Defining Ethnicity

A2 Ethnic Diversity - Lurgan College Geography Department

1. Defining Ethnicity

A few years back, United Colours of Benetton (which is famous for its controversial ads tackling issues of

ethnicity) ran an ad which showed three human hearts, side by side. One was labeled White; another Black; the

final one, Yellow. The point was clear and stark – inside, we all look the same. Why, then, are we so quick to divide based on outward appearance?

A powerful question, posed in a provocative manner. The only problem is that our sense of ethnic identity does

not reside in our hearts, no matter how similar they are. Rather our concept of ‘us-ness’, of who we are ethnically,

is largely a subjective feeling that emerges from a highly complex interaction of complex factors. These factors

don’t operate in isolation; they grow out from the group context in which we find ourselves, influenced by the people around us, and responding to the present and historical context that we have inherited. Ethnicity is a

complex and often subjective concept.

That said, we can be helped in our understanding of it if we use the following framework as we examine what

gives us our sense of ethnic identity.

Ethnicity may be defined as…

Another

ethnic group

• a sense of shared group identity, in which the

members of the group differ from other groups;

• with regard to characteristics including race,

language, religion, nationality;

• and where members of the group usually feel solidarity with other members of the group, and feel different from members of other groups.

Another

ethnic group Another

ethnic group

Students should be able to:

• identify and explain the primary factors which determine ethnicity people: race, nationality, language, religion

• understand that ethnicity is a complex concept which is subjective in its definition, as expressed by the concept of

perceived ethnic identity

• Explain how secondary factors define ethnicity: social status, residential concentration, age, gender, caste • Identify places (using the primary and secondary factors) where ethnicity is apparent.

Key Terms


Ethnicity may be classified on the basis of primary and secondary factors. The following diagram illustrates how

they relate to each other.

1.1 Primary factors in ethnicity These are the main or primary ways in which ethnicity is usually defined. It consists of the interplay of a variety of factors, all combining in varying ways in different individuals and groups to produce an individual’s or group’s

perceived ethnic identity. We will explore them one by one.

A. Race This is perhaps one of the most obvious determinants of ethnic identity, and includes the major racial groups of

African, Caucasian, Amerindian, Chinese etc. Over the centuries, as these different racial groups intermixed increasingly through migration, race became a key marker in ethnicity. Racial groups were ascribed generalised

social characteristics and were often treated differently on this basis.

However, race cannot be used to distinguish between certain ethnic groups. For example, most people from the Caribbean and African are Black; however, they are distinct in terms of nationality. A similar situation exists when

we consider Indians, Pakistanis and Bangladeshis (see the task on the UK census to see the challenges this presents).

Racial stereotyping can be demonstrated in the history of the portrayal of black people in advertising.

Primary ethnic factors

These are the primary ethnic divides

Race Nationality Language Religion

Perceived ethnic identity

These factors all feed in to the perceived ethnic identity

Secondary ethnic factors

These are the minority divisions

within the major ethnic divides Social status

Residential concentration

Age

Gender Caste


A brief history of the use of Black people in advertising

Whiter than white

Black faces often appeared only to emphasise their difference from white

people. This Pears Soap advertisement from 1903 suggests the product is

powerful enough to "clean" a black child. "The suggestion was that being

black was unclean," says Sam Walker of the Black Cultural Archives. "It

reinforced the idea that being black was negative, not least to children who

may have seen this."

Out of Africa

Another image was that of the

African native or savage. This

snakes and ladders game shows a

man being chased in the African

savannah. "In later years this idea

of black people running around

Africa reappeared when sportsmen

and women were posed next to

lions or other animals," says Sam

Walker.

Appealing to the family

Positive images increasingly appeared in glossy magazines and in

products aimed at ordinary people. This Kellogg's Corn Flakes box is an

example of how black figures began to appear in the same family

scenarios as white people.

The man from the Halifax

Remember the Man from the Pru? Now there's

Howard Brown of the Halifax Bank, Sheldon,

Birmingham. Howard became the face of the bank

after he won an in-house audition. "It's perhaps the

best example of positive black advertising we've

seen," says Sam Walker. "He's there because he's a

good salesman of financial products - no other

reason."


"I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: 'We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.” I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the colour of their skin, but by the content of their character. I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at a table of brotherhood. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksand of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children."


