How do historical experiences of the racial and ethnic groups in the US compare: Native Americans, African Americans, Chicanos, Asian Americans, European Americans, and Jewish Americans?
A racial group can be defined as a social group that has been distinguished by some inherited physical characteristics. Similarly, ethnic groups can be defined by race, national origin, or religion such that the people in one ethnic group share a sense of peoplehood. America is amongst the countries that have the largest racial and ethnic groups since the colonial era. Racism has been prevalent in the American states since the colonial era to present. However, different political administrations as well as non-governmental and human rights organizations have been on the rise to defend human rights and fight discrimination that is based on color, race, ethnicity, and nationality as Quaye (2014) puts it.
Some of the racial and ethnic groups that have experienced racism and discrimination since the colonial era include African-Americans, Asian Americans, Chicanos, Jewish Americans, Native Americans, and European Americans. These are the earliest racial and ethnic groups, and they faced severe challenges from the Americans due to the kind of discrimination they got from them. A negative stereotype of African Americans was created and impacted by the popular culture for the European American audiences. The ethnic and racial groups were perceived and treated harshly based on their color and race. They were frustrated and prejudiced by the Whites, and their capabilities were undermined as well as the abuse of their basic rights as humans. The racial and native groups were all discriminated on the similar basis of slavery and segregation (Paul, 2014).
However, European Americans were not amongst the minority racial groups, and thus, they were offered exclusive privileges from those of other ethnic groups in matters of immigration, voting rights, education, land acquisition, citizenship, and criminal procedures. The other groups suffered xenophobic exclusion and continuous discrimination in the United States whereby they were used to provide labor in the American industries for low wages whereby they worked in harsh conditions. They were not allowed to enter into American owned places like churches, hotels, and even houses.
How do the historical patterns you explained earlier compare to the experiences of the new immigrants today?
Based on the discrimination that has persisted in the United States since the colonial era, most ethnic groups such as Jewish Americans and African Americans still live in low-class housings that their ancestors were forced by the laws and housing covenants to live. Despite the efforts of anti-racism groups and human rights organizations to fight discrimination and abuse of human rights for the immigrants in the United States, discrimination and human rights abuse remains a serious area of concern in the American countries (Viruell, Miranda, & Abdulrahim, 2012). African Americans are acknowledged as the earliest ethnic group in the United States, but their social status and recognition in the United States remain the same. The new immigrants in the United States, however, face discrimination not only on the basis of color but also on the areas of working.
Given the conceptual and empirical points made earlier, what has and how has it impacted your own sociocultural identity?
Based on the social status of the immigrants in the United States, the sociocultural identity of most people remains stranded. For instance, most Ethnic groups in the American states remains unemployed and the poorest people in America despite the fact that most immigrated to search for jobs and earn a living (Quaye, 2014). The abuse on the basis of color is another issue that affects the sociocultural identity since racism and ethnicity remain a serious issue amongst all immigrants.
- Paul, J. (2014). Post-racial futures: imagining post-racialist anti-racism (s). Ethnic and Racial Studies, 37(4), 702-718.
- Quaye, S. J. (2014). Facilitating Dialogues about Racial Realities. Teachers College Record, 116(8), n8.
- Viruell-Fuentes, E. A., Miranda, P. Y., & Abdulrahim, S. (2012). More than culture: structural racism, intersectionality theory, and immigrant health. Social science & medicine, 75(12), 2099-2106.
