Introduction to Racial and Ethnic Inequality - Paper Example

Racial/Ethnic Inequality entails social advantages and imbalances that exist in different races in any given community. Those people who are Ethnic Inequality lack wealth distribution, power, and life opportunities. Ethnic Inequality is considered as oppression and inequality against the minority group in society.

A country other than the United States and document the critical diversity concerns for that country

Lets take the case of South America as the whole. The continent has long attracted the discrepancies between certain groups that trace their lineages with the ancient Inca and Mayan people and ethnic Hispanic groups. Even when the former people have had a significant historical contribution in shaping the past of the Americas, in the modern period, they are well known to have suffered discrimination, impoverishment and socio-economic destruction at the hands of Hispanic groups. Pretty much the same situation is faced to this day when most economic development is concentrated in the hands of Hispanics.

Contrary to most other regions of the world, the Native Americans got reduced to non-dominant groups right at the beginning when the first Spanish explorers landed on the shores of the Americas. The annexation of Mayan and other contemporary native kingdoms starting during the Conquistador era resulted in a lot of diseases and epidemics decimating the native population. Religious factors also played a significant role; however, the intermixing of the natives with the Hispanic migrants gave way to the Mestizos who are people of mixed origin. Nearly 80% of South Americans are thus Mestizos. Considering such circumstances, discrimination still exists between in a very make-believe environment. As far as the employment and other such statistical data suggests (that can well be found in all of the significant economic websites), there is a lot of discrepancies between the well-off and the worse off. As already pointed out, most South Americans are a mixed people, and yet there are vast gaps between specific groups. Some live in abject poverty, unemployment, with places in very menial jobs while others mostly run businesses in narcotics and illegal trade. However, since most countries of this continent fare poorly in development indices with only some like Argentina occupying

Ethnic group and their values, norms, and traditions

Inca and Mayan is the ethnic minority group that is found in Central America. Maya community believed in many gods, they believed in many elemental and animals gods. They believed that world was established by one deer. One of the favorite gods among them was known as Kukulcan they symbolized Kukulcan as the snake and he was the main god. According to them the world of living, ancestors and the monster are real and lived among them. Maya community believed in three different religion of the spirits world, and all are interconnected. These region spirits include heaven, earth and the waters of the underworld. Maya community had contemporary issues of civilization in the classic period that made to produce notable cultural advancement. One of the major contemporary issues as they believe in the life cycle, they believed nothing died or was born.

Maya community culture and values were very complicated, and this was contributed by many believed that shaped their culture. The Maya community has the precious knowledge of time and space, for example, in 2012 Maya calendar that predicted that the world was coming to an end in 2012. Maya people also highly valued body modification where they even sharpened or shaped gems and carved teeth to show their status as nobility.

Meaning of whiteness

The whiteness is defined as a set of characters and experiences that are related or attached to those who belong to the white race and white skin. Whiteness is one of the various racial identities, this conceptual strength is determined by three aspects such as. group size, power and group discrimination. Whiteness those who belong to a group that is a numerical minority has limited power that is relative to other teams, experience and more discrimination and less phenotypically that consist of a majority group. Indeed, through self-identified white supremacists and anti-racism activities.

How whiteness shape social policy

In most case, whiteness shape social policy in many aspects of life. These dues to, to powers possessed by whites, most whites have wealth, and they use this power to their advantage. Whiteness owns big companies which they employee minority groups in the community and dictates they payment. This aspect makes whites more powerful compared to minority employees because they control wealth distribution.

Another aspect that contributes to whites power and privilege is white transparency because many whites do not think about norms, behaviors, experiences or perspective. This can be referred as lack racial conscious that allows whites to oppress others without being seen as bad people. Additionally, whites continue to shape policy because power and privilege is the structural around them. This means that Americans whites possess several dominance and disproportionate control influence in matters of social economic and political affairs. This institutionalization of whiteness privilege makes whites feel more important than other racial minorities and they believe, policies, law were made to favors them.