B. Nationality For many ethnic groups, their country of origin or their ancestral home is a strong unifying factor in their ethnicity. One very good example of this is the likes of the Irish

American, an identity which expresses a dual affinity of nationality – one with the country of origin and one with the new country.

Despite what outsiders may think about religion, nationality is a very strong element in

the differing ethnicities of Northern Ireland. Catholics are often called nationalists, after their desire to be united to the rest of Ireland. Unionists are so called because of

their desire to remain part of the United Kingdom.

In recent centuries as international migration has

increased, it is increasingly difficult to make a simple

connection between a nation and the race of people who live there.

For example, what makes someone British is complex given

the proportion of immigrants now living in the United Kingdom.

Prior to 2009, the BNP had a membership policy that allowed only what it called

‘indigenous Caucasians’ to join the party. This slippery concept seemed to imply that non-whites could not join the party, even if they were British citizens.

On the other hand, some British citizens who are the children of immigrants have

made a very positive contribution to British life and indeed our national

achievements. One such example is Amir Khan, who as well as winning silver medal for Britain in the Olympics, has also spoken out in issues of race relations within Britain.

C. Language Living in Northern Ireland, it will be almost impossible for you

not to be aware of the significance that language can play in

ethnic identity. Following the establishment of the Northern

Ireland Assembly in 1998, the Nationalists parties quickly pressed for government publications to be made available in Gaelic as well as English. This, they argued, was all about giving parity of esteem to Catholic culture.

Not to be outdone, some Unionists were quick to react by demanding that Ulster-Scots translations be made available as well. The banner above from the DENI website shows all three languages side by side.

The fact that government money is spent on translating official documents shows how significant the issue of

language is as a marker of ethnicity. In fact, there is an interesting debate raging over whether or not Ulster-Sctos is a language or a dialect. What concerns us here is not what the answer to that question is; rather, it is the

Total White Black Asian

Agree 20% 22% 15% 14%

Disagree 74% 72% 79% 78%

Don't Know 6% 7% 6% 8%

Do you think you have to be white to be British? Question asked in a BBC poll.

Slogan painted at ‘Freedom Corner’ at the bottom of the Newtownards Road, Belfast.

Sheep vandalised near Coagh, daubed in green, white

and gold paint. Tricolours were also painted on the

gateposts of the field. National flags are very strong symbols in Northern Ireland.


fact that it is being debated at all, and especially the fact that its status as a language is being defended so

strongly by Ulster-Scots speakers. It is this strength of feeling that illustrates just how deeply rooted it is in the

ethnic identity of Ulster-Scots speakers.

Language or dialect? You decide! Try out the following quiz and you can decide. Can you understand the following:

Language – are you an Ulster-Scot?

• A wud’a said if A had a- thocht. Ye should maybe ’a towl him

• It’s gan tae be a’ by before we get there. It’s a' by wae him noo

• A wush A could gie ye a better yin, but that’s a’ the yin A hae

• The boady’s deed, an it’s a’ yin noo what he wuz

• Me even luck at thon wee abject!.

• He haes nae adae wae him

• A’m naw allooin ye’r naw gan tae pie me

As we will see in our case study on Sri Lanka later, language can be used as a means of discrimination. In this

case, it was one of the factors that initiated the most recent civil war in the island. Another example is the Kurdish

minority living in Turkey. ‘Speak Turkish. Speak it a lot’ was the slogan on a sign seen by Kurdish prisoners on

their way to gaol when sentenced for seeking recognition of a separate Kurdish ethnic identity.

“Even to speak Kurdish was illegal until 1991 and until recently, Turkey still refused to acknowledge that the language existed, claiming it was a dialect of Turkish. Kurds were officially classified as ‘mountain

Turks’” (Independent, 28/9/01)

Cost of translation is £70,000

The NI Executive has spent almost £70,000 in two years translating documents

into Irish and Ulster Scots. The BBC has learned most of the money £49,808 -

was spent by the Department of Education translating into Irish. It said the figure was so high because of the need to communicate with Irish-medium

primary schools. Two Stormont departments spent nothing on translations.

The total amount spent translating into Ulster Scots was £3,783. The

Department of Education spent more than three times the combined total of

the other 10 departments on translations. It spent only £368 on translations

into Ulster Scots.

Education Minister Caitriona Ruane said all consultation documents with Irish medium schools were published in Irish

and English. "Such is the demand that my department has also employed two Irish language officers who are working

full time," she said. "So I'm glad my department is using public resources to support the native language of this

island." She said if people wrote to her in Ulster Scots, she would respond in the same way, adding: "We don't have

schools teaching through the medium of Ulster Scots."

