Author: Andre Coleman

Immigration Spain Emigration

A social analysis of the integration process of immigrants in Spain.

The way in which ‘the problem’ of immigration in Spain affects the integration of immigrants.

Over the last fifteen years, Spain has gone from being a country of emigration to a country of immigration. In recent years few European countries have experienced as dramatic a rise in immigration as Spain. Spain has been among the most open countries in the European Union, admitting 650,000 immigrants last year alone and granting residency permits to 560,000 more who were in the country illegally.

Although the percentage of immigrants is still relatively low compared to other European countries (6.1% of the population in 2005) the growth of immigration experienced over the last five years has led experts to consider the country as a “new immigration centre.” The economic and historical connections with North Africa and South America have been the principal triggers of immigration flows, with almost 2/3 of immigrants coming from outside the EU. Europeans also represent a large number of immigrants in Spain. Attracted to the Costa del Sol’s climate and low cost of living, many come to retire.

There are three basic causes for this substantial change in the position of Spain as a new centre of immigration. The first is the continuous economic development of the country and the fact that it belongs to one of the most developed regions in the world, the EU. Secondly, Spain is considered as an alternative to other European countries with high levels of immigration where there now exist increasingly strong restrictions on immigration, especially those originating from outside Europe. Thirdly, Spain’s geographical situation means that it has become the ‘back door’ for immigrants’ intent on reaching the rest of Europe.

The significant increase of the foreign population since 2000 has resulted in a growing awareness that immigration is a structural phenomenon and Spain: a multicultural country. Recent Spanish opinion polls reveal the distortion between the reality and nationals’ perception of the extent of this immigration. In the book ‘Europeos e Inmigrantes,’ the authors study local’s opinion on immigration and conclude with the following results: approximately 55% of Spanish society perceive Spain as having ‘a lot’ of immigrants- though not too many- and 25% of them consider the number of immigrants to be too high. The number of immigrants, but more specific still the presence of immigrants, is suggested to be a ‘problem.’

This study will be looking at the perception of immigration as a ‘problem,’ and the consequence of this perception on the integration of immigrants in Spain. I am interested in the integration of immigrants on a social level: the ways in which social constructions of the ‘other’ are reflected in the social integration process of the immigrant population. In the end, I hope to make sense not just of immigrants’ marginal status in Spain; but also how the concept of culture and society shapes the integration process.

Despite common belief that Spain is being met by an invasion of newcomers, the percentage of immigrants to the total national population remains the lowest within the EU. By 2001, immigrants in Spain made up 2.5% of the population, contrasted with 4.2% for the UK, 4.3 for the Netherlands, 5.6 for France, and 8.9 for Germany. Overall, the European average is three times higher than the Spanish average. Despite the fact that illegal immigrants are seen as a threat to the growing population, illegal entrance into Spain counts for only 4% of the immigrants entering legally. Yet today, immigration is among the top three mentioned problems and has been referred to as a cultural problem.

The media has had, and continues to have, a great influence on the nation’s interpretation of immigration and the prominence of immigration in national politics and people’s consciousness reflects the extent to which the subject of immigration is covered by Spanish media. No other medium is able to send a determined message out to the masses, or has so much power as to make everyone value their freedom of speech.

Those who have studied ‘public opinion’ have said, “Although people think they have formulated their own opinion, in actual fact their opinion and argument is more or less echoed from a favoured political leader or party.” National newspapers go as far as to include a section on ‘the immigration problem’ aimed at keeping track of the number of illegal immigrants apprehended by the police. The Spanish newspaper, ‘El Pais’ uses headlines such as: ‘Interceptados 76 inmigrantes en las costas de Granada y Canarias en las ultimas horas, and frequently describes the arrival of ‘nueva oleadas de pateras que intentan alcanzar Espana.

On television, the Spanish public are supplied with regular images of illegal immigrants attempting to enter the country illegally. The constant focus on immigration in political discourse and in the mass media has created a sense of migratory pressure amongst the public, a sense that there are floods of people banging on the border doors to get in. “Las puertas de Europa Espana y nueve paises europeos han acordado establecer un operativo para patrullar toda la zona del Africa atlantica “susceptible” de ser punto de origen de pateras y cayucos que viajan hacia Europa y, sobre todo, hacia Canarias, que acusa casi cada dia la presion de esta avalancha migratoria.”

This pressure is fuelled by both a fear of security and a fear of immigrants affecting the Spanish labour market (which I will discuss later on). This fear is often translated into panic and irrational conclusions for those ignorant of the reality of the situation. Evidence of illegal immigrants in Spain has created confusion between attitudes towards illegal and legal immigrants, and often the two groups are treated as one.

Following the 9/11 tragedy, race stereotypes have once again become commonplace and through pure ignorance and fear, immigrants are seen as a threat to the public’s safety, often being associated with Islamic fundamentalism. Public insecurity due to misinformation has manifested itself in violence and xenophobic feelings against the immigrants. An example of this took place in 2000, in El Ejido (Andalucia), where locals violently attacked newly settled immigrants, following a young girl’s murder by a Moroccan.

The dissemination of these negative perceptions has helped conjure up a sensation of invasion, which does not mirror the reality of the situation. The reality of the situation (which I have already discussed) is that this existing fear is unjustified. It is a representation of the ignorance surrounding the perception of immigration linking the race of an immigrant group with the safety of a country.

Immigration has also been considered a threat to the structure of the labour market. During the 1980s and 1990s, when immigration to Spain was at its highest, the country was experiencing a profound economic crisis characterized above all by high levels of unemployment. The presence of immigrants and the misconception that they were invading the Spanish labour market, added further tension to the relationship between the two groups, and was therefore considered an economic and social problem. “More than any other factor, unemployment is generally seen as the root cause behind the electoral successes of the radical Right across Europe and is credited with casing an existence of a negative, anti immigrant attitude in Spain.”

Immigration in Spain has also been treated as a cultural problem “where the idea of having immigrants in the country is not perceived as a positive multicultural phenomenon but as a threat to the integrity of the Spanish cultural identity.”

The Spanish fear that the increasing presence of other national cultures will overshadow and stifle their own traditions. The immigrants have brought their own culture to Spain, which they expect to be respected and recognised so that they may practice their traditions in harmony with the rest of society. Spaniards fear that the integration of immigrants will entail the growth of alien religious infrastructures and more conflict between locals and immigrants.

The social integration of Muslims in particular is perceived as difficult, because of the demands for their own religious infrastructure. The constructions of mosques render the development of a multicultural society even more obvious. Since the terrorist attacks in Madrid 2004, Islam has been presented as an alien civilization, with mosques feared as centres of terrorism. This fear often translates into irrational conclusions. “As it generally does in other European countries, the association of North Africans with Islamic fundamentalism, terrorism and crime tends to breed hostility and suspicion from the Spanish public.”

In summary, the immigration problem revolves around an insecurity bred by the sense of invasion. People feel threatened by the implications of immigrants in the labour market, and what ‘integration’ really entails for the culture and society dynamics of Spain.

I am now going to address the concept of integration and how the perception of immigration already discussed has affected this process. In order to assess how this is affecting the integration process I will be looking at the topic from an anthropological perspective.

Among those who attempt to define the concept of integration, there is considerable disagreement. In the context of Spanish immigration it has taken on many meanings, some implying that it is reached when the immigrant is able to ‘fit in,’ others suggesting that it hinges on natives’ open-mindedness and tolerance, and still others prioritising the accessibility of social services and basic necessities.

Often, the term is simply used as a synonym for settlement, or establishing physical and social roots. A Spanish social scientist and immigration expert defines it this way: ‘We can say that immigrants are integrated into a host society when they do not face additional obstacles due to their foreign origin in the main aspects of their social, economic, and family life, when compared to the native-born population.’

Law plays a central role in the immigrants’ integration on all levels and has been seen as “formally codifying them as different at several levels.” Spain had several attempts at immigration legalisation: the first, ‘the Ley de Extranjeria,’ focussing primarily on control over immigrants rather than integration. Immigration laws designated some people as non-citizens with a limited set of rights and privileges.

Others were declared to be illegal and unwelcome altogether and those who did achieve legal status found their position unstable, as they are vulnerable to frequent changes in legislation and status. When in 1998 the issue of integration was finally addressed, the focus was still on the integration of ‘non-EU foreigners’ rather than the immigrant group as a whole, stigmatising the non-EU immigrants as the problem group.

Perez, in his article, “Spain: Forging an Immigration Policy,” goes as far as to say that the ‘Law on the rights and Freedoms of Foreigners in Spain and their Integration’ passed in January 2000, was not so much ‘because of the law’s acknowledgement of immigrant rights but because of its conception of immigration as a permanent phenomenon.’ Still today immigrants struggle against policy restrictions.

Despite the common belief that immigrants create problems in the Spanish labour market, the reality of the situation is that the immigrant work force is largely responsible for Spain’s economic growth. This growth, over the last decade, has been among the fastest in the EU. “It is not a coincidence that the strong economic growth and increase in employment rate has increased with the arrival of immigrants into Spain.” Having said this, statistics show that in 2006 the unemployment rate for Spaniards was 8% compared to 12% for foreigners.

The lack of facilities for Spanish employers to contract foreigners and the difficulty such employers face accessing Spanish labour has resulted in irregular immigration flows and labour markets. In addition to the disparity between the unemployment rates for Spanish and Immigrant workers, there is also a difference in the nature of work. The restructuring of the Spanish economy after the accession to the European Community has resulted in an increase in the demand for labour in sectors of the economy where nationals no longer wish to work.

Spanish laws make it virtually impossible to gain admission as legal residents outside of the quota system that is largely confined to those willing to work in agriculture, domestic help, and construction, i.e. those sectors where wages and working conditions are inadequate to attract sufficient local workers. These laws thus guarantee that immigrant workers labour under conditions that are shunned by most of the working class, an arrangement that furthermore highlights their economic alienation and their exclusion from reasonable housing, health care and other basic necessities further distancing there chances on reaching integration.

Furthermore, there is little stability for immigrants in the labour market with most of them receiving only temporal jobs. There is also a significant difference in wages. It has been noted that non-communitarians earn 33% less than Spanish citizens. These forms of discrimination have resulted in the exploitation of undocumented workers: considerably lower payments, a lack of safety standards, labour security and worker rights.

One of the main problems with the way in which immigration is perceived in Spain is that not much is known about the immigrant as an individual. Because of this lack of knowledge, realities are distorted and often the outsider is assumed to be the culprit for society’s ills. “In endeavouring to reduce environmental complexity to a manageable size, when bombarded with environmental stimuli, untested cognitive short-cuts come to be employed which have a tendency to become self fulfilling.”

In order for immigration to be perceived accurately by any social group there must be a basis of knowledge; not hearsay. As most of the media coverage on the immigrant population relates to violence and delinquency, it is understandable why the average Spaniard, adopts a defensive stance. To gain an accurate, or at least fair representation of the immigrant population, these negative portrayals ought to be contested with representations from the minority groups. A lack of organisation and funds are said to explain the lack of minority media produced in Spain.

Whether this is the case, or whether the lack of initiative to produce a platform for the minority groups to speak out from is the manifestation of another social inequality. The danger of a ‘general’ perception of the immigrant group is that incorrect assumptions are made and stereotypes formed. Generalisations on immigrants’ nationalities create a belief that each nation has one culture shared by all inhabitants. Similar generalisations are made towards the second generation of immigrants. The children of the immigrants, who have never immigrated, and who were born in Spain are assumed to be of foreign origin.

These stereotypes also include the concept that others’ cultural traits are strange and not worthy of exploring because they are not necessary to the already comfortable, established concepts that the society possesses. The cultural traits that cause the most ‘problems’ are those most different, usually those from non-European countries. This is because, in everyday life, they are the most conspicuous (with regards to the fact that in Spain the colour of one’s skin is still associated with being ‘foreign’) reminding nationals that Spain is becoming a multicultural country. Spanish researcher and anthropologist, Damian Omar Martinez, explores the concept that on a social level, non- European immigrants are discriminated against more because they are considered further away from integration: the integration that sees immigrants conforming to the Spanish way of life.

With the transformation of the European Union, the free movement of Europeans between borders means that to a certain extent relationships between different European cultures are less tense. European citizens are increasingly viewed as being part of a European community. The borders between themselves and ‘the others’ have almost been extended up to the exterior borders of Europe.

