Chapter 2: Prejudice

Hate Crimes Ethnocentrism – the tendency to assume that one’s culture and way of life are superior to all others. A Hate Crime can be defined as: “a criminal offense commited against a person, property, or society which is motivated, in whole or in part, by the offender’s bias against a race, religion, ethnic/national origin group, or sexual-orientation group” (Department of Justice, 2001c:58).

Hate Crimes Although most hate crimes are not reported, a 2003 study reported 8,800 hate crimes and bias-motivated incidents. 48.8% motivated by race 19.1% motivated by religion 16.7% motivated by sexual orientation 14.8% motivated by ethnicity 0.6% motivated by disability

Prejudice and Discrimination Prejudice is a negative attitude toward an entire category of people. Prejudice involves ethnophaulisms, or ethnic or racial slurs, including derisive nicknames. Discrimination is the denial of opportunities and equal rights to individuals and groups because of prejudice or for other arbitrary reasons.

Prejudice and Discrimination Merton’s Typology: four major categories of attitudes and behavior: All-weather liberal: unprejudiced nondiscriminator Reluctant liberal: unprejudiced discriminator Timid bigot: prejudiced discriminator All-weather bigot: prejudiced discriminator LaPiere’s Study: found that while white business workers across the country (in 1930-1932) claimed they would discriminate against Chinese customers, no businesses actually discriminated.

Theories of Prejudice Scapegoating Theory – a person or group blamed irrationally for another person’s or group’s problems or difficulties. (Jews, Hispanics, etc.) Authoritarian Personality Theory – a psychological construct of a personality type likely to be prejudiced and to use others as scapegoats. Criticized for a number of reasons.

Theories of Prejudice (continued) Exploitation Theory – Marxist theory that views racial subordination in the United States as a manifestation of the class system inherent in capitalism. As minority groups begin to compete for positions of power and authority, the dominant group uses prejudice and discrimination to maintain power and control over subordinate group. Normative Approach – the view that prejudice is influenced by societal norms and situations that encourage or discourage the tolerance of minorities.

The Content of Prejudice: Stereotypes What are stereotypes? Stereotypes are unreliable, exaggerated generalizations about all members of a group that do not take individual differences into account. Trends in stereotypes Mass media has influenced our stereotypes: Nearly all TV leadership roles are white. TV: white = affluent, well-educated; minority = “breaking the law,” “being lazy,” or “acting goofy.” Stereotyping in Action: Racial Profiling Racial profiling is any arbitrary police-initiated action based on race, ethnicity, or natural origin rather than a person’s behavior.

The Extent of Prejudice The Social Distance Scale – the tendency to approach or withdraw from a racial group. Often called the Bogardus Scale, after the researcher who developed the scale. How close would you be willing to be to a member of another racial/ethnic group? Trends in Prejudice – study findings are mixed: people are less likely than they used to be to be openly racist, but many still resist programs and policies that provide disadvantaged minorities with equal opportunity.

The Mood of the Oppressed When asked the status of race relations between Whites, Blacks and Hispanics: 65% of Whites reported “good” White-Black relations, and 61% “good” White-Hispanic relations. 49% of Blacks thought that Black-White relations was “good,” and 61% thought that Black-Hispanic relations were “good.” 55% of Hispanics thought that Hispanic-White relations was “good,” and 51% thought that Hispanic-Black relations was “good.”

Intergroup Hostility A national survey revealed that, like Whites, many African Americans, Hispanic Americans, and Asian Americans held prejudiced and stereotypical views of other racial and ethnic minority groups.

Reducing Prejudice Education and Mass Media – studies examining the relationship between media messages promoting racial harmony and level of prejudice found modest, short-term benefits, but many life-long habits and beliefs are difficult to change. Equal-Status Contact – based on the Contact Hypothesis which suggests that intergroup contact between people of equal status in noncompetitive circumstances will reduce prejudice. Corporate Response: Diversity Training Workplace hostility can lead to reduced productivity and a “chilly climate.” Diversity training has had some success.

Ways to Fight Hate Of the top ten ways to fight hate from pages 60-61, here are the top three: Support the victims – these victims are especially vulnerable…let them know you care. Unite – call people, organize. 1. Act – do something. Apathy is akin to acceptance.