Fiona Ni Reighill, a teacher at an Irish school in Derry, said she was happy to correspond with the Department of

Education in Irish. "It is important to have the English there in case I do need to pass it on to someone, but I would

read the Irish part," she said.

However, Mark Wallace from the Taxpayers' Alliance said public money should be going to essential frontline services, not "dressing up services in such a way that the government can make a political or politically correct point".

Irish language activist Gerry O'Hara pointed out that in the 2001 census, 10.4% of Northern Ireland's population

declared an ability to write and speak Irish. "They are all rate payers and tax payers," he said. "So if they make

choices about how they would like some money spent out of the money that they contribute, then that needs to be

respected. "

Newton Emerson, Irish News columnist, said too much money was spent translating into Ulster Scots. "It's a disgrace

that even a penny is spent on Ulster Scots as it's obviously nonsense," he said. "When you take a look at the Irish

side, the first thing that strikes you is actually how little is spent on translation. If you add up all the costs, you have

got the equivalent there of about five jobs, which really isn't very much money at all."

Adpated from http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/8069930.stm May 2009


D. Religion Religion often provides a code of behaviour, dress and ritual which makes its followers instantly recognizable.

But it’s not just the official religious representatives who can be identified as readily. Outward symbols of religion

are worn by many adherents, sometimes leading to controversy in pluralistic societies when they come into obvious contact with each other.


E. Perceived ethnic identity

How you perceive your ethnicity

It is important to note that any concept of ethnicity is based in a combination of the above factors, creating an individual’s perceived ethnic identity. Consider the following exercises

that will illustrate this point. • Classify yourself based on each of the following.

• Now rank them in order of importance as to how you see your identity. • Compare and discuss with the people around you. Would your ranks

differ if you were discussing this with o someone from France;

o someone from the USA;

o a Muslim from Iran?

The primary factors can intersect in interesting ways:

How people see themselves ethnically has become more complex in more recent times given the degree of mixing of

different ethnic groups. Of course, there has always been

mixing of ethnicities, but it’s the scale on which it’s occurring now that presents some interesting issues when it comes to

how people perceive themselves.

Watch the video on the website which shows one young Briton’s attempt to decide what his ethnicity is.

How others perceive your ethnicity Perceived ethnic identity also affects the way others see any

individual. For some people, images like the one to the left can all too easily lead them to generalise about all Muslims, seeing them all

as ‘terrorists’ or ‘extremists’.

Particularly after the London bombings on 2007, there was widespread concern about a backlash

against Muslims in Britain.

Amir Khan, the young British Asian Olympic

medal winning boxer, made this comment following the attacks. “The worst thing about last

week was that some people will tar all Muslims with the same brush. The Asian community has

been appalled with what has happened. I hope that by stepping into the ring I can show all young kids in Britain that there are better things

to do than getting into trouble and mixing with bad people.”

Primary

Factor

Identity Rank

Race

Nationality

Language

Religion

White

Arab British Arabic Muslim

English

Christian


Perceived Ethnic Identity task: Is Barak Obama black?

This is a poster for the 2008 presidential elections in the USA which tried to move people away from the race

issue to the ‘issues’ issue.

In contrast, look carefully at this

picture taken in the USA in the

1950s.


Viewpoint: Is Barack Obama black? By Kimberly McClain DaCosta

For some of us, the heralding of Barack Obama as the first black president of the United States

seems a rather uncontroversial claim. Not so for others. One well-known African American writer, Debra Dickerson, famously objected to calling

Obama black on the grounds that because he is not descended from slaves,

he is not of the people properly defined as "black." Ergo, he is not black -

at all. The bulk of the people protesting against references to Obama as a black man, however, grant that he is "part" black (by way of his father),

but assert that because he also has a white mother it is not "accurate" to call him black. He is "in fact" mixed-race, they say.

Opposing arguments

My first reaction to questions about the "correctness" or "accuracy" of

Obama's racial classification is to undermine the premise of the question itself. The search for the "correctness" of racial identity presumes that a

definitive answer can be found. It presumes that race is a real entity,

something fixed, or natural. It seems to deny what scholars have laboured

for decades to demonstrate - that the criteria used to classify people in racial categories, the categories used in a given society, and the uses to

which those categories are put - vary by place and time. They are, as academics are fond of saying, "socially constructed".

