Sunday, October 24, 2010

Race, Ethnicity, and Ethnic Relations: A Malaysian Case Study

What is Race? (Marger 16-23; Peoples and Bailey 30-31)

*The biological basis of race–assumption of hereditary factors differentiating the group from others. The primary difference between race and ethnicity is the ascription of race to biology.

*Problems with the biological conception of race. Despite the fact that race may seem obvious to you and you can easily “spot” different races, the great majority of scientists and social scientists argue that race has no biological validity.

* In Malaysia divisions between groups of people are often constructed in terms of race. The Malays, Chinese, and Indians are commonly seen as separate biological races with consequent differences in culture.

*Race as a Cultural Construct


1 comments:

Anonymous said...

Only problem is: this idea of race having no biological basis has been discredited by biostatisticians.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/14/opinion/14leroi.html

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