Race and ethnicity are defining characteristics in modern society, and although progress has been made to reduce disparities and enforce equity among all groups, inequalities still exist. These inequalities are deeply rooted in American society and often mislabeled as racism, racial bigotry, or sexism. Because society seeks the ultimate equality, the second feminist movement has gone overboard in ensuring the equitable treatment of all groups. Fixing the problem of equality is not something that is possible by forcing all groups to be the same, when differences will always exist and arguably should exist. The feminist movement initiated as a way to ensure that all groups receive fair and equal treatment; a message that has become convoluted and largely misapplied in modern society. Since the civil rights movement in the United States, racism has been the primary target, but while forward progress seems obvious, society largely misunderstands the need for racial, cultural, ethnic, and gender differences; a problem that is contributing to further tension and stratification in American society.
Research
Karin Alejandra Rosemblatt goes into detail about Oscar Lewis’ theory regarding “Culture of Poverty” and how it has transformed perspectives of the self, how it has strengthened the perspective of other, and how it has promoted the assimilation of American and Mexican cultures. This scholarly journal article, published in the Hispanic American Historical Review, provides an in-depth look at the socioeconomic divisions that exists within these societies, how poverty is perpetuated through a cycle of inequality, and perspectives on how poverty can be directed related to characteristics such as race, ethnicity, and gender. Although this article is based on empirical evidence and provides factual information, there is an ethnocentric approach, because there is a vested interest in utilizing multiple theories to outline the culture of poverty theory.
John Carl offers another theory for poverty that exists in the United States. In the textbook, Think Social Problems, he discusses institutional discrimination, structural inequality, and how the theories relate to poverty. The text outlines specific concepts explaining the characterization of groups based on race, ethnicity, and class, and how society has developed a system that values select characteristics, whether intentional or not. John Carl, an active sociology professor at Rose State College, provides a wealth of unbiased and unvested information that is based on empirical evidence.
Another source of valuable information is SociologyGuide.com, which further defines the cultural of poverty, institution discrimination, social stratification, and cultural relativism. In the context of race, ethnicity, and gender in the United States, cultural relativism is specifically important, because it provides an objective lens through which society can best understand the differences between racial, ethnic, and gender groups. Although the information provided from this website does not result from direct empirical research, all of the operationally defined terms and information regarding social theory and concepts are bias-free and credibly sourced.
Sociological Perspectives
There are many different theories as to how society has become so divided in a country that boasts equal liberties and fair treatment of all, but it is through these claims that society has continued to divide. In order to understand the core problem within the framework as it exists, it is necessary to understand that the division of people based on specific characteristics is increasingly defined as racial, ethnic, and gender inequality. However, the stratification that exists is primarily socioeconomic and the mislabeling of this stratification as racial and ethnic is further promoting tensions between cultural groups.
Culture of Poverty. One of the most popular theories to explain why people remain in poverty is the culture of poverty theory, originally introduced by Oscar Lewis, and further expounded upon throughout an entire decade by social scientists. This theory recognizes that people in poverty see themselves as less valuable than other members of society, set their standards lower than higher socioeconomic classes, and often do not entertain ideas of upward social mobility. This generational cycle is considered a culture because people within this socioeconomic class think and act in specific ways, because they are accustomed to living in poverty. The relevance of this theory is that racial, ethic, and gender minorities often make-up the majority of the population in poverty, thereby negatively associating their own racial and ethnic worth within the same context as the poverty culture, and further perpetuating the cycle by unintentionally devaluing themselves.
Institutional Discrimination. As with the culture of poverty that exists, so too does the structural inequality in the United States. A country that is founded on the basis of equality for everyone has a way of making sure that the dominant group remains in power, forcing cultural assimilation, and suppressing any cultural perspective that is outside of the American norm. There is this nagging suspicion that America is a culturally tolerant country, but the fact remains that no matter what race, ethnicity, or gender group you belong to, you are still expected to uphold the values and beliefs of the dominant group- historically white-males. This valuing of specific characteristics, based on power, wealth, and prestige, is often unattainable to people of lower socioeconomic classes, subtlety suggesting that the appearance, ideals, and values of the dominant group is more important and more successful.
Cultural Relativism. This theory is especially important to the topic at hand, because it allows a unique perspective, other than the typical American ideal that everyone is created equal and deserves the same opportunities in life, and so on and so forth. If you allow yourself the open-minded experience of looking at American society from the outside perspective, you will notice that it is quite ironic that society wants a racial and ethnic melting pot to be a united country with exactly the same cultural beliefs. Whether it is written or not, a subtle message exists that in order to be American (dominant white-male), one must assimilate into American society.
Conclusion
Surprisingly, racial and ethnic differences do exist. Just because American society is built upon the foundation of equity, that doesn’t mean that disparities do not exist; nor does it mean that cultural differences do not exist. There are numerous theories that support the culture of poverty as a form of social stratification, meaning that division is more likely based on socioeconomic class rather than race or ethnicity. The problem that exists is the negative association of minority groups with poverty, and the perpetuation of this stigmatization. If racial and ethnic tensions are going to see a change in the future, the conversation needs to change. The conversation needs to focus on the fact that differences do exist between racial and ethnic groups, that cultural relativism is important, even in an American context; and that fair treatment is possible, even if people are not all the same.
References
Carl, John D. Think Social Problems 2013. Pearson, 2013.
Rosemblatt, Karin Alejandra. "Other Americas: Transnationalism, Scholarship, and the Culture of Poverty in Mexico and the United States." Hispanic American Historical Review 89.4 (2009): 603-641.
SociologyGuide.com. A Student's Guide to Sociology. 16 April 2016. <http://www.sociologyguide.com/>.
