Racial Tension

John Dok

Who has the rite to claim their own ethnicity? Is it a thing that is easily obtained and passed around? Your ethnicity defines you, in saying who you are, were you live, what you eat, and how you act. Mary Waters a sociology professor at Harvard University has totally different views on this topic. Her views on this topic are very stereotypical and in my opinion wrong.

Mary states that "White Americans of European ancestry can be described as having a great deal of choice in terms of their ethnic identities". She states that whites are able to either choose a specific ancestry, just to be white, or choose which European background they want to portray. Mary also says that European Americans have the choice not to choose an ethnic background because they are the majority of the population.

In Mary's opinion there are two ways of describing ethnic identity. The first way is symbolic ethnic identity, as she quotes" These symbolic identifications are essentially leisure-time activities, rooted in nuclear family traditions and reinforced by the voluntary enjoyable aspects of being ethnic". This is pure choice by the individual. An

example of this is {from the reading} "An example of symbolic ethnicity is individuals who identify as Irish, for example, on occasions such as Saint Patrick's Day, on family holidays, or for vacations. They do not usually belong to Irish American organizations, live in Irish neighborhoods, work in Irish jobs, or marry other Irish people. The symbolic meaning of being Irish American can be constructed by individuals from mass media images, family traditions, or other intermittent social activities. In other words, for later-generation White ethnics, ethnicity is not something that influences their lives unless they want it to. In the world of work and school and neighborhood, individuals do not have to admit to being ethnic unless they choose to. And for an increasing number of European-origin individuals whose parents and grandparents have intermarried, the ethnicity they claim is largely a matter of personal choice as they sort through all of the possible combinations of groups in their genealogies". In a whole the symbolic way is just a choice of having an ethic background in order

to have a good time. Only pure enjoyment comes out of this. As the example states these Irish Americans are only known to be Irish on St. Patrick's family vacations, or family holidays. Waters shows this as having choice because of having the opportunity to.

Another key factor waters covers is white marry out of there ethnic background because of all of the options' offered. There are no more fixed marriages for whites. On the other hand for blacks Americans, Latino Americans, and Asian Americans, the choice is not there. Who there ancestors maters for where they live, who they marry, and who they associate with. Water shows that the white Americans or the European Americans are give much more choice than the rest of the society. For example the Irish guy who is Irish on St Patrick's Day, or the Italian guy who is Italian on Christmas. Mary basically states that symbolic ethnicity is a choice that only white Americans have.

A major part of ethnic separation is revealed on college campuses. As waters states College students tend to stay to their own

race instead of being diverse and meeting new people. It is not that people are necessarily different from one another it is just a comfort factor that you fell when you are with your own kind. It is always the blacks and the blacks, the whites and the whites, the Latinos and the Latinos, and the Asians and the Asians. It is not only the race factor but also the class factor that plays a big role in this as well. Upper class students have not much in common to someone who is lower in the society then there family is, some people do not see a black person for the first time until they go to college. People are sheltered and narrow minded, if effort was put into it the separation would be ended. Mary states "It is dependent upon the concept that all ethnicities mean the same thing, that enjoying the traditions of one's heritage