SOC 225 1st Edition Exam 1 Study Guide Lectures 1 8 Lecture 1 January 27 Introduction to the Course Who is an American Who are the minorities in the United States Current Definitions of American American has been defined as white if you are not white then you are inferior Europeans have been Americanized by the wilderness learned how to plant food and be tough United States Minorities Whites will become the minority by the year 2042 as the number of immigrants increase immigration laws have changed resulting in a higher number of immigrants legal and illegal in the US Lecture 2 January 29 Multi cultural America What is the master narrative How did America begin What was the relationship between American Indians and Europeans Master Narrative A filter story of US history mostly looks at all the positive things One sided opinionated view of American history intended to make white Europeans Americans look like the good guys in every situation Takaki a historian says we need to revise the master narrative and rethink it it needs to reflect everyone not just white Europeans Americans he says to look at it in a different mirror meaning to look at it from everyone s point of view History is political partial and should be told from many perspectives America s beginning Who discovered America Debatable between Christopher Columbus 1942 The Vikings Expeditions 1000 AD and the Chinese Expedition 1421 AD Americans are taught that Christopher Columbus discovered America part of the Master Narrative concept He initiated the age of colonialism and conquest began mass immigration to America and had significant global impact and consequences There is proof of Vikings being in America sod houses iron ores pieces of boats and fire pits have all been discovered No solid proof that the Chinese were in America just a theory First people who lived in America were the Clovis They lived in groups of 4 10 people and were culturally diverse They settled near lakes ponds and rivers Relationship between American Indians and Europeans The initial encounter was polite and friendly the Indians offered to help when the European settlers in Virginia were starving The European settlers began to thrive completion over land and resources increased and violence escalated Lecture 3 February 3 Why race shouldn t but still matters What is race Definitions of race Race is a social concept Race is a way of explaining human differences and organizing people into categories Race is a class kind of people unified by shared interests habits or characteristics Lecture 4 February 5 Nation of racial inferiority How did the idea of race begin What is the meaning of race today What are stereotypes How race began First started in Britain with English expansion The attitudes of people in Europe toward Irish Blacks and Asians became less favorable as colonialism spread The meaning of race today A social construct a division between groups made to maintain power structures of society Most significant meanings of race are social meanings Ideas of race often reflect prevailing attitudes and public opinions reflecting negative stereotypes Stereotypes Most are totally made up They are learned from authority figures We attach social and cultural meaning to them Lecture 5 February 10 Prejudice What is prejudice What are sources of prejudice Definition of Prejudice Prejudice refers to negative attitude thoughts or beliefs individual thought Consists of a combination of impulses and feelings that vary with the situation Leads to categorical rejection Sources of Prejudice Competition for resources and opportunities Perceived threats to mainstream values national identity and way of life Anxiety about groups mind tribe city Lecture 6 February 12 Stereotypes and Prejudice How are stereotypes spread why study them What are hate crimes Prejudice vocabulary What is Merton s Typology How stereotypes are spread Advertising News media Movies film cartoons Music videos Songs Website blogs Hate Crimes Result from prejudice and ethnocentrism many forms including vandalism intimidation assault rape murder Hate Crime Statistics Act Made hate crimes a criminal offense mandates law enforcement to report hate crimes Prejudice Vocabulary Scapegoating People who are prejudice see themselves as the victim and blame others Authoritarian Personality Theory Strict home environment that makes a person intolerant and close minded later in life Exploitation Theory Racial and ethnic hostility exploiting other groups Normative Approach Intolerance of others because of a social norm Merton s Typology All weather liberal not prejudice no discrimination Reluctant liberal not prejudice may discriminate Timid bigot prejudice will discriminate if encouraged All weather bigot openly prejudice and discriminative Lecture 7 February 17 Discrimination and Affirmative Action What is discrimination What do the references to glass mean What is affirmative action Discrimination Action to deny opportunities and equal rights to others Unequal distribution of power Scarcity of opportunities rewards competition for limited resources Glass references Glass ceiling The idea that women and minorities are blocked from reaching the top of the corporate ladder Glass wall The idea that there are limited opportunities for professional growth and development for women and minorities Glass escalator The ide that white males still have an advantage in occupations normally dominated by women Influences of the glass ideas Stereotyping prejudice corporate climate self imposed limitations discrimination and lack of enforcement of local and federal guidelines Affirmative Action Actions to eliminate discrimination it levels the playing field First used by John F Kennedy in 1961 Federal contractors used it to encourage employees to be treated equally Lecture 8 February 19 Immigration and Assimilation What is immigration Why did immigrants come to the United States Immigration Immigration is the movement of people from one country to another An immigrant is a person admitted into the US for lawful permanent residence An emigrant is someone who leaves the US to settle abroad An alien is any person who is not a citizen of the US Why immigrants came continue to come to America Push factors war persecution oppressive government economic failures natural disasters racial religious bigotry population Pull factors lure of job opportunities hope for a fresh start hope for a better life Several acts and laws have