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Key Terms Chapter 11: Race and Ethnicity

  • Page ID
    143148
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    Glossary Entries
    Word(s)DefinitionImageCaptionLinkSource
    Amalgamationthe process by which a minority group and a majority group combine to form a new group    
    Assimilationthe process by which a minority individual or group takes on the characteristics of the dominant culture    
    Colorismthe belief that one type of skin tone is superior or inferior to another within a racial group    
    Culture of Prejudicethe theory that prejudice is embedded in our culture    
    Discriminationprejudiced action against a group of people    
    Dominant Groupa group of people who have more power in a society than any of the subordinate groups    
    Ethnicityshared culture, which may include heritage, language, religion, and more    
    Expulsionthe act of a dominant group forcing a subordinate group to leave a certain area or even the country    
    Genocidethe deliberate annihilation of a targeted (usually subordinate) group    
    Institutional Racismracism embedded in social institutions    
    Intersection Theorytheory that suggests we cannot separate the effects of race, class, gender, sexual orientation, and other attributes    
    Minority Groupany group of people who are singled out from the others for differential and unequal treatment    
    Model Minoritythe stereotype applied to a minority group that is seen as reaching higher educational, professional, and socioeconomic levels without protest against the majority establishment    
    Pluralismthe ideal of the United States as a “salad bowl:” a mixture of different cultures where each culture retains its own identity and yet adds to the “flavor” of the whole    
    Prejudicebiased thought based on flawed assumptions about a group of people    
    Racial Profilingthe use by law enforcement of race alone to determine whether to stop and detain someone    
    Racial Steeringthe act of real estate agents directing prospective homeowners toward or away from certain neighborhoods based on their race    
    Racisma set of attitudes, beliefs, and practices that are used to justify the belief that one racial category is somehow superior or inferior to others    
    Redliningthe practice of routinely refusing mortgages for households and business located in predominately minority communities    
    Scapegoat Theorya theory that suggests that the dominant group will displace its unfocused aggression onto a subordinate group    
    Sedimentation of Racial Inequalitythe intergenerational impact of de facto and de jure racism that limits the abilities of black people to accumulate wealth    
    Segregationthe physical separation of two groups, particularly in residence, but also in workplace and social functions    
    Social Construction of Racethe school of thought that race is not biologically identifiable    
    Stereotypesoversimplified ideas about groups of people    
    Subordinate Groupa group of people who have less power than the dominant group    
    White Privilegethe benefits people receive simply by being part of the dominant group    
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