Yet the predilections of the scholar fail to satisfy those who claim to know

what race Obama "is", for these are really statements about what the

speaker thinks he ought to be. When people insist that Obama "is" black, they point to his self-identification as such, and the assertion that when

most people look at him, they see a black man. Calling him "black" seems to acknowledge the connection between his rise and the struggles of a people. When others argue that Obama "is" mixed-race, they point to the fact that

he has a white mother, not only a black father, and was raised in an interracial family. Calling him "mixed-race" seems to acknowledge that family, offering a corrective to centuries of denying our tangled genealogies.

De-stigmatisation

What I find most interesting about the question of what racial label to assign Obama, is that we are asking the

question at all. As recently as 20 years ago, the question of Obama's racial position would be presumed settled before it was even asked. In keeping with the one-drop rule - the practice of categorising as black anyone with

any known African ancestry - Obama's identification as a black person would be expected, accepted and

unremarkable. The person suggesting that Obama be classified as mixed-race would quite likely have been met with suspicion or a confused look ("What's that?") since for most of US history, in most places, mixed-race

identity has not been collectively recognised. In the last 20 years, however, the collective efforts of mixed-race people in the US to de-stigmatise interracial families and garner public recognition of mixed race identity have

been fairly successful (for example, the US government now enumerates mixed race identities).

Stares

Even so, the question whether Obama is black or mixed-race reflects a basic misunderstanding of the experience of those of us who have grown up in interracial families, particularly those of us of African descent, born in the

post-Civil Rights period. We (I have an African American father and an Irish American mother) were raised on the

front lines of racial change, where the new rules about interracial intimacy often clashed with the old - both in

public and in our own families. The affection we were so comfortable showing our white mothers at home drew stares, and worse, from both whites and blacks in public. It was in our families where we first felt love and

protection as well as the first sting of racial prejudice. And many of us forged a black identity, one that was not at odds with being mixed-race, but arose out of our experiences as mixed people: from an awareness that the racial

dilemma we were born into has its deepest roots in anti-black prejudice. For us, being black and mixed-race are not mutually exclusive. We have learned to live with the contradictions. Perhaps it's time for everyone else to

learn to live with them too.

Obama isn't black. 'Black,' in

our political and social reality,

means those descended from West African slaves

Debra J Dickerson

Colorblind, Salon.com January 2007

Barack Obama lived for many years with his white grandparents

With reference to the photos and the article, discuss how perceived ethnic identity has changed in the USA in the past few decades.


The following is adapted from an interesting article from The Observer newspaper which raises the issue of

perceived ethnic identity amongst today’s youth culture. It argues that for many of today’s youth, race is no

longer significant in defining ethnicity. So how Black are you?

Forget black, forget white. EA is what's hot It stands for 'ethnically ambiguous', a term embracing a whole new generation, from US mega-stars to Brixton clubbers, who have grown up colour-blind

John Arlidge Sunday January 4, 2004 The Observer Punjabe MC is booming out over the sound system at the Plan B bar in Brixton. It is 9pm on Friday and the stylish crowd are easing through the post-New Year's Eve comedown with lager and Marlboro Golds. Twenty years ago, the scene would have been almost exclusively black, but tonight the crowd is racially mixed. When the DJ plays the latest Beyoncé track everyone gets up and dances. From the way they look and move, it's hard to tell who is black, Asian or white.

Talk to any of the regulars at this popular south London bar and it soon becomes clear that race or colour is the last thing on anyone's mind. As he sinks his Eastern European lager, Derrick Herelle, 32, who works in IT, says: 'Here black and white people interact so much that you tend to lose the distinction. I feel as comfortable in a bar like this in Brixton as I would walking into the Ritz - and why not? It's my city.'

Across the bar Nurj Khan, a nurse from Camberwell who is out drinking with her friend Sophia from Camden Town, agrees. 'Trying to define people by the old race labels just doesn't work any more. Look around you. Can you pigeonhole these people? To me, that doesn't undermine the fact that culture and heritage are an integral part of life, but there is more to it than just colour.'

Generation EA

Herelle and Khan and millions like them are part of a new group, dubbed Generation Ethnically Ambiguous or Generation EA for short. While many blacks and Asians are casting aside the old ethnic labels as crude and outmoded, many white youngsters are embracing so-called 'black' lifestyle and culture in fashion, grooming, music, sport and language.