McGrance argues that there is a distinct Western thought process. He argues that: ‘there is the superior Western culture, and then there are all the rest as contrast. A sharp divide is created, with epistemological privilege always on the side of the West. With these analyses in mind, one realises the extent of the difficulties immigrants face in becoming integrated into Spanish society.

Adding to the discussion on integration and what impedes this process for immigrants, I am interested in how a national population is able to control a minority population. When talking of integration, it is impossible to say when an immigrant is fully integrated as an essential part of this process is determined by non- controllable factors such as the native population’s response.

It seems the first step to any kind of integration for minority groups (the immigrants), is acceptance from the majority (the nationals). However, when integration can be defined as a concept that calls for the absence of racism and tolerance for minority groups, the question is raised as to whether it is integration we are talking about or tolerance. Is the immigration in Spain a case of ‘integrating’ immigrants or merely ‘tolerating’ them? If it is a case of tolerating immigrants, there is little hope of integration for immigrants on a social level.

This brings me onto the concepts of ‘society’ and ‘community,’ which seem to influence the process of integration of immigrants. Calavita writes that the concept of culture and community is difficult to define. She quotes Walzer’s attempt at defining the term: “ that at a minimum a community consists of like-minded members, with some special commitment to one another and some special sense of their common life.” The term community deals with the concept of belonging and not belonging: the member whom is accepted and part of something, and the outsider whom is striving to be part of something that is not necessarily clear.

The Europe we see developing today is a prime example of a ‘community’ of nations pushing for one identity. Cris Shore explores the idea that this very existing identity is one of the main culprits for the problem of integration of immigrant. “Identity is represented as a process of classification involving boundaries of inclusion and exclusion.” Shore goes on further to explore the terms European and non- European. Though there is no official definition for these terms, ‘ a more coherent applied definition can be seen emerging at the borders and boundaries of the new Europe.’

With the distinction of European and non-European groups becoming clear, so to is the distinction between the insider and the outsider. These terms are used to reiterate the fact that the immigrant is from outside, it is used to make the distinction between the group of ‘Us’ (national population) and ‘Them’ (the immigrant), and it has been used by Spaniards to remind themselves of what they are not. One must ask to what extent the integration of immigrants is a process of selection, and to what extent the national population influences this process.

Nowadays the significance and relevance of being a member of a community has been devalued somewhat, as it is increasingly difficult to define this term. Calavita quotes Bauman and others as arguing, “that this kind of community is on the decline, as globalisation, with its collapsing cultural boundaries, and the diminishing significance of the nation-state, erodes its boundaries and disintegrates its ties, leaving little structure to the foundations of this group.”

‘The diminishing significance of the nation state’ refers to the developing ‘European identity’ the EU are pushing for today. This united centre requires the breaking down of national barriers to ensure full communication between nations in an effort for them to work together and be successful as one. Arguments put forward suggesting immigration is a ‘cultural problem’ because of its effect on the authenticity of Spanish culture, are unsound, as the very Europe that Spain forms part of, is doing just that.

Considering immigration as a ‘problem,’ has severely affected the process of integration of immigrants in Spain. The real concern lies in the general public’s perception of immigrants. The strength of a nation’s perception is based on a sentiment cultivated over many years; can this national sentiment towards immigration be changed?

It does not make sense to see a city or country as an integrated body of citizens, a group you can enter once you have completed cultural, economic requirements. It is the discussion of immigration as a problem, and the questioning of whether immigrants integrate or not that creates the phenomenon of immigration and puts such pressure on the social groups involved to form a position on the issue. When analysing the immigration issue in Spain, it should not be the question of whether the immigrants are a problem, or whether they are integrated or not, but what there role is in society.

Introduction

Rural communities have been a source of much interest for those engaged within the sociological and geographical realms of study for many years now. The industrial revolution of the 18^th and 19^th centuries triggered the phenomenon of rural depopulation as millions throughout the Western nations, lured by the promise of a more prosperous existence in the urban core, abandoned their agrarian settlements. However, the late 20^th century has witnessed a dramatic increase in the standard of living for the inhabitants of the developed world. Cataclysmic advancements in the spheres of transportation, infrastructure and technology have permitted the denizens of our cities with greater access to regions which were once isolated and peripheral. For the first time in over two centuries populations are now increasing throughout the urban hinterland and countryside. As a consequence, rural communities are now faced with a growing influx of ‘outsider’ or alien elements which may be perceived to threaten their unique cultural and social traditions. Such elements range from governmental legislation (imposed from a regional, national or supranational level) to tourism and second home ownership.

However, in an increasingly globalised and homoginised world, academics have developed great interest in the methodologies deployed by erstwhile isolated settlements as they strive to conserve their very identities and notions of ‘community’. Mewitt has argued that the ‘esoteric cultures’ of rural communities have been much undervalued. He states that, ‘a local population can possess a largely unique culture that remains distinctive in that its symbolic manifestations convey meanings that are commonly understood only among those people.’^[1]

Defining the Communal Boundary

Muir eloquently highlights that, ‘every landscape is enmeshed in networks of boundaries. Some of these are living or current and others are relics of former patterns of overlordship and partition.’^[2] He further adds that, ‘some boundaries are political in character’ whilst ‘others relate to ownership and tenancy.’^[3] Indeed, the configuration of the present day counties of England dates from Medieval times when the Normans attempted to organise and rationalise the physical landscape. Muir explains that as the number of people residing in a specific locale increases, the greater the necessity precipitates to impose physical boundaries to ‘serve both instructive and symbolic roles.’^[4] The remnants of Medieval ‘landscapes of power’ can still be observed in the guise of churches or castles positioned on elevated terrain. Indeed Muir emphasises that, ‘Medieval crosses were frequently associated with marking route ways and the places where roads entered ecclesiastical property.’^[5]

However, sociologists argue that the concept of ‘boundary’ often surpasses the purely mundane realm. Cohen insists that the boundary of a community is ‘more complex than its physical, legal or administrative basis’ and even ‘ethnic, racial, religious or linguistic differences.’^[6] Indeed, he believes that communal, social and physical frontiers may ‘exist in the minds of their beholders’ and are often not objective entities.^[7] Indeed, according to Cohen and other commentators the boundaries of a community may be defined in a variety of ways including local genealogy, traditions, idioms, land distribution, folk histories and idiosyncrasies.

Defining the Rural Community

Shuttles argues that whilst urban communities were traditionally defined on the basis of ‘race, ethnicity and socioeconomic differences,’ rural communities were typically ‘more homogenous.’^[8] However, he notes that power was normally concentrated ‘in the hands of a small group of local elites.’^[9]

Shuttles’ comments are interesting when one considers what many regard as being symbolic of the typical or idyllic rural community. The English manor house and rustic thatched cottage conjure up images of a romantic and traditional arcadian scenario. Indeed, sociologists are now quick to highlight how the paintings of artists such as Constable, and the lucid literary descriptions of writers like Thomas Hardy, have done much to perpetuate the myth of idyllic rural communities within the collective mindset. These were communities where everyone seemingly had his or her ‘place’ within a clearly defined and functional social hierarchy.

However, Seymour et al. state that ‘recent debates in rural studies have highlighted the need to reconsider power relations in the countryside by allowing other voices to be heard.’^[10] They insist that previously marginalised groups, such as manual workers and housewives, play just as important a role in defining the local community as those in positions of economic and political power. They also note that traditional stereotypes of the rural community are changing both within and out with the locale. For example, farmers were typically viewed as ‘patriotic food producers and the guardians of the countryside.’^[11] Since the 1980s the pollution issues concerning unsustainable farming practices and use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides have severely altered the once romantic myth of the farmer as custodian of the landscape and lynch pin of the rural community.

Jones’ study of social attitudes in and around the town of Cwmrheidol in rural west Wales is most illuminating. In the late 1980s she began to interview a wide range of locals and incomers; participants included: ‘traditional women and feminists, Welsh speakers and English speakers, residents and summer visitors, New Age travellers, hill farmers and urban commuters.’^[12] Indeed, Jones’ findings reveal a plurality of attitudes regarding what constitutes ‘community’ in the local area. Ieuan, a Welsh-speaking hill farmer, seemed to resent official bodies and felt that EU legislation was gradually eroding traditional farming practices and his way-of-life. He was also angry with the planting of Forestry Commission coniferous forests on the hillsides and the imposition of alien boundaries upon once communal pasturelands. Ieuan complained about the ‘thoughtlessness of tourists’ and was sceptical regarding plans to diversify the tourist industry.^[13] His conservative attitude was shared by Alison and Phil, ‘incomers’ from England, who also opposed development of the area and believed that new housing projects could destroy the rustic character of the local milieu. Another ‘incomer’ named Ros also exhibited similar sentiments and did not want change, so much so that she stated how she would protest vehemently against the renovation of a nearby ‘ruin’. Indeed, one could say that Ieuan, Alison and Phil, and Ros viewed the traditional community as something which should be cherished and remain static throughout time. However, the ‘incomers’ did state that they felt very much like ‘outsiders’ despite having lived in the region for some time. As Ros stated, ’the old locals they’re a community on their own.’^[14]

The local vicar Patrick Thomas was more than aware of the existence of ‘communities within communities’ throughout this part of Wales. A principal boundary was of a linguistic nature and those who could not speak the Welsh language became effectively excluded from many social and communal activities. Many older inhabitants simply did not view ‘incomers’ as part of the community and seemed to view them as a threat. The vicar strove to promote individual responsibility and attempted to encourage community values regardless of whether an inhabitant was of an ‘insider’ or ‘outsider’ status. Indeed, Patrick Thomas clearly viewed the entire community as a cohesive whole whilst others chose to be more selective in their analysis, often on the grounds of language, ethnicity and place of origin, regarding who was a part of their local ‘community’.

Mewett notes how the inhabitants of the Isle of Lewis choose to define the boundaries of the community. He emphasises the importance of nicknames throughout the island by ‘expressing to people the attachment of themselves and others to the local community’^[15] and by effectively defining their very social identities. Cohen’s study of the Shetland Island community of Whalsay revealed the existence of a ‘public treasury of personal knowledge.’^[16] This social treasury included; ‘the public identities of Whalsay people: the characters attributed to them in public discourse and formulated on the basis of the stereotypical qualities of their kinsfolk or their township of origin; the anecdotal knowledge of incidents in which they were participants; supposed personal idiosyncrasies and so forth.’^[17] Such a methodology of social definition is representative of a local folk history and assists in binding the local community together and affirming the notion of ‘being Whalsa’. Cohen concludes that public identities provide social boundaries for the community and serve as veritable ‘compass bearings’.^[18]

Cohen also highlights the linkage of a person to a place in Whalsay and the propensity of locals to depersonalise individual talents and skills. If someone exhibits an aptitude for woodwork they are said to have ‘Skaw-blood’ in them. The origin of this saying derives from the belief that many skilled carpenters once came from the town of Skaw in the north. This was due to the fact that drift wood commonly accumulated on the coast near this town and the local artisans had a ready supply of the raw material. To compliment one’s ability in such a way effectively grounds the individual within the historical, genealogical, physical and symbolic boundaries of the imagined island community.

McFarlane’s study of four villages in Northern Ireland highlights how rural communities choose to define their communal identities and demarcate boundaries within a nation fraught with religious tension. In the predominantly Protestant village of Ballycuan the local history is recounted from a Protestant perspective. The July band marches also symbolised Protestant hegemony within the community and, as the local band master stated, ‘remind everyone that Ballycuan is a Protestant village.’^[19] Conversely, in the village of Glenleven, Protestants seemed to ‘present histories which appear to be much less certain about Protestant strengths.’^[20] This was due to their minority status in the town and the general consensus amongst all inhabitants that a good sense of community outweighed religious differences. This is an example of how rural inhabitants may choose to redefine the symbolic boundaries of their communities in order to accommodate a plurality of interests.

Conclusion

As Tuan emphasises, human territoriality and the creation of community is very different to that of the animals which is ‘unburdened by symbolic thought.’^[21] There is often ‘an emotional bond between man and nature, man and place.’^[22] Cohen’s and Mewett’s studies of rural island communities have highlighted this fact.

