Karen Del
Carpio
Sep. 21, 2016
Social Illusion of Race
Today many people think that human
groups can be divided easily by distinct races. It is not a surprise that throughout
history many scientists have done numerous studies on humans in order to
classify the different populations based on their racial traits. As we have
studied, race is a concept based on the attempt to categories the observable
differences between racial groups. Microbiologist Pilar Ossorio explained in
“Race: The Power of an Illusion, Episode 1” that there is no biological explanation
that links race and genetics, and that there is more genetic variation within
people of the same ethnic group than there is between various ethnic groups.
Also in the article “Race: Biological Reality or Social Construct? By
Andreasen, we see the same idea of a greater genetic variation within racial
groups as it is between multiple racial groups. This evidence is based on the theory
that traces our ancient origin back to Africa that states that through
evolution we all carry old and new genetic variations that are vital for our
survival.
I am from South America. Where I grew
up the majority of families were mestizos. These families were either of
Spanish or other European descent. In my case my grandfather was from Jewish
Sephardic origin. Church was a big component of my identity. I always
considered myself as racially mixed. I was never conscious about race
differentiation until I got to New York. Here it was hard for me not to see the
social cliques among different racial groups. The concept of racial identity
for me is based on the different culture contexts. The article “Theories of
Culture in Racist Discourse” (pg.93) explains that different countries have
different ways of perceiving race and that societies have incorporated new
forms of racism after WWII. These forms of racial notion emphasize race as a culture
product rather than biological.
Angela James in her article “Making
Sense of Race and Biological Classification” explains how people identify physical
traits as part of their definition of race. “While race is a dynamic phenomenon
rooted in political struggle, it is commonly considered a fixed characteristic
of human populations; ..people routinely look to the human body for evidence about
racial identity; while it is a biological fiction, it is nonetheless a social fact”
(pg. 236). I believe that there exists a longing for social identity. We are
constantly looking for affirmation among theories and logical explanation for
our own doubts. Classifying people based on their physical traits and abilities
is just another attempt to conform to social construct of race.
We can agree that racial stereotypes
have been used as a medium to preserve hegemony. The techniques used by
scientists today resemble methods used by scientists such as Linnaeus, who through
classification of biological structures he attempted to attach imaginary components
to his analysis, using this as a base upon which to formulate his theories. Racial
differences, class status, socioeconomic conditions are some of the many tools
used by the white supremacy to preserve social inequality.
Image by Myne Whitman on her blog
{link to http://www.romancemeetslife.com/2015/03/meet-
black-and-white-twins-everyone-can.html}
Image by Geledés Instituto da Mulher Negra
References
Andreasen,
R.O., (2000). Race: Biological Reality or Social Construct? Philosophy of
Science Association,2, 653-666.
James, A.
(2001). Making Sense of Race and Racial Classification. Race and Society, 4(2), 235-247.
Durrhem, K.,
Dixon, J., (2000) Theories of Culture in Racist Discourse. Race and Society,
3(2), 93-.339.
Dear Karen,
ReplyDeleteThoughtful piece!
Remember to add two links for further reading in your revision. You may also want to review the APA format for in-text citations.
Looking at the three parts of the prompt for this blog post, I am having a hard time determining whether or not you actually offered any concrete evidence in support of Ossorio's statement. Also, I'm not sure if it's very clear that your "longing for social identity" theory is a result of learning about the evidence, as is required by part 3 of the prompt.
Some of the terms you used made me a bit confused. When you say "human groups" in the first sentence, are you saying that groups exist among humans? When you say "racial traits" in the second sentence, are you saying that there are traits distinctive of each race? You may also want to read through the entire piece out loud to catch possible mistakes, such as the word "categories" in the third sentence, by which you probably meant to write "categorize".
One last point: when you mention people for the first time, you may want to include their first name. One example is Carolus Linnaeus in your last paragraph.
I hope this is helpful. I look forward to see the revised version next week!
Sincerely,
~*annie
I think this essay could have been stronger with links to outside sources that were relevant to your claims. However, you added sources to the images you used which is good. When citing, next time use proper citations within your text, too! This piece definitely has some potential, and offered insight into the social construct of race. However I don't understand much of the core of your essay, and I can't really find much support for Ossorio's statement. The first image, with the twins would have been a great way to expand on the scientific genetic side of racial classification. Some parts are confusing, such as when you said, "Classifying people based on their physical traits and abilities is just another attempt to conform to social construct of race." Did you mean that the classification based on physical traits led to the creation of the social construct of race, or the other way around? Also, you're missing how learning from Ossorio's statement and the video have changed your view on racial identity, which I look forward to reading about in your revision! Overall you did a great job!
ReplyDeleteWait, those are twins? Wow! I had no idea!
Delete