Recognizing Race and Ethnicity Research Paper

Introduction

One of the unique features of the world is an extreme diversity that drives change and preconditions the emergence of unique living conditions. The existence of multiple species is a guarantee of successful evolution and progress. Speaking about the human race, one should also admit that there are numerous differences between people. Peculiarities of geographical location, climate, and social development resulted in the formation of many ethnic groups that possess their unique features such as appearance, culture, mentality, and values.

However, in the course of the evolution and due to the increased speed of globalization, these divergences became less significant as borders between states merge providing more options for interaction. At the same time, alterations in people’s mentalities and tendencies towards the cultivation of tolerance preconditioned the emergence of such concept as racial passing and trans-racial people who prefer to define their ethnical belonging by their own, avoiding adherence to stereotypic patterns.

Background

The background for the given process can be traced back to times when enslaved black women had children from white individuals. These people can be considered examples of first racial passing as they were able to gradually enter another group (Fitzgerald 2018). However, in the half second of the 20th century, the term race became associated with scientific racism and ideologies promoting the dominant position of a particular group of individuals because of their inborn traits. Spencer (2014) assumes that the negative connotations of this word and the desire to eliminate barriers between people to facilitate equal communication preconditioned the use of less ambiguous terms such as ethnic groups, populations, and communities. At the same time, the increased attention to trans-racial people and racial identity has become one of the topical issues of contemporary society that tries to step aside from the stereotypical patterns of racial belonging.

Hypothesis

For this reason, the primary aim of the given project is to delve into the current associations between race and ethnicity, their alteration under the impact of beliefs and people’s choices. Regarding this goal, the following hypothesis is formulated:

Other people’s perceptions might have more influence on individuals’ racial definitions if to compare with ethnic definitions.

The introduction of the given hypothesis is preconditioned by the fact that there are vigorous debates about trans-racial individuals who assume that they can change their race because of their beliefs and preferences. The given issue is also related to the existing differences between race and ethnicity and how they are framed in modern society. To prove or refute the provided hypothesis, the gaps in knowledge related to the selected question should be filled through the literature review and an in-depth study.

Racial Identity

Researching the issue, it is critical to say that today there are certain problems with both racial and ethical identities. Individuals whose parents are spouses of the same race traditionally have no difficulties with their definition as their race is stipulated by their birth and inborn traits. In this case, they determine themselves using their family’s peculiarities. However, children of mixed marriages have more options for self-determination because of the existence of at least two races that can be chosen (Healey, Stepnick, and OBrien 2018). In such situations, the choice can be preconditioned by the feeling of belonging, parents’ influence, personal preferences, and society’s attitudes. For instance, persons who belong to this category state that their vision of racial identity might depend on the situation and social context that guarantees more beneficial character of certain choices.

Ethnic Identity

As for the ethnic identity, the situation is different because of the existence of a particular context. Spencer (2014) defines a term as a person’s social identity resting on the membership in cultural or other groups. During his/her life, a person’s perception of ethnicity can undergo a significant transformation under the impact of cognitive development and socio-cultural factors affecting an individual at different periods of time.

In such a way, as against the race, ethnic identity provides more options for a choice as it is an individual’s feeling of belonging to a social construct that reflects his/her ideas, shares values, and offers opportunities for self-realization (Spencer 2014). In such a way, people acquire a chance to have multiple opinions on their identity regarding the existing peculiarities of their mentality, which means that the given concept becomes more flexible if to compare with the previous one.

Overlaps

At the same time, there are certain overlaps between these two definitions preconditioned by some similarity of the terms and their interdependence. Traditionally, race and ethnicity have been considered as two aspects of one wider concept that included some inborn biological aspects, peculiarities of culture, mentality, and belonging to a particular social group (Spencer 2014). However, today there is the growing popularity of the idea that both race and ethnicity can be selected by a person who is not limited in his/her opportunities to evolve in accordance with the personal vision (Iceland 2017).

In such a way, the discussed concepts gradually transform into social constructs that depend on people’s perceptions of race. This fact creates the basis for the emergence of trans-racial individuals who prefer to disregard their background and culture of ancestors to emphasize belonging to another social group that meets the existing requirements or seems more attractive at the moment.

People’s Perceptions

In this regard, the problem of racial passing and individual choosing other groups can be investigated in terms of the social context and people’s perceptions of racial and ethnic definitions. As it has already been stated, there is a limited number of opportunities to select race because of the biologic and other characteristics associated with it. That is why trans-racial persons such as Rachel Dolezal trigger public debates and face a lack of understanding. Additionally, this step can be considered an attempt to move away from the native culture and reject it which might also have negative connotations and attitudes (Iceland 2017). On the other hand, ethnic defections are more flexible, as they have always been associated with people’s choices and their own desire to belong to a particular group. For this reason, people’s perceptions should be considered a powerful factor that affects both discussed questions; however, the degree to which it preconditions definitions differs regarding the existing social contexts.

Gaps in Knowledge

In such a way, determining the impact perceptions have on the problems of race and ethnicity requires reviewing the current literature related to the issue. It will lead to filling the gap in the understanding of how these social constructs are changed over time and what are the topical ideas about the problem of racial and ethical identification. Moreover, there is a lack of information about trans-racial people, motifs that affect their choices and communities’ role in this process. Eliminating these gaps in knowledge will help to improve the understanding of the problem of racial passing and the way this concept is perceived in the modern world (Fitzgerald 2018).

At the same time, there is a need for credible data from primary sources to determine the existing perspectives on the issue. It means that conducting interviews among various population groups in terms of this study will help to outline their attitudes to racial and ethnic aspects and conclude if it is acceptable to alter them because of their own preferences.

Relevance

The relevance of the given question comes from the fact that the modern world gradual moves away from the existence of distinct borders between races that might prevent individuals from cooperation or interaction. At the same time, multiple attempts to create the tolerant environment should also be considered a cause of the increased topicality of the problem as racial passing can be taken as a method to solve problems with discrimination and prejudiced attitude to minorities.

Conclusion

Altogether, the given paper delves into the problem of race and ethnicity as one of the topical issues of the modern society that tries to eliminate the outdated perspectives on people’s belonging and their background. These two definitions are still dependent on people’s perceptions because of the existence of a particular social context that preconditions individuals’ belonging to a particular group, community, or race. However, trans-racial people doubt the necessity of this differentiation insisting on people’s ability to make their own choices regardless of their inborn traits or qualities. For this reason, there is a need for further investigation of the topic because of its relevance and disputable character that triggers a public response and discussion at different levels.

References

Fitzgerald, Kathleen. 2018. Recognizing Race and Ethnicity: Power, Privilege, and Inequality. 2nd ed. New York, NY: Routledge.

Healey, Joseph, Andi Stepnick, and Eileen OBrien. 2018. Race, Ethnicity, Gender, and Class: The Sociology of Group Conflict and Change. 8th ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.

Iceland, John. 2017. Race and Ethnicity in America. Oakland, CA: University of California Press.

Spencer, Stephen. 2014. Race and Ethnicity: Culture, Identity and Representation. 2nd ed. New York, NY: Routledge.