Community boundaries may be imposed by a variety of individuals or groups in accordance with how they perceive, or wish to perceive, their local society. Such symbolic representations are often crafted on the basis of class, gender or ethnicity but, as Cohen has shown, they can also be very subjective. Cohen also notes that the coming of improved transport linkages to rural communities and the mass market will offer new challenges to how people in the countryside identify themselves collectively. He is however confident that they will continue to define the symbols and boundaries which establishes one as ‘an integral piece of the fabric which constitutes the community.’^[23]

Bibliography

COHEN, A. P. Belonging: Identity and social Organisation in British rural Cultures, Manchester University Press, 1982

COHEN, A. P. Symbolising Boundaries: Identity and Diversity in British Cultures, Manchester University Press, 1986

COHEN, A. P. Whalsay: Symbol, Segment and Boundary In a Shetland Island Community, Manchester University Press, 1987

CRANG, M. Cultural Geography, Routledge, 1998

GIDDENS, A. Sociology, 5^th Edition, Polity Press, 2006

LEWIS, G. J. Rural Communities, David and Charles, 1979

LOWERTHAL, D. BOWDEN, M. J. Geographies of the Mind: Essays in Historical Geosophy, Oxford, 1976

MILBOURNE, P. Revealing Rural Others: Representation, Power and Identity in the British Countryside, Pinter, 1997

MITCHELL, D. Cultural Geography: A Critical Introduction, Blackwell, 2000

MUIR, R. The New Reading the Landscape: Fieldwork in Landscape History, University of Exeter Press, 2000

PENNING-ROWSELLE, E. C. LOWENTHAL, D. Landscape Meanings and Values, Allen and Unwin, 1986

SALTER, C. L. The Cultural Landscape, Dixbury Press, 1971

1

Critically assess the contention that “…identities are, plural, unstable, situationally enacted, and sites of contestation.”

The stability or otherwise of identity has become a major battleground for sociological theorists in recent times. The infamous ‘postmodern’ turn has rendered identity a deeply problematic phenomenon. In this paper I will investigate the claim that identities are unstable sites of contestation. I will do this by examining the dissolution of identity within postmodern theory before examining both the negative and more importantly, the positive consequences of this.^[1] This will enable a deeper understanding of precisely what is meant by this fluid notion of identity, and where possible criticisms and inconsistencies can be located within this theory.

The debate over the stability of identity is one that is inseparably linked to postmodernism. This diverse group of theories centre around, in Lyotard’s (1984:xxiv) famous phrase, ‘incredulity toward meta-narratives.’^[2] Postmodernists maintain that the project of modernity has failed, and that no single source or body of knowledge can legitimise itself as a universal measure of value or identity. This obviously has some profound effects on the ways in which we would normally think about the world. Postmodernism no longer allows us to theorise society into homogenous identities which can then be totalised in a grand-theory or meta-narrative. This is also the case when it comes to the identification of the self. Rather than the self maintaining a stable core of identity, from a postmodern perspective identity is fluid and is dependant upon where the self is historically and culturally situated. As Luntley (1985:185) notes, this conception of the self threatens the very possibility of self-identity:

The loss of self-identity is threatened because if we situated the self in real historical circumstances, we would situate it in things that are contingent and constantly changing. Therefore, the self would also be constantly changing. It would be in flux and would have no continuing identity.

Once the very identity of the self comes under threat, then so does the possibility of any coherency in social theorising. A postmodern society is one in which the identities of the social actors are undergoing constant transformation. Identity then becomes open to contestation as there is no longer any ultimate referent (truth, science, God etc.) to provide universal legitimation. In Lyotard’s terms, the impossibility of a grand or meta-narrative leads to the social being constructed of small narratives, none of which are necessarily more valid than another. Any theory that aims at totalising society should only be seen as one constructed from a particular perspective (e.g. one that still remains in the logic of modernity), rather than a totalising theory as such. Whilst postmodernism can be viewed as liberating and opening up seemingly limitless opportunities for re-theorising society, it does at the same time impose new problems. Firstly, there seems to be an inconsistency in the postmodernist stance, as it could be argued that the theory of the dissolution of meta-narratives is a type of meta-narrative itself. This criticism can also be applied to the postmodernist take on identity, for in arguing that identity is ultimately unstable and fluid postmodernists inadvertently provide a certain rigid structure in which identity operates (i.e. that all identity must be unstable). So whilst postmodernism is liberating on the one hand, on the other it sets limits to the very possibility of any meaningful social theory or practice. This is exemplified in the disparity between postmodern theorists, some of which view postmodernism as opening up huge opportunities for getting rid of authoritarian grand theories, others view it as essentially debilitating as the only thing that can prevail in postmodern societies is a sense of meaningless flux. Within this disagreement the postmodern analysis of identity remains reasonable intact, both sides of the argument largely accept that identity is fluid and unstable. By analysing this disagreement we can therefore obtain a better understanding of the various aspects of fluid identity.

Jean Baudrillard (1990:160-164) for example, argues that the dissolution of identity is a process that started in the nineteenth century and was exacerbated in the twentieth. In the postmodern era, historical processes have undermined the stability of identity, so that it becomes impossible to meaningfully theorise about social identity. Rigid identity and meaning are destroyed due to the rise of global capitalism and the demise of the referents from modernity (truth, purpose, meaning and so on). ‘Gone are the referentials of production, signification, affect, substance, history, and the whole equation of “real” contents’ (Baudrillard 1988:125). Identity now becomes a radically fluid and empty vessel, which becomes temporarily filled with content that has no foundation or ultimate meaning. Whilst for Baudrillard this cannot be thought of as a particularly positive or negative phenomenon, as ‘good’ or ‘bad’ no longer have any real meaning in postmodernity, it does render theoretical and political action largely impotent.^[3] This is why in postmodernism we are presented with numerous texts heralding the end of theory, history, meaning and so on.^[4] The dissolution of identity means for many postmodernists that theory and meaningful political action are no longer possible:

The end of history is, alas, also the end of the dustbins of history. There are no longer any dustbins even for disposing of old ideologies, old regimes, old values … Conclusion: if there are no more dustbins of history, this is because History itself has become a dustbin. It has become its own dustbin. Just as the planet itself is becoming its own dustbin. (Baudrillard 1994b:26)

The negative aspects of the lack of fixity and grounded meaning in identity are thus very evident. Laclau and Mouffe on the other hand, in Hegemony and Socialist Strategy, positively embrace the fluidity and instability of identity. Indeed, they argue that the impossibility of the closure of identity is what makes the social possible (1985:112). Society as such is therefore an impossible object for Laclau and Mouffe, as the field of identities is never fixed, but the continuing attempt to do this renders the possibility of the social. Society resists closure and remains eternally negotiable as the meanings produced to bind the social together are only temporarily fixed at nodal points by articulation (1985:11). Articulation is where social relations and identities are modified. Many differing types of articulations (political, cultural, scientific an so on) are capable of doing this, but the important thing for Laclau and Mouffe is that no one particular articulation totalises and restricts the ability for other articulations to operate freely. Laclau and Mouffe (1985:13) argue that their concept of hegemony recognises the plurality of struggles and attempts to engage with it:

The concept of ‘hegemony’ will emerge precisely in a context dominated by the experience of fragmentation and by the indeterminacy of the articulations between different struggles and subject positions.

Hegemony for Laclau and Mouffe refers to the ‘battleground’ of identity. As the identity of the social is fluid and open to negotiation, different types of social articulations and struggles will attempt to hegemonise society to gain recognition. While this attempt at hegemony in itself is not a negative practice for Laclau and Mouffe, successfully achieved hegemony is. It is therefore imperative that a strong egalitarian and democratic framework is in operation for this site of social hegemony. The advent of democracy is therefore a pivotal moment in social history. Here Laclau and Mouffe (1985:186-187) concur with Claude Lefort’s analyses of the ‘democratic revolution’. Society prior to democracy was thought of as a unified body with power being embodied through that of a sovereign monarch, who was the representative of a god or gods. After the democratic revolution, power becomes an empty space without reference to a transcendental guarantor or a representation of substantial social unity. A split occurs between the instances of power, knowledge, and the foundations of law which are no longer absolute. Without these foundations, no law can be fixed and everything is open to questioning. Society cannot be apprehended or controlled, the people become sovereign but their identity can never be totally given. But once we are in a democratic society, we are in danger of totalitarianism. This is because a purely social power can emerge after democracy has destroyed extra-social powers, which presents its power as total and extracts from itself alone the principles of law and knowledge. As there are no longer any foundations or a centre to political power, it becomes necessary to bind together political spaces through hegemonic articulations. But these articulations will always remain partial, as they have no ultimate foundation. Any attempt to deny the radically open nature of the social will lead to totalitarianism, be it a politics of the ‘left’ according to which every antagonism can be eliminated and society rendered transparent, or a fascist authoritarian fixing of the social into a rigid hierarchical state system. The democratic logic of equivalence can therefore be hegemonised into totalitarianism.

The radical openness of identity is therefore impinged with the danger of totalitarianism for Laclau and Mouffe.^[5] To avoid this, the diverse and fluid nature of identity should be embraced within an egalitarian and democratic framework, so no particular articulation may hegemonise social identity. This is difficult however as the ultimate lack of closure for identity leads to a necessarily antagonistic network of social relations. Antagonism is caused when a discursive form of one type of identity interrupts another’s discursive frame (1985:154). The inability of a particular identity to successfully assimilate the articulations of another leads to an internal antagonism that becomes the catalyst for a further modification of itself. Hence there is no stable core to any particular identity, identity is always shifting and changing. But this is also how a democratic framework can be constructed. As all identity is open, then democratic and egalitarian ideals can permeate different articulations to avoid totalitarianism:

[I]t is only from the moment when the democratic discourse becomes available to articulate the different forms of resistance to subordination that the conditions will exist to make possible the struggle against different types of inequality. (1985:154-155)

The openness of identity, once incorporated into a democratic framework, is therefore a positive and progressive phenomenon for Laclau and Mouffe. The impossibility of totalising society is embraced as an opportunity for new fields of thought to be created, free from the tyranny of authoritarianism. We can therefore see a great disparity between Baudrillard’s and Laclau and Mouffe’s notions of the openness of identity. Both perspectives fully accept the lack of stability in identity, yet for Baudrillard this leads to sociological and political impotence, whereas for Laclau and Mouffe this is seen as an opportunity for sociological and political creativity and action.

For many theorists however, the apparent differences or similarities between various postmodern theories of unstable identity are merely superficial.^[6] They claim that there are deeper problems and inconsistencies within this notion of identity itself. Zizek (2000:106-107), for example, claims that whilst Laclau and Mouffe are vehemently opposed to all forms of essentialism, and seek to affirm the radical contingency of the political and irreducibility of the social, they nonetheless have to rely on a formal existential a priori, such as ‘the logic of hegemony’. In other words, one of the main problems with this type of discourse is that in maintaining that identity and the social is radically open, it has to rely on a certain formal logic. Laclau and Mouffe have to rely on a ‘logic of hegemony’ as the natural state of identity formation and articulation, as they deny that the fluidity of identity is a historical phenomenon:

Only in contemporary societies is there a generalisation of the hegemonic form of politics, but for this reason we can interrogate the past, and find there inchoate forms of the same processes that are fully visible; and, when they did not occur, understand why things were different. (Laclau 2000:200)

This proposes that all social identity was always-already the result of hegemonic struggles, whilst it is only in our ‘postmodern’ world that we can recognise this. So while the maintaining of the openness of identity is a form of anti-essentialism, it is nonetheless only operable within a rigid essentialist framework. Zizek criticises this approach for its lack of historical analysis. For Zizek (2000:95) it is the process of contemporary global capitalism that has created the conditions for the demise of essentialist politics, and has led us to the ‘recognition’ of the irreducible plurality of identities.^[7] Zizek argues that Laclau and other proponents of this postmodern notion of identity do not analyse the logic that makes this possible, and therefore do not engage with any theoretical confrontation with it. In fact Zizek (1993:216) and other notable theorists argue that postmodern theories of identity are merely a product of capitalism and late modernity:^[8]

Far from containing any kind of subversive potentials, the dispersed, plural constructed subject hailed by postmodern theory simply describes the form of subjectivity that corresponds to late capitalism.’

