Please enable JavaScript.
Coggle requires JavaScript to display documents.
ethnicity theoretical views - Coggle Diagram
ethnicity theoretical views
functionalism
argue that early ethnic inequalities experienced by immigrants were the product of their cultural difference & relatively low level of skills
optimistic that in a meritocratic society, ethnic inequalities would decline as immigrants adopt then norms & values of mainstream society & climb their way up the career ladder
patterson (1965)
= host-immigrant model - equilibrium of britain as a stable, homogenous society was disrupted by the arrival of immigrants in 1950s - resulted in a cultural clash between immigrants & host community, & claimed hosts weren't racist but just didn't know how to act
proposed immigrants would go through 3 stages before complete integration into host society: accommodation, integration & assimilation
accommodation
= minimal adaption to mainstream culture eg finding employment
integration
= hosts & immigrants socialise outside of work
assimilation
= complete assimilation into mainstream society with full acceptance
evaluation
some postmodernists would argue that britain is multicultural & this diversity should be celebrated
marxists would argue the role of capitalism is ignored, division of people by race helps to maintain the capitalist structure
marxism
argue immigration serves the needs of capitalism for labour & is used to divide workers from each other so they're easy to control
is beneficial to bourgeoisie
cox (1970)
race is a human creation & racism is developed by exploiters against the exploited
white people developed capitalism & therefore first developed racism
miles (1989)
the class position of ethnic minorities is complicated as they're treated by white society as different, so have fallen victims to racism in some areas of society
however some may set themselves apart from whites by celebrating their own cultural uniqueness, eg african-carribeans may stress black power
through this, they become members of 'racialised class fractions'
castles & kosack (1973)
most immigrants concentrated in low-skilled/paid manual jobs,
deriving from the capitalist need for a reserve army of labour, providing a cheap pool of workers who could be exploited
divide & rule = working-class divided into top layer of whites & bottom layer of immigrants
beneficial as suppresses overall wage levels & working-class was too divided to unite & overthrow capitalism
weberian
recognises importance in difference between bourgeoisie & proletariat, but argued differences within the working-class (eg ethnic differences) were also significant
claim white british people in uk are more likely to have a superior market & work situation compared to ethnic minorities
whiteness = status in a white-dominated society
parties often operate 'social closure' towards ethnic minorities
barron & norris (1979)
= dual labour market theory
primary employment sector = dominated by white men
secondary employment sector = concentrated with ethnic minorities, due to lower cultural status
cultural discrimination exists & stratification is not purely economic
rex & tomlinson (1979)
material disadvantage is experienced by many ethnic minorities which cuts them off from the white working-class
ethnic minorities form a separate underclass & experience disadvantage in eg employment, housing, education
these were worsened by the hostility received from white society
black feminism
argues high profile campaigns don't reflect the most pressing needs of the majority of women, in particular ethnic minority women
intersectionality = oppressions criss-cross & compound each other
the feminist movement fails to capture & reflect the extreme differences in how women live their lives
brewer (1993)
discusses importance of understanding race, class & gender as simultaneous forces
black women suffer from disadvantages as they're black, women and working-class
these forces restrict the life chances of black women
mirza (1997)
supports brewer that there's a need for distinctive black feminism
there's a dominant image of black women as passive victims of racism, patriarchy & social class inequality
new right
blame culture of the individual for inequality
some ethnic minorities exist in a growing underclass that poses a serious threat to society
murray (1984)
welfare reforms in the 60s led to an increase in the number of single black mothers & many black youths losing interest in getting a job
usa has a growing underclass posing a serious threat to american society
this underclass has been developed in britain too
sewell (1997)
a high proportion of african-carribean boys are raised in lone-parent families
as a result, many lack the male role model & the discipline provided by a father figure
this makes them more vulnerable to peer pressure, eg some are drawn into gangs