In America, the power of ethnic ambiguity has been recognised by both stars and advertising agencies keen to buy into the youth market. The actor Vin Diesel has said that his multiracial roots - his mother is Irish and his father's race is unknown - have proved to be an asset, enabling him to play a wide variety of roles. And the 'EA' background of baseball player Derek Jeter has probably helped him become one of the most photographed of America's sports stars.

Not surprisingly, pop stars - always alert to shifting fashions - are playing with ethnic ambiguity. Beyoncé, a black American, often wears her hair blond, while Christina Aguilera - who is half-Ecuadorean - has cast herself as a Bollywood goddess.

Demographic shifts – blended youth

Such ethnic ambiguity is of a piece with real demographic changes in America and also in the UK. Almost one million young Britons identified themselves as members of more than one race or of 'no race' in the most recent census, the first in which respondents could choose their ethnic origin. 'Mixed Race' is now the third largest ethnic minority group in Britain and is set to become the biggest over the next decade.

As blacks and Asians move away from colour-based labels, observers say that white youngsters are moving towards traditional black lifestyles, creating the new 'blended' youth. They point out that almost half the Top 40 albums and singles sold last year were by black acts. Indeed, black music is now so dominant that even white soul singers, such as Mick Hucknall and Jay Kay, win Mobo - Music of Black Origin - awards.


Blended culture

When it comes to image, white youngsters are just as likely to wear 'black' street labels, such as P. Diddy's Sean John, as black youngsters. 'Bling, bling' ghetto fabulous style is no longer restricted to the ghetto. In the past, any white youngster who copied black style was dismissed as a 'wigga' - a term of abuse meaning 'white ------'. But now 'wiggas' are the norm.

'Black urban culture has become the mainstream culture,' says journalist and social commentator Paul McKenzie. 'It represents the triumph of the immigrant black community.'

McKenzie points out that few black commentators raised an eyebrow when David Beckham was named the most famous black man in Britain last year. His superstar quality, money, passion for fashion and fast cars, love of garage music and his popularity among black youngsters marked him out as 'a brother, trapped in a white man's body', a Channel 4 documentary said. Beckham has said he regarded the description as a compliment.

After years of churning out lily-white, blond-haired, blue-eyed boy and girl bands, the music industry is remixing looks as fast as it remixes singles. Multi-racial bands such as the Sugababes are replacing the likes of Boyzone and Westlife. Even mega-stars are deliberately tweaking their looks, playing with audiences' perceptions of their origin. Among male stars, Eminem and Justin Timberlake, who are white, claim that their music is as 'black' as songs by such US rappers as P. Diddy or 50 Cent. On Britain's streets a 'Justin' is the term for a white man taken or desired as a lover by a black woman.

Ambiguity sells, marketing experts say, not only because it - helpfully - covers all bases but because it suits the times. 'There is a current fascination with the racial hybrid,' says Sean Pillot de Chenecey, a London-based trend analyst and researcher who has worked for Levi's and Coca-Cola. 'For the marketing industry, the focus is on trying to reflect the blending of cultures. It's about art imitating life.'

The end of race as we know it?

The transition from segregated cultures to multiracialism is now so marked that some believe the time has come to dismiss race altogether as a useful social indicator. US academic Evelyn Hammond, a professor of the history of science and Afro-American studies at Harvard, recently told the New York Times that race was an 'invented concept' used 'to categorise perceived biological, social and cultural differences between human groups'.

In Britain, Michael Eboda, editor of the black newspaper New Nation, sympathises. 'Beckham-type ideas may be tongue-in-cheek, but there is a serious point: Britain is a multicultural country and Beckham epitomises that. He has absorbed aspects of black culture.

'The barriers between black and white are really coming down.'

At the Commission for Racial Equality, Trevor Phillips agrees: 'The CRE is not just here to go about shouting "racism, racism, racism". I want to bring the word integration back into fashion because I think it is what is going on already. Public bodies need to catch up with real life and work out how to take things even further forward.'

Back on the streets of Brixton, what do those in Plan B bar make of these claims? Is Generation EA a reality? In the multiracial, pluralist culture in which we now live, does race still matter, or has the new climate of crossover, fusion and cultural diversification relegated colour to the margins?

Nick Leader, a 25-year-old research consultant who has travelled from Hampstead, north London, to party with his friends, says: 'People don't make a distinction now because the distinction is dissolving - culturally and even at times physically.