Mass incarceration

Mass incarceration is a term that is used by historians and sociologists to explain substantial growth and increase in the number of imprisoned people in a given nation. Notable, United States has experienced the high increased number of people behind bars, united states are responsible for one-quarter of the prisoners, majority prisoners are made up minorities, teenagers, women or the elderly. According to Michelle Alexander, he defined mass incarceration as criminal justice law that only ensures the laws breaks are going unpunished, and those who are minority pool people end up in prisons.

Moreover, the 13th amendment pronounced slavery illegal also prisoners were exception. After slavery, many laws were introduced which was meant to target blacks population in America, Such as Jim Crow law. This act allowed marginalization of the black community that resulted in mass incarceration.

How mass incarceration affected racial minority communities

There are collateral effects that accrue to those who are imprisoned individuals even after serving the jail term, according to criminologists if a high number of felons are rejected in a community are too high. This may end up harming the places where they used to live. And, since most individuals are incarcerated return to the neigh hoods, and they end up adding the substantial burden. Also, poor people in society mostly blacks have been incarcerated disproportionately during this period of imprisonment.

Mass incarceration is driven by poverty, and mental illness has made many people end up behind bars. Due to a high number of unemployed youth, most of them are involving them self with the crime which eventually causes them end in jail.

How mass incarceration and its related consequences be reformed

America needs amicable reform to reduce reliance on incarceration in the process of making the citizens save. The following are recommendation reformat can be employed to solve this drawback.

They can eliminate prison for lower level crimes: prison has commonly defaulted criminal justice sanction when individual go against rules and regulation. This should not be the way for those individuals who commit petty crimes such as, selling marijuana and possession of drugs. If these people are sentenced it very unfair, it is also a lousy sanction for the community at large.

Reduce sentence currently on the books: according to various research states that more extended stay in prison does not lead to lower recidivism, in most case, long prison sentences only increase recidivism. States, federal legislature and all stakeholders should consider reducing the time inmates spend in jail when the crime committed is not severe.

Factors that drive immigration

Immigration is defined as international movement people from one country to another where there are not natives or citizens. Migration is driven by many factors such as domestic forces called push factors, social political, economic and economic disparities among others.

Rising of community violence ethnic or religious intolerance has contributed to increasing of immigration levels. These factors force people to migrate to other countries where peace exists.

Another driving factor is economic imbalance, and that exists in developing countries and developed economy. The improved economy outsources skilled labor to developing countries by encouraging visa lottery.

How immigration policy affect the fabric of the American society

Places, where immigrates settled, were derided and feared because the natives consider immigrating dangerous and radical people (Hawley, 1972). Use of intellectual popularly formulated these sentiments.

All in all, American history is inseparable from immigration history. According to (Handlin, 1973) he considered immigrates as part of successful American history. During the 19th century, immigrants who come from Germany and Scandinavian while involved in settling the frontiers. Additionally, Irish migrant provided labors in cities, and they played the crucial role in the construction of transportation network that included canals, rail line, and roads. Some have argued that human resources advantage of the Union force occurred during civil war primarily contributed by immigrants who lived in the northern state (Gallman, 1977).

How border-free immigration policy impact the social and economic system

Many American are against free border immigration; they argue that free immigration will destroy working class and ability to earn a living will be impacted. They argue that allowing free and open to all immigrants would lead to decent hard working American out of work.

Perhaps open border policy will force unskilled Americans laborers to compete for the job with immigrants at lower wages. By allowing free border entry American labor competition will artificially be inflated and labor cost will eliminate, and desirable level of labor could be achieved.

What effect does Americas need for a second national language

To improve second language Americans needs to pay attention to education institution by integrating language into all education-related programs. Those students both natives and immigrant children should be enrolled in schools that will teach them English. Moreover, making English a composer to all school it will boost it as the national language because it will create a new generation that speaks and write English without problems.

Everyone in the United States must speak English in all formal places; this will play a vital aspect in promoting English as the national language.

English has important factors on the global market; it will facilitate easy understanding between different traders from different countries. Due to easy communication, people will trade smoothly traders will gain new skills that will benefit his business and generate income the government.

How are racial stereotypes used in the media?

The African American community is exposed to various racial stereotype; this is contributed by the marginalization of African American community is from mainstream society, television program plays the vital part on how blacks and Latinos are perceived...