Living Color And Racism

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Living Color The notion of race is one of the most reasonably and sensibly reviewed subjects, not only in the society which we live in, but also in the realm of science. America plays a notably significant role in developing the concept of race. The term race has a complex definition that carries much controversy, because of a number of different opinions; its definition has been modified and changed over time. According to the Haviland text, race is defined as “In biology, a subgroup within species, not scientifically applicable to humans because there exist no subspecies within modern Homo sapiens” (Haviland 96). Race is comprised of a group of individuals who identify themselves and are identified by others, to possess comparable and distinctive …show more content…

Likewise, by using these underlying attributes, society generates race attentively and often times inattentively. These inherent characteristics used to refer to an individual to a particular race consists of origin of ancestors, birth place, cultural characteristics, physical characteristics, and the surrounding environment which the individual is in daily contact. In any case, race is an imperative issue that is certainly not just exclusively in the United States, but has considerable global influence throughout history in countries that has participated in colonization. Both the book Living Color by Nina G. Jablonski and the Haviland textbook discuss how race, origin of race and racism, skin color, and human species help us understand how the concept of race has no biological basis and race being seen as a …show more content…

Race is seen as a cultural construct because it is both socially interpreted and shaped. Typically culture can be culturally constructed from one culture to another. Therefore, defining the term race in the United States can be extremely different in another country, because it is altered by one’s personal cultural and social view. For example, people from a certain culture may show interest in particular beliefs, ideas, and customs because of their cultures. Culture is about learning how a certain group of people are by sharing ideas, beliefs, and values. They characterize themselves as unique and special because of their unique culture. Moreover, we view the world through a racial lens that portrays the world as colors such as black, brown, white, yellow and more. The way people view groups of different people based on the color of their skin, ancestral origin, or their cultural upbringing have generated stratification between certain groups of people. Our world now has so much hate and has even experienced growing numbers of terrorism because they want to make right what they construe is socially or politically wrong. These certain individuals believe that violence is the answer and will improve everything. Expanding numbers of terrorism in our world are happening so frequently these days, in the face of attempts to contest these indifferences amidst people. “Most people are not aware of the influence of