JUST 328 Study Guide - Midterm Guide: Racialization, Materialism, Cosmopolitanism
Document Summary
Race relations are a subset of power relations--the 2 forces are strictly connected. Race as a justification for imperialism and exploitation. Weber--ability to make people do what you want, even if it is against their own wishes and interests. Lukes--power ranges from physical coercion and violence to persuasion and influence. Ultimate form of control: persuading people that their interests and those of rulers are the same. Analogy to economic and social processes: economic activities tend to develop towards monopolies. If we apply this tendency to social life, we can detect the creation of groups with distinct boundaries for membership. Monopolizing the benefits for insiders rather than outsiders. Powerful boundary markers--language, religion, nationalism, race, ethnicity, etc. Choice of boundary markers is the result of historical circumstances and differential power relationships. Ethnic groups-- human groups (other than kinship groups) which cherish a belief in their common origins of such a kind that it provides a basis for the creation of a community.