Rather than postmodern identity being a liberating and revolutionary new way of rethinking the social, from this perspective it is merely a reaction of late modernity which fails to seriously engage with the major problematic of our time. It is in this sense that Hardt and Negri (2000:138) argue that ‘the postmodernist and postcolonialist strategies that appear to be liberatory would not challenge but in fact coincide with and even unwittingly reinforce the new strategies of rule.’ Postmodern notions of the fluidity of identity bring us to a political and theoretical impasse.^[9] But it could be argued that this is only the case if we accept postmodernism itself as a type of totalising theory. The notion of the fluidity of identity is useful and does open up new avenues of theorising and politicising. But as Zizek and others argue, the social and historical processes that have lead up to this should play a greater role in understanding modern or postmodern identity. Some postmodernists such as Baudrillard accept these historical processes, but insist that they are irreversible under a banner of the end of history. Others such as Laclau and Mouffe insist on the positive aspects of the instability of identity, and indeed even insist that it is unavoidable. But what both these positions share is the unavoidability of groundless identity, and the ultimate impossibility of creating positive content for identity. Laclau and Mouffe may argue that positive identity is possible, within a democratic framework. But the problem of failure remains unavoidable; all identity is either a failed attempt at hegemonising the social, or if successful then it is necessarily totalitarian as it denies the radical openness of identity as such. Even in this positive use of fluid identity, negativity is still very much inscribed into its operation. The lack of fixity in identity does indeed seem to correlate with modern or postmodern subjectivity, as Zizek argues above, but claims that make this a universal and necessary phenomenon are fraught with difficulties.

References

Baudrillard, J. (1988) Selected Writings. Cambridge: Polity Press

Baudrillard, J. (1994a) Simulacra and Simulation. Michigan: University of Michigan Press

Baudrillard, J. (1994b) The Illusion of the End. Cambridge: Polity Press

Bauman, Z. (1992) Intimations of Postmodernity. London: Routledge

Brockelman, T. (2003) ‘The failure of the radical democratic imaginary’, Philosophy and Social Criticism, vol 29 no2, pp 183-2

Butler, J., Laclau, E. and Zizek, S. (2000) Contingency, Hegemony, Universality. Contemporary Dialogues on the Left. London: Verso

Grillo, R.D. (1998) Pluralism and the Politics of Difference State, Culture, and Ethnicity in Comparative Perspective. Oxford : Clarendon Press

Fukuyama, F.(1992) The End of History and the Last Man. London: Hamish Hamilton

Hardt, M. and Negri, A. (2000) Empire. London: Harvard University Press

Laclau, E. and Mouffe, C. (1985) Hegemony and Socialist Strategy. Towards A Radical Democratic Politics. London: Verso

Lefort, C. (1988) Democracy and Political Theory. Cambridge: Polity Press

Lyotard, J-F. (1984) The Postmodern Condition: A Report on Knowledge. Manchester: Manchester University Press

Sim, S. (1986) ‘Lyotard and the Politics of Antifoundationalism’, Radical Philosophy, Autumn no 44, pp 8-13

Zizek, S. (1993) Tarrying with the Negative. Kant, Hegel and the Critique of Ideology. Durham: Duke University Press

Zizek, S. (1999) The Zizek Reader. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers

Zizek, S. and Daly, G. (2004) Conversations with Zizek. Cambridge: Polity Press

1

Societal Influences on Our Identities: A brief look at the identity formation ofmultiracial/multiethnic individuals

To many, the growing number of interracial marriages foreshadows a society where race is no longer a defining characteristic. Since the Supreme Court’s 1967 (Loving vs. Virginia) decision to nullify laws discounting interracial marriages, the rate of interracial marriages and unions in the United States has experienced a significant increase. However, it was not until the 2000 U.S. Census, over 30 years after Loving vs. Virginia, that a multiracial category first emerged, enabling the option of selecting multiple races. According to the 2000 U.S. Census, close to seven million Americans (1 in 40) identified themselves as multiracial/multiethnic. The 2010 Project Race findings “projected [multiracial individuals] as the fastest growing demographic group in the country,” citing researchers that predict that by 2050, 1 in 5 Americans will be classifying themselves as multiracial (2010 Project Race). So what implications does this have for our society? Should this even be viewed as a significant change in the nation’s demographics? In order for our society to embrace its diversity, we need to promote cultural competence in all aspect of society, from our living rooms down to the work place and classrooms. With an increase in immigration, cross-cultural adoptions, single-parent households, and interracial neighborhoods, it has become crucial for society to understand the implications of culture and race on our identities. And the nation’s journey to a culturally aware and accepting society begins at the core of individual identity.

A great number of scholarly research has disproved theories that advocate the biological aspect of race, instead proposing that the concept of race is socially constructed and has no biological significance. It does, however, have a very apparent and crucial social significance. Race theory regards race as “an interactive process, where both the perceptions of others and one’s own understanding of his racial identity shape his/her identity formation” (Bedley, 3). In order to better understand racial and ethnic influences on our identities, it must first be acknowledged and established that racial differences exist only in the social construct of our society. In other words, although not universally, in American society, the White experience differs from the Black experience, which differs from the Latino experience, and so forth. In the context of a multiracial/multiethnic individual, the process of integrating the individual’s “own understanding of his racial identity,” and the “perceptions of others” becomes more complex.

Research prior to Loving vs. Virginia (1967) was primarily geared towards a monoracial individual’s identity formation, where the identity formation of a White individual was regarded as the social norm. In studying the results of such research, it became evident to those of the social sciences that there were significant differences in the identity development and formation of White individuals when compared to Blacks, Hispanics, and other races. And although much advancement has been made in an effort to capture, more accurately, the differences in the identity formation and development of a multiracial individual when compared to their monoracial counterpart, “research on the multiracial population has been largely theoretically driven without substantial empirical investigation into how mixed-race people form a multiracial identity” (Bedley, 1). Once again, it is important to reaffirm that such differences in identity formation and development do not stem from a biological precursor, but rather from social hierarchies present in our society. Furthermore, theorists have long debated the “nature versus nurture theory,” concluding that both, environment and biology influence our development. Our cultural and societal experiences have a profound effect on how we perceive the world we live in, and future experiences. However, because of the social significance of race, specifically in our society’s history, ecological factors influence our identity formation equally.

Before continuing the discussion on the significance of understanding the identity formation of a multiracial individual, it is important to note that the U.S. Census views race and ethnicity as two separate and distinct categories. However, in this paper, the terms multiracial and multiethnic are used interchangeably based on scholarly research that implies that the basic identity developmental track of both, multicultural and multiracial adolescent is similar (Bracey, Bamaca, & Umana-Taylor, 2004). For example, although Hispanics can be categorized under the White racial category, the term Hispanics/Latinos is representative of an array of different ethnic groups and not racial. In American society, Hispanics/Latinos are not subject to the same opportunities and privileges that are available to Whites, and so are classified as their own group, separate from Whites (Bracey, Bamaca, & Umana-Taylor, 2004). For the purposes of this paper, Whites and Hispanics are classified as a separate racial group due to the variety of their distinctive cultural and societal experiences. Furthermore, although Hispanics are comprised of several distinct ethnicities, their experiences in our society reflect great similarities, allowing for them to be grouped together under one umbrella. Implications of the research reviewed in this paper can be effectively applied to young first generation immigrants as well.

So what exactly is identity? It has been a fundamental question examined since before the time of Socrates. Rene Descartes statement “I think, therefore I am” simplistically captures the essence of identity. Psychologists define identity as self-image; in essence, it is “an individual person’s sense of self,” or rather, perception of self (WordIQ 2010). According to Hartman and Hartman (2003), “identity develops over one’s lifetime and is influenced by childhood and adolescent socialization as well as adult experiences” (Hartman & Hartman, 38). Our personal identity is multifaceted; our gender, our interests, our careers, our relationships and roles all influence our own definition of our self as a whole. We are what we think we are. But human beings are a social animal. Integrated into our sense of self is also our social identity. What we think is influenced by our peers. Sociologists assert that social identity is an “individuals’ labeling of themselves as members of particular groups” (WordIQ, 2010). Our perception of our self and the group that we perceive our self to belong to goes hand in hand. It can be inferred that identity formation, therefore, is the process of forming such interrelated and mutually influential self-definitions and perceptions. Researchers in the social sciences have identified several factors that influence the identity formation of a multiracial/multiethnic adolescent. Among the identified factors are included: “family experiences, physical appearance, social networksaˆ¦race relations, gender, class, speaking a language other than English as well as region of the United States where the mixed-race person resides all play a role in multiracial identity construction and maintenance” (Bedley, 8). Although most adolescents encounter some confusion when forming their own definition of their self, as well as their relation to their environment, group, and larger society, adolescents who are a part of multiple groups may find the process to be more complex.

McGoldrick and Giordano (1996) have suggested that our ethnicity is a powerful determinant of our identity. Ethnicity is a self-perceived, socially constructed, phenomenon that is fluid over the course of time. MacDonald-Dennis (2006) defines ethnicity as the “identity that people who share a unique social and cultural history pass from one generation to another” (MacDonald-Dennis, 268). These groups of people share common cultural traits such as religion, language, practices, and solidarity (a sense of we-ness). MacDonald-Dennis (2006) further expresses that, in the United States, ethnicity inevitably subsides as the assimilation process into mainstream society intensifies. In other words, as we become functional members of society, our ethnicity begins to take a back seat. Although we may begin to minimize the affect of our ethnicity as we begin to assimilate into mainstream society, it continues to have a profound impact on our socialization, and consequently our sense of self.

According to Erikson (1968), an individual faces identity crisis during the years of adolescence, the period wherein peer acceptance is of utmost importance. Thus, identity formation can be viewed as the main mission of adolescence. Unfortunately, Erikson’s stages of identity formation do not account for adolescents who are facing the dilemma of being a part of more than one culture or race. The developmental identity of a multiracial adolescent, thus, may differ greatly from that of their monoethnic/monoracial counterparts. The multiracial/multiethnic teen may receive one type of message alluding to his identity from his family, and a variety of others from the outside world, including his friends, teachers, and the media.

Numerous factors determine the identity development of a multiracial/multiethnic individual. Many multiracial individuals adopt the looking glass self model. They internalize society’s reflection of their identity, basing their identities primarily on those perceptions. The looking-glass self is the phenomenon where identity is shaped in accordance with society’s perceptions. Outside of the home, society might group the multiracial individual with the race he/she phenotypically resembles, whether or not the individual themselves identifies with that specific group. The looking-glass self model is most apparent during the adolescent years of life. Erikson placed adolescence from the ages of 12 to 19. According to Erikson (1950), during this phase of life, the adolescent is concerned with how they appear to others. Bracey et al. (2004) asserted that identity development and self-esteem are vital processes that occur during the years of adolescence. These processes greatly impact an individuals’ development throughout their lifespan. Our socialization constantly impacts of self-esteem and self-image. As important as family socialization is in terms of identity formation, peer socializing can play a major role in identification as well. The adolescent believes that the perceptions of others match, or should match, their own perception of themselves.

The extent of societal influence on our socialization, and consequently our identity formation is immense. Even though the multiracial individual might identify more with one part of his race, in-group discrimination may affect the acceptance and assimilation of that person into the group. Moreover, if the individual grows up in a community who is largely comprised of one of their two races/cultures, they will, more likely than not, identify with the majority population. Some research infers that mixed individuals with one White parent might identify as being White due to the socially assigned privileges associated with that group. As discussed, our social environment plays a large role in the perception of ethnicity and race because, not only does our community and societal perceptions impact our development, the society in which we reside defines these perceptions.

Multiracial/multiethnic adolescents may often experience peer pressure to choose one group of membership and abandon the other part of their heritage; others may grow up in households that don’t place high importance to race or ethnicity and may consequently end up confused because they are being pushed to choose between groups with which they don’t define themselves. According to Padilla (2006), a multiracial individuals’ identity development is greatly impacted by both societal acceptance and parental socialization. According to Fish and Semans (2000), ethnic identity not only influences an individuals’ perception of self, it also influences familial interaction and connection. Jourdan (2006) asserts that family environment plays a “significant role in [our] ability to develop secure ethnic identities”. Having the support of family members positively correlates with the positive ethnic identity of the multiethnic individual. According to research conducted by Harris and Sim (2002) multiracial “adolescents are identifying differently in different situations” (Bedley, 6). Accordingly, when parents support and promote their child’s exploration of their ethnicity, the children may find themselves able and having to shift identities when the situation calls for it. For example, when in the presence of member from one race/ethnicity, the child might exhibit characteristics of that race; when in the presence of members from their other race/ethnicity, the child will probably adapt characteristics for that specific group. This demonstrates the racial fluidity, which, when adequately supported by parents, can benefit the child’s development of a secure identity.