'We are the new mix. We are the remix generation.'


Here are a few comments on what it means for some people to be British.

What makes you British?

The increasing ethnic diversity of British society

means it is difficult to define what makes someone

British. Prime Minister Tony Blair says that "blood

alone" does not define national identity and that modern

Britain was shaped by a "rich mix of all different ethnic

and religious origins".

Your e-mails

Marmite, and uneven pavements... Anon, London, UK

There is nothing truly special about being British - the UK is just one country out of twenty or so in the European Union. We British people should start feeling more "European" rather than British. We should celebrate the

heritage and culture of Europe instead of Britain. Why? Firstly, British people come from all over the world.

Secondly, the British non-immigrants, the people that have lived in the isles for hundreds of years, are not 100% descendants of the original inhabitants of the Isles - namely Britons and Celts. Rather, the British White are a

mixed breed with French blood, German blood, Norse blood, Roman blood, etc. Yichen Li, UK

I was born in England form a multicultural background, my father being Palestinian and

my mother being half British and half French-Canadian. Having left England when I was

ten it has been many years since I have lived in the UK. But when I get off the plane in Heathrow and see all the chocolates I know I' m home. Best of British M.Kaloti, Canada

My passport... Nothing more, nothing less. Anon, UK

I was born in England, my birth parents are from Ghana and Finland. I was adopted by white English people who

are my dear Mum and Dad. They had 4 of their own children and adopted another girl 1/2 Irish,1/2 Trinidadian. We are all British and proud of it. My parents, sisters, family, education were all given to me by this great country

of ours. Long live Britain. I now live in Barbados but Britain will always be home. Linda Burrows, Barbados

I was born in Afghanistan and came to Britain (legally) as a child with my parents - I am a British Afghan. I am

proud to be British and proud to be an Afghan. I value the cultural and religious diversity of the British society.

Being a citizen is about making positive contribution to society and living in harmony with others. We Brits moan

too much instead of appreciating the good things that we have!! Safia, London

When people ask me where I am from I say I am British, even though I am of Chinese origin. I am proud to say I am British and have always thought of myself as such. Being British is more than just having a passport, its about

caring about what happens to this great country, be it crime, the NHS or immigration. I am proud to come from a country which welcomed my parents and which has given me the freedom to do what I want without being

discriminated against because of my sex or race. Being British is having the freedom go about our daily lives without having to worry about our right to democracy, but then protecting it when the need arises. Anybody who

cares about this country and what happens in it is British in one way or another. Michelle Wong, UK

Many people in Britain do not know what it means to be British, or to be proud to be British because there is no direction, nothing to unite us all anymore. The Labour driven 'PC' brigade are keen to force 'multiculturalism' on

us and define how we are all different, but the key problem is that there is nothing to unite us now, no 'banner' we can all align behind. I think this is an underlying cause to the race troubles we have seen recently. Immigrants

coming to live in this country should be encouraged to feel 'British' and share in feeling proud of our glorious

history, tolerant society. But they should also be proud of their roots and heritage. Bob, England

When I get off the

plane and see all

the chocolates I

know I' m home.

M Kaloti, Canada


1.2 Secondary factors in ethnicity Primary ethnic identity can manifest itself in different ways in the following secondary ethnic factors. The

secondary factors include _____________________________________________________________________ . Again, we will take each one in turn.

A. Social status Societies are often segregated into social groups or ranks, and ethnicity sometimes mirrors those ranks. One of the best examples of this was the Apartheid system in South Africa. This system legally enforced the separation of

different races, and whites were socially, economically and politically at the top; coloureds and Indians were in the middle; Blacks were at the bottom.

There are other examples not as extreme as this. In Northern Ireland, the recent Troubles were sparked by

human rights issues, as the Catholic minority felt they were discriminated against by the Protestant majority. The

graph below shows how this discrimination was reflected in socio-economic status. Recently Catholics have come to hold a higher proportion of professional jobs, but still have a higher unemployment rate than Protestants

(Belfast Telegraph, December 2001). We will cover this issue in more detail in our Belfast case study.

B. Residential concentration Immigrant ethnic minorities often group together in their new country. Initially, this may be because of cultural factors, in that they feel safer and more at home

amongst people of their own cultural background. It may also reflect the low socio-economic status that the new immigrants have (having spent a lot of their

money on the journey). As the generations pass, however, the residential concentration may reflect difficulties faced by the ethnic minorities in socio-

economic self-improvement, as they may face discrimination in education and employment.

