09 RACE AND ETHNIC STRATIFICATION

Is It a Question of Color?

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN RACE AND ETHNICITY?

• race is the division of people based on certain physical characteristics, but ethnicity is the classification of people who share a common cultural, linguistic, or ancestral heritage

WHAT CAUSES RACIST ATTITUDES, AND HOW DO THESE ATTITUDES AFFECT PEOPLE?

• colour-blind racism, racial stereotypes, belief that segregation is a personal choice, belief that racism is a thing of the past, which denies its impact on minorities; these lead to a feeling of double consciousness for minorities

HOW DOES AFFIRMATIVE ACTION HELP MINORITY GROUPS IN CANADA?

• by allowing employers and educators to use minority status as a deciding factor if candidates are equal