Chapter 11: Globalization as a Pathway to a Race-less World?

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In Chapter 11, Newman writes that "racial categories are not natural, biological groupings. They are created, inhabited, transformed, applied, and destroyed by people." (Newman, 362).

Over the course of human history we have seen this narrative unfold. For the purposes of this post, the United States will serve as an example. Race emerged as a means to differentiate between people of different skin color. In 1870, five races were included in the US census: White, Colored, Mulatto, Chinese, and Indian. Individuals were allotted one of these headings based on their complexion as well as their ethnic origin. With time, conceptions of race transformed, and so did the categories through which the conceptions were materialized. By 1890, there were four different racial categories solely accounting for Blacks, including Colored, Mulatto, Quadroon, and Octoroon. As we know all too well, these categories have been applied and integrated into the lives of American citizens in various ways throughout history. However, in consideration of the world's current globalizing climate, Newman's final stage in the life of racial categories is of particular interest, namely, its destruction.

Before we begin examining the destruction of race we must understand what exactly race is. Race is an abstract concept. It is not something that we can point to, write an equation for, or draw on a piece of paper. It is not universally agreed upon, nor does it transcend the limits of time and space. Rather, its definition varies from one social group to the next, and within each social group, the definition of race has fluctuated historically. All of these characteristics lead to the illumination of race as a social construct.

A social construction is a “process through which the members of a society discover, make known, reaffirm and alter a collective version of facts, knowledge, and 'truth'” (Newman, 56). Thus, race is not a scientific truth. It is merely an idea that is made true by people. Indeed, race was created by people. Therefore, it can be destroyed by them.

With the compression of time and space, and the increasing interconnection between people across the globe, the destruction of race as we know it is now more likely than ever. The increased movement of people across national boundaries has made it increasingly difficult to characterize a nation state based on its ethnicity or race. With a new ease of travel and the transcendence of national boundaries, people are more likely to be affiliated with more than one nation state. They may consider themselves Irish Americans, British Indians, or German Turks, for example.

Furthermore, the rising numbers of immigrants and frequencies of interracial marriages have led to a growing population of mixed-race individuals who fit into more than one category on the census. According to Newman, “more and more US adults feel comfortable simply shedding the ethnic identities they were born with and taking on new ones” (Newman, 361). Bolstering this argument, Susan Saulny from the New York Times notes that “many young adults of mixed backgrounds are rejecting the color lines that have defined Americans for generations in favor of a much more fluid sense of identity.” (New York Times, 2011). Could the blurring of racial boundaries, becoming more commonplace worldwide, lead to its transcendence?

Individuals are coming into contact with other people from different parts of the world, who have different conceptions of race, what it means, and how it is applied in society. The changing population has clearly thrown the viability of race into question. Whether or not there will be a complete elimination of the social construct we know as race is yet to be determined. What we can be sure of is that the social construction of race continues to undergo distinct changes, evolving at speeds perhaps faster than ever before.

Sources:

Newman, David (2012). Sociology: Exploring the Architecture of Everyday Life: 9th Edition. SAGE Publications. 

Saulny, 2011: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/30/us/30mixed.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0