As aforementioned, adolescence is the time where we define ourselves by what we believe others define us as, and so cliques are formed. In elementary school, or preadolescence, friendships are based on gender and interests, not ethnicity. However, as we grow up and start understanding the basis with which society defines us, we begin to reflect it within our own definition of our self. Moving through secondary school, we begin to notice a shift in our peer socialization. The White kids hang out with other White kids, the Asians with other Asians, and so on. During that phase of our lives, we define ourselves by what we have in common with others. The most obvious basis of commonality is based off of appearance (phenotype) and ethnicity. Clubs such as the Asian Cultural Club, Hispanic Club, and the Colored Students Society are common in high schools. These clubs endorse ethnic solidarity among adolescence. As discussed, multiracial identity is greatly impacted by the self-labeling of multiracial individuals, their own families, and the larger society.

Researchers, in the past, have operated under the assumption that because multiracial individuals were viewed as outsiders by both of their racial groups, they would encounter identity problems, and thus exhibit low self-esteem. Scholars have emphasized that the extent to which we identify with our identity greatly influences our social and psychological well-being. Theorist in the past, such as Lewin (1948), have suggested that the marginal person, a minority who is in want of acceptance by the dominant group in society, has moved away from his/her own group in hopes of attaining that acceptance, will suffer from psychological distress if unaccepted by the dominant group. According to the contemporary bicultural view, however, an individual doesn’t necessarily encounter psychological unrest when they are part of two or more cultures/races. Binning et al. (2009) “disputed the claims of psychological problems associated with having a multiracial identity,” finding instead many benefits related to their racial fluidity (Garbarini-Phillippe, 4). These new research imply that multiracial individual person doesn’t necessarily chose either or, but instead, is able to acknowledge and internalize both cultures/races in a positive and healthy manner. Instead, having internalized their racial fluidity, the multiracial/multiethnic person is well adjusted and eager to form relations with people of different backgrounds because he/she is socially flexible.

The implications of our ethnicity and race, as well as our relation to that aspect of our being, on our personal views and worldview is indubitably recognized by our society in such a way that it is depicted in several television shows, various facets of our arts, and even fictional novels. Although factual research is unconfidently supported by fictional work, readers can identify with the statement that we write what we know. Writers create and recreate a world and perspectives through their experiences, understanding of human behavior and relations, and previously attested or newly explored knowledge of the message they are giving a voice to. Furthermore, fictional and nonfictional illustrations can act as a conduit to express such scientific findings, as discussed in this paper, via laymen’s terms. It is far more interesting to read about a young first generation immigrant struggling to combine his ethnic heritage with his American heritage than to read a study about the assimilation of immigrants. It is much more intriguing to accompany an African American woman on her journey to discover her African and White ancestry than to read studies about multiracial individuals and their sense of self or dry articles about slavery and its psychological impact. As such, there is some basis to use novels to illustrate the findings of scientific research.

In his novel Famous All Over Town, Dan James (a.k.a. Danny Santiago) illustrates the impact of our ethnic and racial ties to our identity and experiences. The guidance counselor of James’s protagonist, Rudy, urges the young Mexican American to jump on the chance to visit Mexico and “find [his] roots! Discover [his] identity” (Santiago, 205). While experiencing his life through the narrator’s point of view, readers are introduced to the identity conflict that many first generation immigrants experience. The author successfully portrays the differences between immigrants and their American born children. The guidance counselor must recognize the internal conflict of the young boy who conforms to his neighborhood gang because they are his brethren, all the while wondering whether he can break through the predestined mould and become a doctor. Although assessed as exceptionally intelligent in Middle School, Rudy’s grades and test scores dramatically decrease as he moves out of the 6th grade. Teens often go through identity crisis in adolescence, which can explain why Rudy becomes disheartened about his future and education, as he begins to need acceptance by his group, and feel a sense of belonging to his group. Readers are constantly reminded of the collectiveness of the group of Mexicans living on Rudy’s street.

Another character that illustrates the marginal person (as discussed earlier) is Virgie, the American-born Mexican woman in the neighborhood. She is a part of two worlds, an internal struggle that is subconsciously expressed through her constant switch in speech, from spoken English to spoken Spanish. She is so much at odds with her own self that she has even dyed her hair in an apparent attempt to conceal her Mexican roots and appear more American. The reader can only imagine Virgie as a teenager, struggling to find a balance between her Mexican ethnicity and her American culture. However, as the discussed research demonstrates, the marginality of a multiethnic individual is not as harmful, if handled with cultural competence.

Although today, we have the freedom to self-associate as we please, having the option of associating with one, the other, or both of our ethnicities, it was not always the case. In our nation’s history, multiracial children were regarded as belonging to the “lesser race,” as defined by the society of the time. If a “Westerner” were to impregnate a native America, the offspring would be regarded as Native American. If a White slave owner were to rape his slave, their offspring would be born into slavery, and regarded as Black. Slavery laws established that the illegitimate child of a slave and master would be born as his mother. Only if the mother was a freed slave, would the child be a free. In her novel Kindred, Octavia Butler portrays this type of labeling and societal prejudice. Rufus, the distant, White, ancestor of the narrator, Dana, struggles with his feelings for Alice, the daughter of a free slave. Throughout the novel, Dana often comments on the similarities and dissimilarities between Rufus and his father, fearing that he would inevitably grow up to be a slave owner like his dad. As we follow Rufus through his childhood into adolescence and adulthood, we witness the strong influence of societal expectations, social norms, and parental influence on the character.

As Rufus becomes more comfortable in his role as Master, and his White superiority, he begins to pursue his desires more aggressively. Although it is evident to the reader that he harbors real feelings for Alice, his struggle with the slave-master dynamics distorts those feelings. Rufus purchases the free Alice, and subsequently rapes her again and again. Alice bares many of Rufus’ children, all of whom are enslaved just like their mother. It is Alice’s wish that Rufus free their children that keeps her hanging around for so long. And although the children are half White, they are rejected the same privileges that are rejected to Black slave children, such as education. Their ethnicity is defined for them, by society; they have no say in it.

Butler explores interracial experiences through various other forms in the novel. Dana, a physically appearing Black woman with some distant White ancestry, is married to Kevin, a White man. The reader is introduced to the dynamics of the relationship, as well as some of the obstacles they have had to overcome in order to get and remain married. When they were courting, colleagues mocked and commented on their relationship. When they introduced each other to their families, Kevin was shocked to discover his sister’s narrow mindedness. Dana’s family had a different reaction to Kevin’s. Dana, although having some White ancestry, was raised as African American. Her aunt eventually accepted him because “any children [they] will have will be light”aˆ¦ and not “too ‘highly visible’” (Butler, 111). Her uncle, on the other hand, was far more apprehensive, wanting her to “marry someone like him- someone who looks like him. A Black man” (Butler, 111). Group solidarity and belonging is taken personally. Herein we also find illustrated the impact of our physical appearance towards our identification of ourselves, as well as our identification with others. Furthermore, societal preference of lighter skin is made apparent by Dana’s aunt’s acceptance in hopes that the offspring of the couple will be lighter skinned. The societal preference of White and the social dominance of the White race is also a theme in Toni Morrison’s short story, The Bluest Eye. The narrator finds herself despising the dolls she is gifted again and again. These dolls, with their blue eyes, are society’s definition of beautiful.

These three authors convey the bitter reality of deep-rooted discrimination and stereotyping in our society. Their novels illustrate the internal conflicts and explorations of their characters. These protagonists all struggle to find a balance between the two halves of themselves, whether it is an American-born Mexican teen, or a Black woman with White ancestry. They encounter societal influences that factor into their own identities. Through these characters, the differences between monoracial/monoethnic development and multiracial/multiethnic development become apparent.

As our society evolves, the racial and ethnic boundaries that once separated different demographics begin to merge. The growing numbers of multiracial/multiethnic individuals in our nation is a testament to such an evolution. And although surface discrimination and racism has faded, such separatist practices are engraved deep within our roots. Shang (2008) asserts that “most schools and neighborhoods are still segregated, hate crimes are on the rise, and lack of equality and social justice still affects many institutions” (Garbarini-Philippe, 2). As such, it is rational to conclude that our ethnicity and race still has a huge impact on our socialization, and our understanding of our selves. This is not necessarily a bad thing. We are all the product of our parents, and although our futures are not defined by that biological tie, our identity, our experiences within society, and even the opportunities we are offered, are all, in some ways, influenced by our race, even in today’s time.

Society has to be well equipped to effectively supplement multiracial/multiethnic identities. Doing so will encourage a more tolerant and diverse society, which will be free of not only surface racism, but also deeply rooted institutional racism. Understanding the basic identity formation of the multiracial adolescent (for adolescence is when our identity experiences the most profound evolution) will help us to understand the identity formation of the future generations, therein better preparing us to meet the needs of an ever-evolving society.

The following project shall disscuss the concept of identity fromation and development on the World Wide Web. Both pschological and sociological theories shall be used in an attempt to accertain and explain the relatavaly new concept of online identity. The first part of the discussion shall focus on the various pshcological and sociological theories which are used to explain the development and formation of identity. There are various services on the internet which allow an individual to display there real world identity and services which even allow an individual create a whole new identity. The paper shall examine why indivduals would want to partake in the use of such services and use sociological and psychological theories to explain these reasons. Social Networking Sites are one of mechanisms which an individual can use to dsiplay their real world identity online. Facebook is one such site and how this affects and contributes to identity construction shall be discussed with the use of both psychological and sociaological theories. The second internet setting the paper shall focus on are more anonymous sites where users communicate through the medium of digital text. These sites include blogs, support groups and so on. Finnaly a setting known as Second life where the possibilites of expereminting with identity are endless, shal be explored. The rationale behing examining these three areas is to accertain the differing approaches too how identity is managed and produced in SNS’s, Annonymous online settings and virtual worlds and the different affects these online evironments have on peoples real world identities.

The question of identity, how it’s developed and shaped is one of the major questions within the social sciences. (Erikson cited in Kroger, 2007) suggests that there are two dynamics at play in the construction and development of identity. Firstly he refers to identity synthesis where the individual incorporates the various aspects of development into a more self determined identity. Basically in this instance individuals develop their identity through the picking and choosing of various aspects of their identity in an effort to stabilise the identity they present to the world. Secondly identity confusion occurs when the individual fails to integrate the various aspects of their identity into a consistent identity across situations and time. (Erikson cited in Kroger,2007) did acknowledge that there was always going to be an element of identity confusion at play; however he argues that when identity confusion was more dominant then the synthesis of identity it causes problems for the individual.

