1.2: Defining Race and Ethnicity

In sociology, both race and ethnicity can have some rather specific definitions. Race is typically thought of as a group’s physical appearance and an identity designation related to ancestry that emerges during the Early Modern period (1500-1700) brought about by such historical events as exploration, conquest, and colonialism. During this period, whole perspectives were formed about a given group’s physical abilities, tendencies, intelligence, psychology, and overall state of being—most all of which is bound to gross generalizations and misinterpretations about the very people they describe. Race, as an identity, is also tied to a given group’s understanding of themselves and their shared history, as well as a defense and empowerment of their defined communities. A race then is similar to a label appended to a group of people that configures certain assumptions about their lives and lifestyles. Examples of racial categories in the United States context would generally be LatinX, Black, Asian, Indigenous, Pacific Islander, and Middle Eastern/North-African populations, as well as the various suppositions associated with these populations—if Latino, then X; if Black, then Y; if Asian, then Z; and so-on and so-forth. Despite the mixed indicators that make up this definition of race—physical appearance, ancestral lineage designation, and an understanding of oneself as a member of a racial group—it is physical appearance that is most often central to the definition and a key referent that informs the perspective of onlookers. For this reason, I have used the term ‘Appearance’ in the title of this book, as race is frequently thought of as that physical appearance that initiates the discourse on racialization.

Conversely, though certainly related, ethnicity is a socio-cultural status that fosters a way of being. Ethnicity encompasses the actions and symbolic representations that grow out of the long-standing interrelated experiences of being a part of the above-mentioned racial categories. Ethnicity is then the loose operationalization of these categories, as in perhaps a common language; beliefs associated with religion; customary practices of food and foodways; musical traditions; and the like. Along these lines, for example, some groups of LatinX may have a certain appreciation for a particular type of music, dietary preferences, a customary religious tradition, or even a form of colloquial Spanish that is commonly spoken within their ethnic community. Although this example seemingly groups all LatinX together, it’s important to note that there is, indeed, a lot of diversity at play, as in some of LatinX may identify as Chicanos—a socio-political identity for some U.S.-born Mexican Americans; while other LatinX may identity as El Salvadorean—a much more geographical identity associated with one’s nation of origin. The diversity of these identities is important and allows for a vast assortment of different identity configurations of which to acknowledge, appreciate, and even celebrate.

Similar to my use of ‘Appearance’ as stand-in for race in the title of this textbook, I have used ‘Behavior’ to stand-in for ethnicity in the title, as it designates a responsive relationship to the stimuli found in one’s community. In this way, it is the behavior of a group in response to the interactions found in a given community that creates the experiential content we call ethnicity.

With these definitions in mind, it may become fairly obvious that both race and ethnicity are not mutually exclusive along very definitive lines, but rather with a reasonable amount of overlap. That is, after racial categories are established, it is the expression of ethnicity that then creates and perhaps informs perspective about how race is enacted. For example, when an onlooker identifies an individual as Asian (the racial category), they may then take the liberty of making assumptions about the lifeways of that individual (ethnicity). Of course, both the process of identification and the liberties taken in making assumptions may or may not be correct, yet that’s how race and ethnicity have operated—they literally construct the social reality of race and ethnicity in real time.