A good example of this is found in Leicester, where many Asian migrants live in

inner city terraced housing areas such as Highfields. As Steve Royle states,

‘Life is lived within a largely Asian environment: shops and services cater

for a largely Asian clientele. Asians wishing to live in a different environment, either from a desire to assimilate more into mainstream British society, or simply to have better housing, must buy themselves

out of places like Highfields. The chance to do that is affected by wealth and minorities are often handicapped by a social system that traps them in poverty.’

In addition, residential concentration may be a result of force by an ethnic majority; examples of this include the ghettos of Jews in Germany in the Second World War and the Black Townships of apartheid in South Africa.

We will take the

opportunity to cover one of the new statistical

techniques required for A2: the location

quotient. Note that,

although it will be

primarily tested in Unit 4,

you may be required to show an awareness of it

for Unit 3. So make sure you revise it!

Socio-economic differences in Belfast, 1970s


Finally, residential concentration may occur within societies where violence and intimidation cause internal

migrations as groups move to other areas that contain people from the same ethnic background where they fell

safer. An obvious example of this is Northern Ireland, as we will explore this further in our case study of Belfast in section 3.

C. Age This is particularly seen in the differences in ethnicities that might exist between different generations within

migrant groups. One example of this is the Gasterbieter migrant flow into Germany after the Second World War. As Germany needed people to fill low status jobs during the rebuilding of the country, it welcomed what it termed

‘guest workers’, primarily from Turkey. The intention was that these immigrants would work in Germany until the rebuilding was complete, and then return home. The reality was somewhat different; instead of returning home,

the guest workers tended to bring their families over with them to Germany. The first generation migrants were very distinct ethnically in Germany, in terms of race (Arab) and religion (Muslim). But the second-generation

migrants, those actually born in Germany, took on much more of a German identity than their parents. The perceived ethnic identities of the different generations were very distinct.

Race Language Nationality Religion

Immigrant Turks

Children of

Immigrants

D. Caste System The caste system that operates in India, relates to the traditional Hindu societies in India where people’s social position is determined by the caste into which they were born, no social mobility exists. There are four main

groups including the Brahmins, the highest caste who are entitled to be priests; below the lowest group are the Dalit, or Untouchables. This group makes up about one third of India’s population and is traditionally limited to

menial tasks such as handling rubbish. Although the caste system was outlawed in 1947, in practice in remains in place, especially in rural areas.

Task on ethnic diversity in Leicseter

This task will study the ethnic distribution in Leicester, and is to be done in groups: • Each table should choose a different ethnic group chosen from the following: White, Mixed, Asian, Black.

• The rest of the task can be divided between the people at your table: there are 22 wards, so you can work in pairs and do seven or eight each (or some suitable alternative arrangements of your own making).

• Here’s what to do: o Produce a table which gives the total for your ethnic group in your assigned wards.

o Produce an overall combined table for your table(!)

o Calculate the Location Quotient for your group using the data for the city as a whole. o Produce a choropleth map for your ethnic group in Leicester. (You can get a copy of a map of the

wards of Leicester from the PowerPoint file). Your class intervals should be every 0.5, and use the following colour scheme: 0-0.49 = Red; 0.5-0.99 = yellow/orange; 1.00-1.49 = green; 1.50-1.99 =

blue; 2.00+ = purple o Once all the groups have produced their maps, compare them for all four ethnic groups. Describe

and explain the relationship between the relative distributions and the map of socio-economic status


E. Gender In some cases, gender can have a very significant role in the ways in which an ethnic identity is expressed. This is particularly the case in cultures or religions that treat men and women differently. In pluralist societies (see

section 3 for more details on this term), this can often lead to tensions and disagreement, when one ethnic group fundamentally disagrees with how other ethnic groups treat women.

One particularly horrific example of this is the case of so-called ‘honour killings’ in the UK. Read the story below

from the BBC website.

One in 10 'backs honour killings' One in 10 young British Asians believes so-called honour killings can be

justified, according to a poll for the BBC's Asian Network.

Of 500 Hindus, Sikhs, Christians and Muslims questioned, a 10th said they would

condone the murder of someone who disrespected their family's honour. Figures

show 13 people die every year in honour killings, but police and support groups believe it is many more.