(Erikson cited in Kroger,2008) outlines eight stages of identity development. It is beyond the scope of this paper to analyse in any great detail Erikson’s eight stages, however a brief mention of these stages is required. The eight stages he outlines are Trust vs. Mistrust, Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt, Initiative vs. Guilt, Industry vs. Inferiority, Identity vs. Role Confusion, Intimacy vs. Isolation, Generativity vs. Absorption and lastly Integrity vs. Despair. As is obvious from these stages there are both negative and positive outcomes at each stage, with each stage influencing future stages. For instance a child who fails to receive adequate care in their first year of life may learn not to trust hence having negative consequences for future stages. If an individual has little trust in people they may find it difficult to form intimate relationships in later life. This is not to say identity development happens in a linear manner. For example the first stage of development may be a positive experience; however the second stage may be negative. While an individual may not have negotiated a positive second stage, they may still be able to apply the positive experience in the first stage to the third or fourth stage of development. The negotiation of the various stages is influenced by both personal and social circumstances. Personal values and expectations may need to be renegotiated in order to adapt to various social norms and values. Erikson believed this process occurred at the ego level and individuals unconsciously negotiate between the personal self and the self presented to the world (Erikson,cited in Kroger, 2004). In contrast (Rogers,2004) would suggest that those who base their identity on the approval of others are not a fully function (Self Actualised) human being. Rogers suggests that the fully functioning human being has an internal sense of self worth and doesn’t have to look outside themselves for approval in relation to their identity. Rogers based his assumptions on the humanistic school of psychology and believed that each human being was born good and motivated by an innate desire to reach their fullest potential. He went on to contend that it was outside conditions placed upon the individual which were at the root of the majority of psychological suffering. Children who grow up in an environment where they learn that they are only worthwhile if they follow certain conditions will always look to outside sources for a sense of self worth. In one sense this theory may sound very individualistic and indicate that an individual is self centred if they don’t seek some sort of approval from others, however Rogers would contend that the fully functioning person would have a natural concern for the wellbeing and development of others (Rogers, 2008) This idea that outside sources cause distress for individuals is also evident in the sociological writings of Zigmund Bauman (2000). He refers to the concept of a “liquid modernity” which produces both freedom and insecurity for the modern individual. He proposes that individuals are now in a state of self determination in way of identity development. Individuals are creating their identity through the consumption of the next product which will define who they are momentarily. Such a choice creates a paradox where on one hand the individual experiences greater freedom, but on the other hand experiences the burden and anxiety of having to choose their own identity. The burden and anxiety of having to choose may not amount to a personal freedom (Buaman,2000) It could be suggested that Bauman and Rogers are not that different in the sense that both of them suggest that individuals experience distress from looking outside themselves for a sense of self worth and identity. Remaining with sociological theories we now turn our attention to the impact of social structures on identity.

The sociological approach to identity would contend that there is a two way relationship between the self and society. This suggests that society and the individual each create and form one another (Newman, 2010). (Brofenbrenner, 1979) suggests that social structures such as institutions and social practices influence the individual, while the individual also influences the construction of these social structures. Social structures may not always be physical institutions and can often be socially constructed ideas such as family, father, mother, religion etc. Brofenbrenner’s uses Ecological Systems Theory to explain how both the individual and their environment interact to construct and shape identity. He identifies the environment as a “set of nested structures each inside the next like a set of Russian dolls” (Brofenbrenner, 1979, p3). By this he means that the various structures both human and social can all interact upon and with one another to contribute to an individual’s identity. He outlined four aspects/layers of what he termed the environment. Firstly the individual’s microsystem constituted the child’s immediate environment where the individual has contact family, caregivers and organisations which look after the welfare of the child. The way in which the individuals and groups interact with the child will determine how the child will act and develop. However this is a two way street and how the child acts towards both the organisations and individuals will determine how the child develops. Secondly he spoke about the Mesoystem. This is where the different elements of the child’s Microsystem work together to for the welfare of the child. As he points out a child going to school doesn’t guarantee the child will receive a good education. He suggests that how well the child’s school and parents interact would be a major factor in how the child developed in the learning environment. Moving on from the Mesosystem he went on to speak about the Exsosystem which is a system that the child may not often interact with but nevertheless can be affected by. This system includes areas such as the parent’s work place, the community, a parents network of friends. For instance if a work place provides childcare or parental leave this will affect relationship between child and parent and the relationship between the parent and work. Finally he refers to the Macrosystem which is the most outer layer of the Childs environment. This includes the culture and laws ideologies which influence and are influenced by the other systems. Elaborating on this he argues that countries differ at the Macrosystem for the obvious reasons such as ideologies, laws and so on. As well as this, how the Macrosystem interacts with systems at a national level can be affected by socio economic statues, race, sex etc. So while there may be a blueprint for society, how such a blue print works is determined by the various aspects mentioned (Brofenbrenner,1979). Stryker cited in (Stets, 2006) also theorised about how structures and individuals interacted to influence identity, however he focused on the roles an individual plays and how these are ordered in a hierarchy.

What he terms salience hierarchy, explains how an individual may be more committed to a specific identity then others. Such commitment is influenced by the time and resources allocated a specific role. For instance religious or family structures can greatly influence behaviours in other roles. Such an approach proposes that while, identity is not fixed there is a hierarchal nature to the presentation of identity in different contexts and situations. Basicaly all these theories are suggesting that identity changes according to personal and social circumstances. Who i am today may not be who i am tomorrow or in 6 months. Who i am in certain situations is not who i am in other situations. Different people will describe me in different contexts. Looking at identity in this sense would suggest that identity is far from a fixed concept. As Cote etal (2002)suggests, the notion of an identity which is not fixed is more evident in modern times then in the past. They suggest that in the past identity was a more fixed concept where individual’s identities were often developed in response to roles and norms prescribed by family and society. However in modern society individuals are presented with choice rather than obligation. A place where the freedom to choose identity is highly evident in the world of SNS’s.

SNS’s Provide a space where individuals can present their identity and develop and maintain social networks. The functions of such sites vary and can be orientated towards a variety of human and social activities. Individuals can connect with people they already know in the real world or connect with new people. Also SNS’s can be orientated towards various aspects of personal life such as romantic endeavours and exploration of the various aspects of oneself. Many SNS’S are designed in a way which enables individuals to create profiles which share their interests, values and personal information with others. While these sites often promote the sharing of information there are privacy functions on the majority of sites which enable the individual to determine who sees what information (Ellison et al,2007). The below image displays a Facebook page in its infancy before various information is applied

Facebook was created in 2004 by a Harvard student for the purpose of intra campus socialising. This spread outside of the realm of colleges and campuses and is now one of the most widely used SNS’S on the internet (Awl, 2009). The above picture demonstrates how many individuals can now access the internet and display and choose an Identity with a level of flexibility and control which is not possible in the real world. SNS’s provide an avenue where identities can be both constructed and tested. The above image illustrates that an individual has a blank canvas through which they can construct and change their identity with the click of a button. . The type of information sought in the above profile ranges from quite personal information such as date of birth, where one lives to an individual writing something about oneself. Likes and dislikes are all so questioned on the page. Such a page provides an extensive amount of information about ones identity. Even the “begin editing your profile” points to an invite to create and manage identity. Joinson (2008) highlights the fact that individuals may use SNS’s as a form of surveillance in order to ascertain what type of behaviours and norms are present in offline groups they belong too. He argues that it is a instant form of evaluating what type of norms and values are accepted in a particular group. As mentioned earlier identity is far from a fixed concept and individuals often present themselves in different ways depending on the environment they find themselves in. Facebook has a privacy feature which allows users to determine the amount of information available in different contexts. For example a user can choose to block certain people or only allow certain aspects of information and photos to be visible to certain individuals. This is very similar to how individuals present their identity in offline interactions. Individuals may act different in their personal lives to how they act in work. The privacy function almost equals the part of an individual that mediates the various aspects of themselves which they present in different contexts in real life (Zhao et al, 2008). While the aforementioned details outline how Facebook is used, the question still remains why would an individual want to display their real world identity online?

(Maslow, 1970) stressed that one of the essential needs of a human being was to have a sense of belonging and have human contact. Many individuals are competent in meeting this need, in face to face interaction with other individuals, however as (Martin et al,2007) & (McKenna,2002) suggest there are individuals who are unable to meet this need due to a personal inability to interact in social situations. A sense of loneliness may lead to an individual seeking belonging online, which wouldn’t require the same social skills required in face to face interactions. They point to research which suggests that loneliness can often be a stable personality trait. The research they conducted presented 283 undergraduate students with a survey which measured their internet use, reasons for using the internet and also measured their degree of loneliness using the UCLA (University of California, Los Angeles) Loneliness scale. Their findings suggested that lonely individuals differed greatly from non lonely users in their reasons for using the internet. Lonely individuals used the internet for social interaction, meeting new people and emotional support. These authors go on to suggest that the internet provides an environment which reduces inhibitions and enables socially inhibited individuals to be more open and create intimate connections which they may be unable to develop in the real world. This begs another question what causes this sense of loneliness in individuals? (Weis cited in Rotenberg et al, 1973) captures well the two forms of loneliness caused by both societal and personal circumstances. Firstly he suggests that social loneliness is the absence or lack of social networks which can only be remedied by access to social networks which support the individual. Secondly he suggests that emotional loneliness develops from the lack or loss of an emotional attachment, which can be rectified by initiation or replacement of an emotional attachment. Many studies suggest a strong link between a sense of belonging and early attachment relationships. Both (Ainsworth,1978) and (Bowlby,1978) suggested that the type of attachment which an individual experiences in early life can determine how individuals behave in future relationships. If they had a negative experience with their attachment figure in early childhood they may not trust future attachments with other individuals. This can create avoidance of relationships and an inability to create and sustain new relationships, which may lead to a sense of loneliness While there may be some merit in the notion that some individuals posses a stable loneliness personality trait, Franklin (2009) would argue that loneliness developed as an issue due to the weakening of community and social bonds which started to occur throughout the 1960’s and 1970’s.

In a sociological context loneliness can be explained through the cultural and societal processes which cause loneliness within the individual (Christensen et al, 2003). Bauman (2002) would suggest that social bonds and communities have diminished and individuals are now defying themselves through consumption. Individuals are in a constant state of redefining themselves through consuming the next product which will momentarily quench the desire for personal pleasure. Such consumption gives the individual the ability to choose their identity which was once determined by society and family. Consumption replaces the pleasure which in the past was derived from human bonds and relationships (Bauman, 2000). However this replacement may only act as a band aid for the loss of social bonds and relationships. In the modern world where individualism and a fast pace of life has taking root it may be argued that SNS’s such as Facebook (like consumerism) provide an accessible and simple way of giving an individual greater choice and control over their identity. As Urista et al(2008) suggests modern individuals are intense consumers of technological products which provide instant results. This goes on to affect the consumers behaviour by creating a individual that becomes impatient and expects quick results in other areas of life. SNS’S provides the perfect platform for individuals who want quick and easy contact with others. A further hypothesis may be that loneliness created by the consumption culture influences the individual to seek out a sense of belonging on the World Wide Web. If we were to apply aspects of (Bauman’s,2000) Liquid Modernity theory both hypothesis could be said to be relevant to SNS usage. To suggest that SNS are only used by individuals who are seeking a sense of belonging would not give a full picture of why individuals use SNS’s. As (Ellison,2007) comments individuals who are going through the transition of moving away from home to attend college can benefit from the fact that they can stay connected with old friends and connecting with new friends on Facebook. He argues that it may be easier for some individuals to start making new friends at college through the medium of Facebook (Ellison2007).

There are various other avenues of communication which would be much more anonymous then SNS’s in the sense that there may be no pictures and individuals may only converse through the medium of digital text. This can range from sharing information with online support groups to chatting in online chat rooms. In many cases the information provided may be an accurate presentation of one’s real identity, however there are cases where the information provided may be totally inaccurate and misleading. Such misleading information may be minimal where individual’s present aspects of their personality that are not accurate or provide totally misleading information about their age, gender or physical appearance Turkle (1995).http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRw5VZNrTB4XO7ZlteKJcDETvo0ExKg3EzkQh7f5By5wH2pUPhV

http://www.cartoonstock.com/newscartoons/cartoonists/mly/lowres/mlyn1171l.jpg

The above image displays how and individual can use SNS’s and the internet to present a totally false picture of who they are. (Donath, 1998) suggests that in the offline world the physical self is a part of identity which to a large extent cannot be disguised. However in the online world this is not the case and identity is often formed through the delivery of information about oneself. This image captures the extent to which information in anonymous online communities can often be very far removed from the real world. A study carried out by (Blinkah& Smahel,2009) carried out a study on how younger teenagers used weblogs and their inclination to lie about various aspects of their identity such as age, interests, sex and the existence of make believe partners. However they do question if the misrepresentations the teenagers present of themselves should be considered as lying. They suggest that younger adolescents are under more pressure to transcend from a child identity to an adult identity and, what they are presenting may only be a representation of their ideal self’s(Blinkah& Smahel,2009). According to Erikson adolescents need to interact with the world and people in it in order to form their identity. It could be argued that the less anonymous sites may provide a virtual playground where adolescents can experiment with their identity. As Greenfield etal (2006) points out a primary aspect of adolescent development is the process of redefinition through creation and recreation of identities. While this may be positive in some circumstances, research from Milani et al (2009) would argue that some teens who use the internet as a source of socialising may develop Problematic Internet Use (PIU). They suggest teens that use the internet for collecting information or learning are less likely to develop PIU. Teenagers with low quality interpersonal relationships tend to use internet as an avoidance mechanism in an attempt to avoid the stress caused by face to face interactions. What is somewhat ironic is that there are now online support groups and therapists which assist individuals with the issues just mentioned. The two most common forms of communication used in these settings are statements of support and self disclosure. There are positive forces at play in such environments as they provide a relatively anonymous environment where individuals can avoid the stigma of visiting mental health professional’s offline. (Wood, 2001). However as (Tardinie et al,2005) would argue online interaction fails to produce both the physical and emotional aspects which are core to a sense of offline interaction. As (Kraus et al 2004) argues, trust may be an issue with online support groups and therapists, as language is the only vehicle which can be used to establish the authenticity of these groups and therapists. What is very obvious is that, the complex relationship between offline and online interactions serve to impact upon identity formation and development. For instance if an individual is trying to avoid the stigma of visiting a mental health professional by going online they are using the internet as a medium to manage the identity they are presenting in the real world. There are other positive aspects to these anonymous settings. (Turkle,1995) would contend that information sharing in the virtual world is often free of the constraints which gender, race and age often produce in face to face interaction. When these aspects of identity are not in play communication may be free from prejudices produced by these aspects of identity. (Boyd,2003) conveys much of the same assumptions when she contends that limitations experienced by marginalised individual’s offline can be lessened online due to the fact that they may not be constrained by the limitations of physical appearance or poor social skills. A form of online service known as 2nd life goes further than both SNS’s and the more anonymous online settings by giving an individual the ability to create a whole new identity and belong in a world which is void of any real reality http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRw5VZNrTB4XO7ZlteKJcDETvo0ExKg3EzkQh7f5By5wH2pUPhV

It differs greatly from the other aspects of online identity which we have already mentioned. The below picture demonstrates how a number of individuals are all sitting beside each other in the real world, but interacting with avatars in a virtual world just like Second Life.

