Defining the Terms Race and Ethnicity Essay

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Race is the distinctive group that humans categorize themselves into based on physical characteristics such as the color of the skin, hair texture, or size of the lips. On the other hand, ethnicity is a broader classification that is more cultural-based and may or may not include race. As an example, in the US, people may fall into racial categories such as black or white, while under the white umbrella term, some may be of Irish, Italian or Jewish ethnicity (Spencer, 2014).

These terms are sometimes confusing and may be used interchangeably; this is because they are not based on science and maybe primarily based on observations. Moreover, definitions evolve over time as people continue to interact and intermarry. As an example, in America, the immigration of Somali people into the country has created a conundrum for race classification as they look black and can be racially categorized as black, but the eye test also says they are different. What about Pacific Islanders such as Fijians who could pass as black but whose genetic composition is completely different from that of Africans.

Racial profiling occurs when racial stereotypes inform policing decisions. The criminal justice system in America is an imperfect system with a complicated history, such as roots in slavery (Robinson, 2017). Police are employed from the general population whose biases will reflect in the system. There is also data that shows poor people getting harsher sentences than rich people (Robinson, 2017). Racism has also created a wealth gap in the country where people of color are poorer than their white counterparts, which creates a double tragedy for minorities in dealing with the criminal justice system.

Sentencing disparity is a pattern that emerges from sentencing data that shows a correlation between race and length of prison sentences. The phenomenon occurs because the criminal justice system is susceptible to the biases that affect the general public. Two groups that are negatively affected by this phenomenon are African Americans and Hispanic Americans (Hetey & Eberhardt, 2018). The data shows that African Americans and Hispanics are likely to receive longer sentencing for the same crime than whites.

References

Hetey, R. C., & Eberhardt, J. L. (2018). . Current Directions in Psychological Science, 27(3), 183–187. Web.

Robinson, M. A. (2017). . Journal of Black Studies, 48(6), 551–571. Web.

Spencer, S. (2014). Race and ethnicity: Culture, identity and representation (2nd ed.). Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group.

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