Question

Explain how race and ethnicity are socially constructed. Then discuss the social consequences of classifying people into racial and ethnic categories.

Answer 1

According to Sociologists and other social scientists race and ethnicity are a socially constructed concept. Race may be referred to a person's physical characteristics, such as bone structure and skin, hair, or eye color. While race revolves around the idea of biological traits, ethnicity is based on cultural characteristics such as language, history, values, and customs that are shared by distinctive of a group of people. Sociologists and other social scientists believe that the idea that was created in society to justify inequality.

          Throughout the world, racial, cultural, and ethnic differences are used to place people into different categories. Once people are placed in categories it is assumed that they have the essence of this category and based on these assumptions we are likely to treat people differently. For instance, whites have mostly been categorized as being racist, intelligent and superior whereas African Americans have been described as uneducated, aggressive and unemployable. So we can see that the social construction of race and ethnicity can be damaging to individuals.