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Introduction
In today’s politically-charged clime, it can be difficult to talk about the concept of race without coming across very pointed opinions. Our culture today is increasingly sensitive about racial equality, and questions whether or not it even exists at all.
Is racism a social construct? Is it just a concept that we use as a platform to create hierarchies? The author of this sample essay explores this many-layered topic.
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Defining Race as a Social Construct
The term “race” has been thrown around many times in social circles, and those who aren’t as careful in using it tend to get themselves in hot water with people who have specific opinions about the term. The first thing that we must know about this term is that it must not be confused with “ethnicity,” which refers to a group of people sharing a common language and culture.
There are many people who argue against the true legitimacy of the term “race.” They doubt if it really does exist because its definition tends to change over time and alongside changing priorities and preferences. These people believe in the social construction of race. They are convicted that we only use racial labels to create for ourselves unjust social hierarchies or ladders that benefit only certain groups. In that way, it is but a social construct.
A History of Social Construction
We have always been taught that race is a group of people that identify themselves through distinct genetic and biological features. This implies that there are certain races that tend to be the more dominant group due to their makeup.
There are many implications to this kind of thinking. For years, we have applied racial classifications in the field of medicine. For instance, doctors have concluded that there are certain diseases that certain races are more likely to get. Sickle Cell Anemia, for example, is known as a “black person’s disease.” Cystic fibrosis, on the other hand, is labeled as an ailment of white people. We have even manufactured race-specific medicines. At worst, we have also developed a system of care that shows preference toward specific races.
It wasn’t until the early 1800s when physician Dr. Samuel Morton undertook research to find out if there are indeed biological distinctions between races. However, he approached the study from a very biased perspective, so the findings were flawed. Unfortunately, his work was used to justify some of the horrific things that have been done to human beings, such as genocide and slavery.
Thanks to the progression of modern science, today, we have been able to definitively prove that race isn’t a reality. There are very few biological differences among us, despite the differences in our physical traits. The so-called health disparities among different races have been found not to be grounded on skin color or genetic makeup. Instead, they turned out to be natural products of evolution.
For example, Sickle Cell Anemia affects black people the most because of the area they live in. They are constantly exposed to malaria, so the disease is actually an evolutionary adaptation and response to the disease. Another is the notion that black women have a harder time delivering babies and are more prone to experience pre-term births than white women. It was discovered that genetics weren’t causing it, but chronic stress. Stress levels for black women are generally higher not just because you can inherit chronic stress, but because they experience daily realities like poverty and racial profiling.
This means that the racial concept is completely invalid. However, the sad reality is that it continues to be leveraged these days as a tool to perpetuate even more hatred and violence.
Social Construction: Social and Political Consequences
Another sad truth is that racial inequality has penetrated even the socio-political sphere. Today, the term “white privilege” is largely used to refer to the perceived superiority of white people over people of color. African-Americans, Asians, and Hispanics are constantly at the mercy of racial discrimination due to their hair texture, physical appearance, eye shape, and complexion. To most of society, having lighter skin brings you to the top of the social ladder.
As a result, many ethnicities have been vocal about human rights and the need to remind everyone that all people are created equal. They call out the existence of an unfair social order and demand that we change the way we define diversity.
Many Americans with a non-white skin color also feel the effects of social construction in their daily lives. Those who fall under the double category of belonging in a low-income household feel this the most. From how they are treated in a predominantly white locality to the kind of health services that are afforded to them, these people experience racism often, whether or not it is intentional.
Conclusion
We need to rid ourselves of the concept of race. There is no biological basis for it. We should focus, instead, on the value of different ethnicities, as well as learning to embrace diversity and how that can bring us forward progressively as a nation. We need to examine all the social norms that support the socially constructed idea of race and come together to find ways to change them. We also need to take a look at the many aspects of life that are affected by the idea of racial inferiority and educate people on false narratives. It will take a collective effort to undo years of prejudice based on the wrong notion of racial classifications.
Let us celebrate human existence by recognizing what makes each of us distinctly different, not just our physical characteristics. Then let us identify our common values and let them guide us toward the future together. It is only then that we can see each other as equals with the potential to contribute to the betterment of the world.
FAQs
What Is Meant By The Social Construction Of Race?
It generally means that the concept of race is invalid. It doesn’t exist or mean anything. It means that we have basically made up this idea that different groups of people have different values for society. This has caused us to create societal hierarchies that place a dominant group at the top of the sequence, with mostly non-white groups taking over the lower territory. The implications in everyday life are tangible. People at the bottom constantly find themselves as subjects of racial scrutiny and profiling, and they experience discrimination and inequality on a daily basis.
Why Do Sociologists Argue That Race Is A Social Construction?
They believe that it is simply a convenient classification system created by society because modern science has discovered that there are really no biological differences between people that the concept of race so firmly upholds. Therefore, what we are left with is a dated system that continues to use a term that is fundamentally flawed at its core to justify systemic oppression and violence.
This is why the Jewish race suffered at the hands of Hitler, and why those of African descent became subjects of slavery in Europe and in America before the Civil War. Today, they continue to experience inequality in society. For the black community, in particular, this is why the Black Lives Matter Movement exists today. It aims to call out inequality first among black people, then among other people of color.