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This picture presents a peculiar scenario. These individuals are in close enough proximity to each other to engage in real world interaction; however they have opted to engage in a virtual world based on fantasy. They are playing out different identities through the medium of technology while sitting right next to each other. One of the most popular virtual worlds on the internet is a service called Second Life. The name really outlines the nature of what this virtual world is all about. Once individuals enter this virtual world they can construct whole new identities. They can build houses and engage in various activities. This world has its own currency , institutions and all the other aspects of society which exist in the real world. Initially it is free to join the site however for the added bonuses of custom virtual homes and added extras an individual has to pay a price for premium membership. Identities are literally commodities within this virtual world. Individuals can choose multiple identities and choose who they want to be on a particular day. (Rolland & Parmentier ,2009) As Garvey (2010) contends the enacting of multiple identities or personalities in the real world would fit the criteria for Dissociative Identity Disorder( DID). The (American Psychiatric Association cited in Garvey, 2010) outlines the key characteristics of this disorder. Firstly there is the presence of two or more identities or personality states. At least two of these personality/identity states take control of the individual’s behaviour on a regular basis and finally an inability to recall important personal information which is too extensive to be explained by ordinary forgetfulness. As Garvey points out in the Second life world the aforementioned list is the norm. (Rolland & Parmentier ,2009) commented that many individuals, who use these virtual worlds, do so in order to experiment with identities which would not be possible in the real world due to physiological, psychological and social constraints. Sex, romantic relationships and violent behaviour were some of the most common aspects of identity which were experimented with. If people are experimenting with sex and violence in these worlds it, may to some degree, validate Freud’s psychoanalytic theory on Sex and Aggression. He believed that human beings are driven by sexual and aggressive instincts and these instincts were at the heart of all behaviours and thought Second life may be an environment where individuals are exploring these instincts without having to worry about the norms which would constrain them from doing so in the real world; From (Rolland & Parmentier ,2009) research on the users and the different types of identity formation on second life they concluded that some individuals form virtual self’s which they believe are a true reflection of themselves, while others go through a metamorphous creating virtual self’s which are totally autonomous of the individuals real life identity. Those who duplicate themselves do so in order to enter the virtual world and gain new experiences while those who use the virtual world to create an autonomous avatar do so to experiment with possible self’s. What sets this world apart from SNS’s and anonymous online settings is the fact that they are actually participating in a world which is pure fantasy. With the other two settings there is some sense of a connection to the real world. If we were to apply Erickson’s intimacy vs. isolation stage to and individual who spend all their time in a virtual world it could be argued that that such and individual is stuck in isolation and not experiencing the real world.

This paper has focused on three online avenues where identity can be displayed, created and managed. What is obvious from the paper is that many of the psychological and sociological theories used to explain identity offline can also be used to understand aspects of online identity. We examined how various structures can influence individual identity and it seems very obvious from this paper that the relationship between the internet and the individual is a two way street. In one sense the individual may be managing and constructing their identity online, while in another sense the internet seems to be acting as an agent in the construction and development of offline identity. Social networking sites seem to be the most transparent representation of individual’s real world identities while the more anonymous settings such as blogs and chat sites represent an environment where there is more leverage for individuals to present their identities in the manner which they choose too. However the Second life avenue seems to go to the extreme of presenting individuals with the ability to create a whole new identity in a fantasy world. This world gives individuals the ability to be both the producer and consumer of identity. The one aspect that is missing from this world is the biological self

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Human beings have distinctly different characteristics that according to anthropologists of the past claim these differences are biological. Now, in the modern era with advances in science and human development, these different human characteristics are viewed as a cultural concept rather than biological. Through our readings, we learned that race was once not important or determined of our status in society only previous to colonization. Then, race became a factor to ascribing status to individuals in our society. Now, with the awareness of racism in our society, we as human beings have declared race an unessential factor to our way of life in America . Biological characteristics mainly discussed in the text book is the color of our skin. The color of our skin has many connotations tied to what the textbook claims as a meaningless fraction that in fact ignoring the color of our skin we as humans are unable to come to terms with historical events that led to the destruction of certain peoples, lands, and cultures.

When we examine race, we can view race as being culturally constructed by human beings. When race is culturally constructed, we being to learn that race means more to us as humans than we like to admit due to the destruction and perversion against other humans in history especially in North America in the name of superiority and inferior nations. We are able to take race as we know it today and elaborate on how race challenges traditional Western notions and ideas of race itself. I have read the source, “Dimensions of Inequality in the Contemporary World: Class, Caste, Race, Ethnicity, and Nationalism”, from the text book and included information from our class notes to explore, explain, define, and outline meanings of race, how race is culturally constructed, and more importantly, what race means to us today and the effects racializing people in our society, all, in efforts, to present my own personal view of cultural and race in modern society tied to past anthropological occurances.

Definitions of terms:

We discuss terms without really ever defining these terms clearly so we have a foundation and outline of what we discuss in this paper, therefore, this paper will clearly define the terms used in order to guide what it is we are discussing so there is no confusion. When we think of anthropology, we often view anthropology as the study of old human bones, dug up like some old dinosaur that will teach us about the people of the past. However, we can take the anthropology concept further by labelling the term cultural anthropology, whereby cultural anthropology is the study of explaining human cultural diversity (Schultz 2005: 1). One area of our human cultural diversity is the concept of race.

Race is not clearly defined in the text book, however, race has been described in our class notes as the cultural concept of humans rather than a biological concept that is ascribed, which is the reason that social anthropologists view race as important. Race is at times tied to forms of culture concepts. Culture is according to the Schultz (2005), from a historical perspective, a complex whole that draws together the unity of knowledge, beliefs, laws and customs for groups of people. However, I argue that culture is more that the whole, culture is the total way of living and viewing the world each one of us live in.

According to my belief, culture is evolving and never stays the same; There are many different cultures and not one can be defined so clear, but just different. We can not view other groups culture without stating our own cultural biases, which is why anthropology is crucial to studying human behaviour through time. For example, we as humans are naturally stratified according to Schultz by race, economic status, or employment status. This stratification system put in place in many nations divide and limit individuals ability to move towards a better life or future. Many people are succumbed to a rigid system of inequality all in efforts to keep the status quo of a hierarchy. Class is the form of economic stratification and caste is stratification based on whom one is born into.

Race is Culturally Constructed:

Race was defined as a cultural concept developed by humans mainly and for greater purposes than we admit and not a biological determined fact. Therefore, we can understand that race is separate than culture. Schultz provided an example of the melting pot in what we call Mexico now, back then, where people became oblivious to the racial cultural caste system (2005: 205). There were Spanish, Indigenous, and African Americans who were not to mix or interbreed, however, due to unexplainable events, many of the racially culturally distinct groups intertwined and fused races and cultures together. There is a large historical significance that is tied to present events now. And these meaningful acts become ever more important as we look at the past.

We can understand that early anthropologists were unable to fully understand the concept of race or culture due to the racist beliefs of that time. For example, we learned in our class lectures that early anthropologists measured human skulls and place attributes and characteristics to a group of peoples labelling the group inferior to the anthropologist’s culture. According to Schultz, these actions of the anthropologists were justified by a means of being unaware of connotations that stemmed from these actions in the name of science. However, if these scientists really studied these cultural groups from a clear cultural perspective rather than studying the color of the skin and how it benefits the European descents, descriptions of cultures would be plentiful. Anthropologists and European scientists declared other cultures obsolete to their standards of living. We have yet to really grasp what culture means to the group being studied, unless we ask; instead, we impose Western thoughts and ideas, which have more than deadly actions than we understand. Race as a cultural concept is the best way to describe the historical events in human development.

What does this mean:

We can take the discussion further by elaborating on what race means to us when it is viewed as culturally constructed. If race is not seen as biological, then it means there is no need to view or label people according to race, but this is not a fact. We still have racism and racist ideas that are tolerated that was originally developed by racist attitudes of early scientists. We are human and naturally aware of differences of the skin, however, it is how we deal such matters of skin color that skin color should not be a factor. Take for example, culture means much more than race.

Culture is a way of doing or acting. We do not have to accept what scientists labelled truth when it is hurting a culture or people. Culture is learned and therefore social. We learn from the beginning from our parents how to act and behave based on thinking and ideas. The concept of ideas that change into actions is where we take the critical question of the meaning. From the text book of Schultz, they state that colonization and exploration of European states were the backbone for declaring races inferior which leads to today’s modern day forms of institutional racism among any race non-European. Reviewing how race is culturally constructed means that we today do not have to have racism in our society.

How does this Challenge Traditional Western ideas of Race:

The concepts defined above challenges the traditional concepts of race but we must as a society move forward and change the way we view race and culture otherwise the challenge we offer is obsolete. We can learn much from the study of cultural anthropology by learning that other groups can speak for themselves and declare important characteristics through their own forms of explaining and sharing. Many individuals are unaware of the social hierarchies in our society due to privilege. When individuals of privilege do not acknowledge their status, they are unable to assist the ones who have no privilege. Schultz discussed in the chapter, the importance of colorism and that once all colors are mixed there is no more racist beliefs, however there are always going to be inequalities.

Inequalities in our society stem from the early anthropologists who set out scientific guidelines to discriminate that we have to be very critical of how we use science. European descendents used race as a way to steal land and millions of dollars of resources, and justified killing many groups to gain authority, particularly Indigenous groups across North America . We are not like the old anthropologists of the past. Today’s anthropologists are more stringent towards our analysis, descriptions, and ways to classify people. This means a great deal today to you and me. We no longer are aimed to humiliate a peoples whose culture is different than our own ways; diversification stands for the new challenge against traditional Western ideas of race.

We need to have more anthropologists write books about how the wrongs of yesterdays have crippled today’s notions of other human beings being inferiour and thus feeling no justice towards inequality. The best way to conjure our thinking of the future is to not forget the mistakes of the past.

Analysis:

We have discussed the importance of race and culture. We also examined the historical events in anthropological undertakings of the European fallacies, and we even went further to discuss the challenges we face to break down the barriers built by the negative and racist notions related to race. These were dissected and analyzed to fully understand why one would do such a vicious act towards other humans, which was very difficult to comprehend unless there were clear cut theoretical frameworks to analysis this synapses.

