnic groups.
HOW DOES THE GRAPH SHOW A LINK
BETWEEN FAMILY TYPE & ETHNICITY?
2. MASS MEDIA
How are different ethnic minority groups often
stereotyped in the media?
MOORE ET AL (2005)
Five Media Stereotypes of Black People
1. As Criminals
(e.g. in news stories, the ethnicity of a ‘white’
criminal is not mentioned)
2. As a Threat
(“coming over here, taking our jobs...”)
3. As Abnormal
(e.g. Strange cultural practices)
4. As Unimportant
(e.g. Ignoring issues affecting them)
5. As Dependant
(e.g. Images of less developed countries)
MEDIA


In less diverse areas, media is often the only way
people have of understanding other ethnic
groups.
Being stereotyped, ignored or misrepresented
was a norm in British media 1970s-1990s
(Jhally; 1992) – although this is changing due to
increase in ethnic-minority stars and writers.
MEDIA
The Media is responsible for creating many
ethnic hybrids e.g through language.
 Media characters such as Ali G, for example,
helped create what could almost be considered a
new dialect.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kOZlJiOvXs
U
THE CREATION & REINFORCEMENT OF
ETHNIC IDENTITIES: MASS MEDIA
In small groups, choose one of the following
areas and identify examples of positive
representations of different ethnic groups:
 TV comedy/soap opera
 Music
 Advertising
 The News
 Sport

Justify why each is positive.
3. RELIGION
RELIGION
What ethnic group do you think most Christians
belong to?
 Which religious group(s) do you think are most
dominant within Asian ethnic groups?
 Which ethnic groups do you think are most likely
to have no religion?

RELIGION
Around 95% of Christians are white.
 Asian groups are most likely to be Muslim, Hindu
or Sikh. Around 75% of Muslims are Asian, as are
around 95% of Hindus and 95% of Sikhs.
 Just over 90% of people who have ‘no religion’ are
white.

Source: Office of National Statistics; 2001
RELIGION



Ethnic minorities in the UK are significantly
more likely to be religious than ‘white’ people.
Ethnic/Religious identities overlap e.g. are
Muslims an ethnic or religious identity?
Many of the cultural aspects associated with
some ethnic groups – e.g. clothing, food,
languages, beliefs – come directly from their
religion.
SINGLE-FAITH SCHOOLS
These are increasingly common in the UK.
 It is argued that faith schools are a response to
secularization?
 Faith schools can strengthen religious
commitment and ethnic identity.

In pairs, list at least five positive and five
negative points about the existence of faith
schools within the contemporary UK.
RELIGION


World Events – As a result of globalisation,
certain world events can create social divisions
between religious/ethnic groups in all societies
which can strengthen or weaken ethnic
identities.
For example, the September 11th 2001 attacks
and the Iraq War are considered to have had a
significant effect on religious relations in
Western countries and beyond – particularly in
attitudes towards young Muslim males.
RELIGION:
MUSLIMS IN THE UK
Akhtar (2005)



Muslims have been othered in the West.
Religion offers young Muslims belonging and
solidarity.
Religion also provides political mobilisation:
Radical groups have turned this to their
advantage.
4. EDUCATION
EDUCATION: THE FORMAL
CURRICULUM
The subjects you study – and their content –
shapes your ethnic identity...
 Mason (2005) argues that many schools are
ethnocentric. They evaluate other cultures only
from the perspective on their own.
 Johal & Bains (1998) argue that some [ethnic
minority]children wear a metaphorical ‘white
mask’ to fit in with the majority culture.
 The formal curriculum is generally
culturally biased.

EDUCATION: A MULTICULTURAL RATHER
THAN ETHNOCENTRIC CURRICULUM?
Design a multicultural curriculum.
 For the following subjects, identity types of
activities teachers could use that would be
multicultural:
Maths/Science
English
Languages
History
Religious Education
Art/Drama/Music

EDUCATION
Sewell (2000)
 Offered a curriculum based on an AfricanCaribbean perspective, to challenge the dominant
one.
 However, some argued that the content – with
emphasis on slavery, anti-colonial struggle
and the Holocaust – reinforced stereotypes and
should focus more to highlight positive
achievements.
ACTIVITY


Take a 10 minute tour of the college, looking at
the ‘achievement’ posters (and other
posters/advertisements).
Record how many of the students are white, and
how many are non-white (you can sub-divide this
as you wish).
Ext:- You could also break this down further
by gender!
EDUCATION: THE INFORMAL
CURRICULUM

Faith schools (already discussed)
The Informal Curriculum can also influence
ethnic identities:
 Wright et al (2006) found that young black girls
in his study often felt they were treated unfairly
in class and translated this as racism.
 Sewell (2000) found that young black boys in his
study actively resisted racist teaching
practices...and this confused the teachers, who
didn’t realise these practices were racist!
5. PEER GROUP
PEER GROUP
Ethnic make-up of peer groups can be influenced
by schools people attend (e.g. Faith schools)
 Cultural comfort zones promote sense of
sameness and belonging, but can limit
socialisation with other groups.
 Multi-ethnic peer groups can strengthen ethnic
identities through the realisation of differences
within the group.

PEER GROUP
Alexander (1996) studied black British youths
and found:
 Peer groups crucial in what she terms “the art of
being black”.
 Males in this study displayed strong cultural
attachments to ‘being one of the boys’...
 Attended what they called ‘black clubs’,
which they differentiated from
‘white clubs’.
PEER GROUP
1.
2.
3.
Sewell (2004) argues that ‘black youth’ identity
is the result of three things:
Feeling rejected by the dominant culture.
Becoming anxious about how their peers
perceive them and so constructing a
deviant, masculine identity.
Influence of popular culture – especially
the emphasis on designer labels and
available male role models (e.g. Rap stars)
6. WORKPLACE
WORKPLACE
Studies have shown that different ethnicities
have different rates of employment, different
average pay and more or less difficulty finding
and maintaining work.
 Heath & Li Cheung (2006) used the concept
‘the ethnic penalty’ to describe the
disadvantage experienced by some ethnic
minorities in the workplace.

Discuss: What factors do you think contribute
to the ‘ethnic penalty’?
Do you think it still exists today?
WORKPLACE
Family connections and expectations can also
affect the type of work some ethnic groups are
more likely to do.
 Song (2003) showed that a large proportion of
Chinese people living in the UK are employed in
the food and catering sector.
 Over a third of doctors working in the NHS are
described as Asian.

http://viooz.co/movies/6894-east-is-east1999.html
ACTIVITY
Create a poster demonstrating how any one
agent of socialisation creates and reinforces
ethnic identities.
 Use your notes, research and your own ideas and
images.
 Present to the class.

WRITTEN TASK
Outline and explain two ways in which an
individual may express their ethnic identity
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