Honour killing is a brutal reaction within a family - predominantly Asian and Middle

Eastern - to someone perceived to have brought "shame" upon relatives. What

constitutes dishonour can range from wearing clothes thought unsuitable or choosing

a career which the family disapprove of, to marrying outside of the wider

community. The Metropolitan Police are investigating 200 deaths linked to honour killings. Kidnaps, beatings and rapes have also been committed in the name of "honour".

Liza Booth, from Asian Network, said clerics from all the faiths would hold the gathering later in the year to discuss how

to make honour killings a thing of the past. The 16 to 34-year-old age group interviewed in the survey needed to be persuaded such killings were not acceptable, they said.

Family importance

One interviewee told the radio station: "A lot of people treat their family as everything they have got. So if someone hurts their family the law might do nothing about it, you might have to deal with it." Navid Akhtar, a journalist who has

been examining the issue, said honour was ingrained into Asian society. "Most of the Asians who are in Britain today

come from very tribal communities. Honour is a big deal, it's kind of caught up with your property, it's caught up with your women and if anybody comes close to threatening you, you have to avenge your honour."

In one recent case, two men were jailed for life for murdering their relative after she fell in love with an asylum seeker.

Greengrocer Azhar Nazir, 30, and his cousin Imran Mohammed, 17, stabbed Nazir's sister Samaira 18 times at the family home in Southall in April 2005. The 25-year-old recruitment consultant was killed after she asked to marry an Afghan man - instead of marrying someone in the Pakistani family circle.

So what constitutes honour? Is this is a religious issue?

No. The world's major religions do not play a part in these killings - although many of the guilty have tried to justify their

actions on religious grounds. The key factors are cultural and generational divisions, the victim's refusal to toe a line and

a reaction against a family or clan's self-proclaimed code or rules. In that sense, honour killings are much more about male-dominated societies or communities that try to stop women taking their own decisions. In other words, the killers believe it is culturally acceptable for them to murder to preserve, in their mind, the good name of the family.

What is your reaction? Probably one of shock. No doubt we would all condemn the action of the killing – but can

we understand the cultural differences that would motivate people to take such extreme action? Probably not easily – the cultures between the two ethnic groups are so different when it comes to attitudes towards women.

But what about when western women go to Arab countries? Read this short extract from the blog of a Britain who works in Saudi Arabia

Samaira Nazir was

murdered by her relatives


My family finally arrived in late August; I picked them up at the airport and gave my

wife her abaya I had purchased a few weeks earlier. The abaya is the floor length

long sleeve garment that all women in Saudi must wear when out in public. The

Muslim women in Saudi must also wear a headscarf, and most of the actual Saudi women wear a veil. Western women were never required to wear a veil, but there

were several times when we were downtown and the “Mutawwah”, the religious

police, told my wife to cover her head. She would put on her scarf and after the officer had moved down the street she would take it back off.

Life in Saudi is measured mostly by Sharia, or ultra conservative Muslim law, of

which the Saudi version includes women not being allowed to drive, wearing the

abaya at all times, forbidding all alcohol and virtually all other Western “vices”. There

are no theatres, no public bowling alleys, no bars or nightclubs and definitely no

churches! All restaurants have two sections; a single males section and a family

section. Women downtown by themselves or with other women had to sit in the family section; otherwise they could be arrested for “prostitution”.

Shocked again? But what would the view be of conservative Saudi Muslims towards the very liberal attitudes

towards women’s dress in Europe or the USA? Would they be shocked at how women are treated in our culture?

Which is true?


Consolidation tasks

1. (i) Study Resources 1A and 1B which demonstrate different attitudes of Japanese and Korean rulers

to the Royal Palace in Seoul, South Korea. Use these resources to help you explain why nationality and

identity are important components of ethnicity. (6)

(ii) Study figure 1C which relates to ethnicity in the old city of Jerusalem and use it to help you explain

the role of religion in ethnicity. (5) [May 2002]

2. Study Resources 2 A and B relating to minority groups in Britain.

(i) State two primary and then two secondary factors which have been used as indicators of ethnic

identity in Resource 2A .(4)

(ii) In what ways is Resource 2B an incomplete picture regarding both its statistics & classifications?

(6)

(iii) Use both of the resources to help you indentify and discuss two processes that maintain

ethnic diversity in Britain. (10) [January 2004]

3. Study Resource 3 and state what the different names given to the ethnic groups in censuses of

Mauritius reveal about the changing attitudes of the authorities. (5) [June 1994]

Documents

Defining Ethnicity