Concept of Race and Ethnicity in U.S. Immigration History Essay

Although the concept of race has a long history of conceptualization, its significance has become tangible during the last two centuries, with the rise of such issues as slavery, racial discrimination, and stereotypical thinking. Racial distinctions are initially premised on biological differences that specifically concern the physical appearance. However, these differences do not spread over other features, including genetic attributes.

The biological distinction between races obviously exists, but it should not influence the equality in distributing human rights and freedoms. Perceiving race is a social construct does not create favorable grounds on defending humanitarian law. The history shows that the concept of race has always been accepted from a sociological perspective and, as a result, many challenges occur to society composed of several races and ethnicities.

The reference to the U.S. immigration history shows that people were bound to the concept of race while building social organization and treating people. Inappropriate treatment of African Americans refers back to the history of slavery, when African population was transferred to the United States and has long been considered inferior groups that should serve white population. Inferior attitude to black population has long been affecting the community and, therefore, the existing negative stereotypes and prejudices can be explained.

Using race in a social environment could be regarded as a human invention for the prevailing group to take control of the minorities. Distorted perception of races led to the development of racist principles predetermined by cultural, individual, and intelligent perspectives.

Racial distinctions are strongly associated with ethnicity groups because both phenomena refer to cultural perception and social beliefs. Similar to racial distinctions, ethnic groups adhere to a sense of community and cultural element, which shape the critical aspects of ethnicity.

Due to the fact that the U.S. population consists of various ethnic communities, most of them will have to adjust to the dominating system of social and cultural beliefs. Such a tendency, however, is not encouraged among ethnic minorities that are afraid of losing their cultural identity.

The emerged contradiction has created substantial grounds for blending ethnicity with race that led to the scientific bias as well. Nowadays the synthesis of two notions provides sociologists and anthropologists with the right to use the concept of ethnicity instead of race. The choice, however, produces more controversies to evaluating the nature of the identified terms due to their long history.

Considering ethnicity to be a type of race is relevant to the contemporary attitudes to minorities. Owing to the development of globalized trends in treating culture and society, these two definitions are rarely utilized in a negative meaning. Rather, the ethnic groups are now more respected and accepted in society because they create new perspectives for developing cultural heritage and encouraging individuals to restore their traditions, customs, and beliefs.

Long history of U.S. immigration has had a potent impact on shifts in understanding such concepts as race and ethnicity. Transition from natural to negative perspective occurred during the period of enslavement, when African Americans were limited in their human rights.

These isseus in racial discrimination of black population have turned into the fight for freedom and equality, which has led to a new perspective of understanding. Ethnicity is often associated with racism due to their restrictions imposed on the minorities. Superior communities will always dominate the inferior ones, but recent trends in globalization provide better vision of a multi-cultural society.