Racial Classification Paper Example

The race involves grouping of people depending on parameters which most of the people over the time have considered very crucial because they make it possible to bring a clear picture of the categories which exist on the earth today. There are three main parameters on which this classification of race has been based on which can be dated back to nineteen century. A race is tired of something to do with blood. This is what in present world can be referred to genes. In the nineteen century, this parameter was used to categorize people into various races. People with the same genes believed to share the same characteristics and therefore had to be classified as to belong to the same race. Secondly, skin color is another parameter which was relied upon to establish the classification of race. People were put into groups depending on their skin color. This is after realization people from different works of life had different regarding their skin color. This parameter is alleged to be the force behind the classification of earth into continents. Thirdly, race classification relied on the geographical location of someone's ancestry origin. People who believed to have same ancestry origin location are believed to share similar traits which resulted in them being categorized to belong to the same race. These were three parameters which mainly relied on by those behind the genesis of race "Race has something to do with blood (today we might say genes), and something to do with skin color, and something to do with the geographical origins of one's ancestors'' (Spickard Paul, Pg. 1). As results, biology and character of someone align someone to a particular race and these form her or his identity. This, however, is not the case because recently people grouping has been attributed to sociopolitical factors rather than biological and character alignment.

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Though race has been believed to be based on biology and character, this believe recently has taken a different twist and there is more which can be relied on to come up with race classification. This after emerging people who had different ancestry origin exists and is not a mistake to have such people within the society. It is this fact that challenged the earlier method of coming up with races which different people belonged to. The people who found themselves in this scenario were forced to choose one ancestry origin so that they can align themselves with those categorized to belong to that ancestry origin "According to this way of thinking, people with more than one racial ancestry have a problem, one that can be resolved only by choosing a single racial identity'' (Spickard Paul, Pg.1). These opened eyes of those were keen on the bases relied on to come up with classifying people into different races of race. It was later realized that. It was realized there was something to do with sociopolitical when it comes to how people interact which influence grouping in the world. This was regardless of whether these people shared the same blood, ancestry origin or skin color similarities. The motives behind this grouping were benefits which the pioneer of these grouping would get or continue enjoying "It is my contention in this essay, however, that race, while it has some relationship to biology, is not mainly a biological matter. The race is primarily a sociopolitical construct. The sorting of people into this race or that in the modern era has generally been done by powerful groups for the purposes of maintaining and extending their own power'' (Spickard Paul, Pg.1) Those supporting such kind of alignment belong to the groups which emanate from this sociopolitical classification and believe they stand to benefits as long as they are the members of such race.

The races were defined by boundaries which had to be maintained. The reason behind these boundaries was the notion that some races were more superior to others. These boundaries ensure the races at the lower rank regarding superiority would not have an opportunity to overtake the one above them and finally disrupt ranking. This was painful because it became law in the United States of America to put people into races which they belonged. This resulted in whites to treat blacks as slaves because they were considered inferior in the racial rank and had nothing to contribute to the world because of their laziness.

These boundaries resulted in classifying people on basis of their descent and not biological alignment. This eventually leads to people being view either as black or white. Black people were taken to be inferior while whites as superior. Blacks were referred to as Negros. Negro was someone who has single grandparent ancestry origin. The whites were those with at least fifteen ancestry origins in the past four generations. This classification was based on the USA law at the time and no way someone could determine in which race he or she belonged but the laid down procedures according to the constitution "For purposes of the laws of nine southern and Border States in the early part of this century, a "Negro" was defined as someone with a single Negro great-grandparent; in three other southern states, a Negro great-great-grandparent would suffice. That is, a person with 15 White ancestors four generations back and a single Negro ancestor at the same remove has reckoned a Negro in the eyes of the law" (Spickard Paul, Pg. 2). This changed the attitude of many people because of the image that law painted to them and societal opinion on them. This classification of people into races began in nineteenth-century when USA bureau of the census categorized American population based on color and their origins into different races.

Racism is a tool relied upon to distinguish the dominating group in the society from lesser or oppressed one. The dominating group takes advantage of its dominance by treating the subordinate group as others. This means privileges always goes to those associated with the superior race in the society leaving the race at the lower rank to suffer from suppression it faces from the superior race. This can result in the worst mistreatment. This is treating of particular group of people horribly because they are aligned to particular race which is viewed by society as inferior "Calling various African peoples all one racial group, and associating that group with evil, sin, laziness, bestiality, sexuality, and irresponsibility, made it easier for White slave owners to rationalize holding their fellow humans in bondage, whipping them, selling them, separating their families, and working them to death" (Spickard Paul, pg. 3). This caused inflicting pain to human by their fellow human which is against human rights.

Conclusion

It is a fact that people are mixed regarding ancestry origin and as a result, people share similar genetic material. This is because regardless of the someone's geological location on earth people are observed to share common features physically and genetic composition. This raises the question on how people can be categorized biologically to belong to a particular race because they share common or near similar skin color. The result of this is a new classification of people regarding sociopolitical background they belong.

Reference

Spickard, Paul. Race in Mind: Critical Essays. University of Notre Dame Press, 2015.