The Possessive Investment in Whiteness vs Race Identity and Representation in Education - Literature review Example

[Essay, History] 7 February Race- varying perceptions among different people The of race has for a long time now been at the center of a debate, with numerous scholars coming up with varying stands and perceptions towards the topic. As it has commonly been perceived to be, the mention of the term “race” triggers the picture of the existence of various skin color among different populations, thereby categorizing people as either “White” or “Black” among other classifications. This paper will discuss two common perceptions of race as explained by Lipsitz in the article “The Possessive Investment in Whiteness” and Omi and Winant in the book “Race Identity and Representation in Education”. These books approach the race subject quite differently, and this will, therefore, be the main point of discussion in the paper. The paper will discuss a few similarities and differences in the way these two books approach the topic. Having understood the concepts and stands presented in these books, I wish to state that I support the inclination taken by Omi and Winant in the book “Race Identity and Representation in Education”. I will later explain this but before then, the discussion will focus on providing an overview of each book as concerns the topic of race. Race Identity and Representation in Education According to the authors of this book, the term “race” has undergone various transformations over the years. Long ago, before the world had seen various historical occurrences such as the World Wars, colonization of Africa and urbanization of America had taken place, race was seen as a natural occurrence and was appreciated by the societies. It raised no harm during this period and thus very few people were really interested in arguments for or against the subject (Omi & Winant 62). However, a few people, most of them being the intellectual class, came up with theories and stands claiming that race was a social and historical phenomenon in what has gained popularity as “Race is socially constructed”. In this book, the authors incline towards this concept of race as a social construct in what they summarize as the “Racial formation process”. The argument is that race is a subject that cannot be ignored as it is the case today in the majority places of the world. For example, in America, it seems as though it is prohibited to touch on the race topic in the society or even try to discuss it. The society has resorted to eluding any discussion about it, thereby using other terms in place of it such as nationality or ethnicity in an attempt to evade getting into this dreaded discussion. In other circles, race is seen as simply an ideology. For example, the proponents of this stand claim that a good example was seen during the era of slavery where the idea of race was used to explain the actions taken against the slaves (Omi & Winant 62). However, according to the authors of this book, race has yet to be approached objectively, with most of the explanations available today only good enough to be categorized as illusions and misconceptions. The authors, therefore, describes race as a dynamic phenomenon that cannot rely on either illusions or objectivism on their own. A balance is needed between these two stands in order to create a more inclusive theory that best explains race and thus should encompass the contemporary political relationships, globalization and ability to fit and apply across historical time. According to the authors of this book, only by including these elements can a more critical and process-oriented theory of race can be formulated. The Possessive investment in Whiteness (George Lipsitz) In this article, Lipsitz explains various occurrences in the US including some which are historical, as it has happened in the face of race segregation between the black and white people in the US. People have been treated differently largely considering their cultural characteristics such as skin color, ancestry origin, and cultural beliefs among others. This has seen natives of America treated as slaves by the European settlers who viewed them as inferior, while also associating the black people to slavery and the white people to freedom (Lipsitz 62). In recent years, race segregation is seen in the way people have been treated according to their skin color and ancestry. For example, minority groups such as the black population have been found to be less likely to access preventative medical care in the US as compared to the white people such as the Europeans and the Americans. It is also a common case to find the black minority facing a longer jail term than their white counterparts in the country (Lipsitz 68). These and other cases show how much segregation is run in the American society largely according to the skin color and origin of an individual’s ancestry. According to Lipsitz, race is culturally constructed. In this approach, people are categorized according to their skin color, cultural beliefs and origin of ancestry. This approach is rather different to that explained by Omi and Winant in several ways. Differences between Omi and Winant’s approach to Race from that of George Lipsitz According to Omi and Winant, variations in races are determined more by how the society is made to believe, generally conforming to the standards and measures set by the society, in general. For example, when the white people are viewed as superior to the society and the black people and inferior. On the other hand, in the culturally constructed race approach as explained by Lipsitz, it is the society that actually classifies people according to their ethnicity and skin color. In summary, in the description of race as a social construct, the society is the determinant of how various categories of people are classified, which in some cases can be according to their financial or power ability. On the other hand, a culturally constructed race is purely dependent on actual factors such as what skin color can be seen in an individual and their origin of ancestry among other factors. Individuals are then treated differently on the basis of these factors. However, a common similarity between these two approaches is that both put into consideration the variations brought about by different individuals based on common heritage which characteristic of a certain segment of a population (Omi & Winant 9). For example, Africans should be addressed as people from Africa and thus appreciate the heritage that comes with this origin. However, it is important that this should not be a source of segregating people as either inferior or superior to others. Reasons why I support the approach that race is socially constructed as opposed to culturally constructed As earlier mentioned, Omi and Winants views race as socially constructed in that it is the society which determines the standards and measures through which it classifies its people. This, therefore, gives room to influence the society towards deciding which route to follow in classifying people. Through this, Omi and Winant present their ideal kind of concept of race thereby giving the classification requirements. The requirements are as follows; It must apply to contemporary political relationships It must apply to an increasingly global content It must apply across historical time (Omi & Winant 7). Following this method of classifying races, the world is probably better placed to live in more harmony as opposed to classifying people on the basis of their ethnicity and skin color alone. Conclusion There are various ways of approaching how people view variations of races in different people. The two common methods include “Race as a product of social factors” and “Race as culturally constructed”. Having discussed the two approaches as based in the literature by Omi and Winant and George Lipsitz, it is easy to say that the “Race is socially constructed” approach is preferable among the two since it reduces the prejudices that come along with the subject of race. Works cited Lipsitz, George. The Possessive Investment in Whiteness: How White People Profit from Identity Politics, 2006. Internet resource. Omi, Michael, and Howard Winant. Racial Formation in the United States from the 1960s to the 1990s. New York u a: Routledge, 1994. Print. Read More