We have analyzed the importance of learning from other cultures to better understand ourselves. We need a theoretical framework to outline and guide our knowledge as anthropologists. Everyone can be an anthropologist by simply living in the city of Toronto and studying interactions among the residents. Toronto is a new city that is similar to the city explained in the book where Indians of India who move to the city become less involved in their system of caste (Schultz: 2005). They are more likely to move up when they live in the city. This is true to the city of Toronto in my personal opinion. Toronto has a mix of cultures and people that race has become obsolete. The title of my essay is called, ‘Does race matter’, and I answer this question to confuse the reader. Race does matter!! Race matters because it is ingrained in our history and will never change the face that there is multitude of colors of people. What matters the most is to not forget there is racism that is tied to the historical significance. We as a people in a society on earth need to be more compassion towards cultural beings. Today there is no excuse to say one group is inferior as we have proved that many cultures are more sophisticated than ever imagined.

Conclusion:

Race was reviewed in this paper to understand that race, culture, identity, land, history, and peoples of a group are all tied together that it is impossible to distinguish or separate the meanings that bind the above together. Race has been viewed in this paper as socially constructed and that over time and eras the beliefs and institutions tend to change and remain the same at the same time.

Racism is culturally constructed as well that it was ingrained in our Western belief of knowing that in a country of multi-nations, western ideas will diminish over time as well. Caste systems and class distinctions are forms of cultural constructing race in order to make a group higher in status. Until the world understands how the anthropologists have made mistakes, then will there be a new beginning. I believe that Canada and new Canadians will explain the purpose of coming to know one another without racism or racist ideas. I explained and explored the notions of race being culturally constructed and this has been beneficially towards my higher learning leaving a mark on my cultural view.

Through past experience and research, hypermasculinity has led African American culture to be defined as a culture that strongly fights for their sign of status, and sexual aggressivity and dominance appear to be highly regarded. Research has concluded that media and false misinterpretations of hypermasculinity are the main causes, and the strong influences they have are causing these dominant, aggressive and demanding behaviours. Research has been done through personal interviews, field work and observation. Perhaps present and previous research is showing a better understanding for many cultures as to why African American men display certain characteristics, in which demonstrate power and control. Furthermore studies are creating awareness for society, although they are not justifying these behaviours as being acceptable.

Introduction:

Life threatening situations are brought upon us every day as we walk out the front door, into the bus or into the front doors of school. Growing up in today’s society and conforming to various norms, values and behaviours in which one witnesses, is traumatic and time consuming amongst young men and women, especially young African American men. Gender roles and societies’ expectation are presented at such a young age, this leading to pressure and unjustified behaviours, such as drug trafficking, prostitution and pimping. Within African American society, gender roles are depicted precisely and followed. Various different ethnic groups live in different parts of the world, but the “status of black males in American society has been in flux for the last several decades (Lips 2001, p.5)”. The reasons why all these groups must show status is to prove their images of what it means to be masculine. “Sentimental, submissive and superstitious (Lips, 2001, p.5)” are qualities associated with females in every country. On the other hand males are more likely to be connected to characteristics resembling “dominance, forcefulness and strength (Lips, 2001, p.5)”. In a variety of Hip Hop, Rap music video clips, the images being portrayed of how young men must behave always consists of the same factors; dominance, power, aggressivity and the ‘tough guy’. The question of how hypermasculinity is defined in African American culture and why sexual aggressivity and dominance appear to be highly regarded within this culture, has been an ideology for many. Despite false interpretation that the media portrays, and the pressure of “role models” and “real men”, the following paper will examine the main points and answers to these questions. Furthermore it will observe the use of the term “nigga” and “gansta” from an open minded point of view.

Hypermasculinity defined and expressed

Hypermasculinity is an extremely important sign of status for black males. Hypermasculinity is defined in the (Oxford Dictionary) as an “exaggerated masculine qualities”, although this term can be negative, it is also personalized when examining these behaviours as adaptive or maladaptive impassively. The term ‘gansta’ for example comes from the word gangster, which means a criminal who is a part of a gang; who would want to be viewed as a criminal. The other term often miss used, is the word ‘pimp’. A ‘pimp’, is an agent for prostitutes who lives off their earnings (Oxford Dictionary)”. Today pimp is being used to refer to guys who sleep with many girls, or the ones who can pick up any girl they want. Where will society draw the line, and who comes to decide whether one corresponds to the definition of a man “an adult human male, sometimes also used to identify a male human regardless of age, as in phrases such as men’s rights (Oxford Dictionary)”.

DeReef examines African American behaviour and defines masculinity to “the degree where a male is able to successfully manifest their attributes (DeReef, F. J. 2006, p.46)”. These behaviours are being shown in different ways where males are modifying or distorting their real behaviours in order to conform into society, as to what seems to be “correctly” acceptable. Over a long period of time until today black compulsive masculinity has been a dysfunctional response to solving racial domination and has been causing more problems within the environment. In other words black compulsive behaviours is an ideology composed of African consciousness, in which has created a reactionary masculinity in many African American males who “seek to imitate their white male counterparts (DeReef, F.J. 2006, p. 47)”. According to Wolfe African American males strongly believe it is hard to achieve masculine identity through usual work or responsibilities. They are justifying their behaviours through assumptions in which they believe that they are the only ones who must work hard and have responsibilities in order to achieve masculine identity. Maladaptive hypermasculine behaviours such as drug trafficking, or being a pimp are the ones being justified because there is not enough employment opportunities given to black men. There has been a correlation between joblessness and higher incidence of various maladaptive behaviours.

Hypersexuality and homophobia

Black males, especially young men are so afraid to be referred to as “wimps”, or “homos”, that they have even created the term “no homo (Masculinity, homophobia and Hip Hop, n.d )”,. The term ‘No homo’ must be said at the end of each sentence, in order for people not to think they sound gay, or they said something gay. During an interview regarding the term “no homo“, males claimed not to be reinforcing that their not gay because they know they’re not, but they are just making sure that when they speak others don’t assume they’re gay. Homophobia is a big issue that has aroused and has become serious within the generation today. Elijah G.Ward, discusses how the black churches are also encouraging homophobia amongst black males and most of the time those who are against homosexuality are uncertain of their own sexuality and fear that they will be categorised as a community. This strongly emphasizes their powerful beliefs that heterosexuality is the right way. Many cultures do not support homosexuality, a significant amount of black people according to Elijah G. Ward, see “homosexual relationships as unacceptable and morality wrong p.494”. In the black community a famous gansta-rapper Ice Cube has implanted in one of his famous songs “true niggers ain’t gay (Ward, G.E .2005, p. 497)”. Homosexuality is seen to be a sign of weakness and is associated with feminine characteristics, these also encouraging labels towards men such as ‘fags’ or ‘queers’. The black church strongly enforces that homosexuality is not what a ‘man’ is and a man should be violent, demanding and have control. Their main priorities are their labels and they pay close attention, not to be called ‘sissies’ which is the opposite of being cool. They want to portray that hard core ‘gansta’ rapper role model who is an “intensified, black male cultural reflection of patriarchy, sexism, hetorosexism and gansta-style (Ward, G. E. 2005, p. 497)”.

Violent behaviours and “gansta”

Throughout history, the black population have undergone several changes some harder to adapt to then others. The main issue with behaviours constantly changing and deviance sometimes being accepted, is when you adapt to an aggressive dominant behaviour you don’t want to let go of that control you have obtained. A problem which has occurred and is important to understand is to know the difference between, understanding what you have been told and believing and making your own judgements accordingly; if it is right. For example in the black society it is a “sign of status”, to sleep with as many women as possible. William, A. & Wolfe, summarize in their article that “it is right to deceive a girl in order to have sex with her (Wiliam, A. & Wolfe 2003, p 848)” and that they don’t believe in the use of the condom for a simple reason that they would be “undermining their masculinity (Wiliam, A. & Wolfe 2003, p. 848)”.Black males have been socialized into using their penis as a way to achieve manhood. Different expectations within a culture or society and how values have changed over time. This has also caused many African American women to fear their partners, and studies say that a woman has been in an abusive relationship is more likely not to speak up and fight her partner. In regards to sexuality and power the black African American society believes that when “sexual aggression exists in a relationship (Wiliam, A. & Wolfe 2003, p. 848 )”, this shows violence is involved therefore he is a man; concluding violence is manly. Adolescent black males are also accounted for having a “higher victimization rate than any other racial or age group (Gregory,S. 2007, p 371)”. African American women compare to their counter parts are the ones to usually get involved in abusive relationships and stay quiet due to their surroundings and or an abusive father. African American women are more vulnerable and listen to their partners when they use aggressive behaviours. This also brings out statistics which show that over “fifty percent of babies are born to minor females, fathered by African American men. They also show that the father is usually on average 26.1 years older (Wiliam, A. & Wolfe 2003, p. 849”.From this one can clearly conclude that a young African American female is no way has interpersonal skills and dominance over her partner to demand the use of a condom.

Furthermore, black males are often taught or trained to control their emotions internally towards exercises that stimulate minor frustration, although this does not emphasise the power that long term “maladaptive, self destructive and life threatening (Gregory, S. 2007,p.386) ” consequences have above it all. An infant who is brought up in a dangerous neighbourhood, attended an unsafe school and dealt with racism is more prone to recognize feelings towards aggression and violence. Black men who have experienced a tragic event of a life threatening situation will want to be prepared if it ever happens again, this is why Gregory, S. discusses the use of carrying of a weapon. In most neighbourhoods today and schools, young teens will not walk around with knifes and use it as an excuse of security purposes, although in neighbourhoods where there are at least three people getting stabbed every day, these young kids want to feel safe. The college of New Jersey evaluated that males are more likely to carry a weapon than females, and a survey in 2007 showed that 27% of boys did carry a weapon (Gregory, S. 2007, p.369). Carrying a knife or a gun is a sign of security, despite its encouragement towards violent behaviours. A weapon stimulates the “fight or flight” response which is a decision you make when experiencing a dangerous situation. Is the individual going to walk away, or will he make a decision and fight. In a situation where someone is carrying a weapon, almost one hundred percent of the time if they feel secure enough to fight and win, the weapon is their support and will cause them to partake in this dangerous behaviour. Statistics show that” in 1994, gun control accounted for approximately 1,700 Black youths aged ten to nineteen (Gregory, S. 2007, p 368)”. The following statistics tell us that most of crime is being committed at a young age by youth. Young children are the ones who are victimised, especially in schools in poor neighbourhoods and the fear they experience is unpleasant and it creates an awareness of danger.

Hip Hop; a justifiable reason leading to hypermasculinity

The third point, if not one of the most influential one in society influencing power, dominance and control is Hip Hop. As a whole Hip Hop has become a culture for most black African American men and this has brought up a new image of acceptable behaviours and hypermasculinity. Many video clips you watch or lyrics you read are not only full of vulgar language, but it’s always a battle over a girl, power or insulting someone’s mother. Rap has created a new lifestyle for young men, and also many role models like Eminem, 50 cent and Tupac. Luxury has also become a big part of status. Many African American men today believe that rap is a way to express their true black life. There are different kinds of rap music, this having an influence on different kind of behaviours that are being acted out in society. Rap is categorised using five different forms. “Teacher-rap, nation conscious rap, gansta rap, player/lover rap, porno rap and last religious rap (DeReef,F.J. 2006)”. These different kinds of rap all influence different ideas from social commitment to struggle, romance, sexual aggressive behaviours and spirituality of Christianity and Islam. It is amazing to listen to a rap song and interpret all these different ideas, and thinks to yourself, how can a young fifteen or sixteen year old kid understand this. What is being said is sometimes due to a personal experience or the rap artist is expressing his feelings and or emotions. Media has shown violence to be a part of masculinity, that it has become a norm and is no longer deviance within society. Statistics show that one in four men will use violence against their partner, and eighty-five percent of murders are being committed by men. As one can witness sexuality, criminality and violence play a strong role as being partners. Hip Hop role models like Lil Wayne display high rates of criminality for young African American men, and also use violence and strength towards sexuality. Young males are being brain washed and influenced in regards to these being the real characteristics of men and it’s a direct justification for hypermasculine behaviours.

Roots of slavery

The 17th century African American slavery was devastating and today has become a part of history. Slaves were not entitles any equal rights compare to what other had. They were demanded to do hard labour work and were treated with cruelty. Slaves were working ridiculous amount of hours a day and weren’t even treated as human beings.These slaves were being sold as if they were commodities from city to city. Slaves were seen by many as a different class of people in society. Many slaves tried to fights their master although there was not much success as they would be arrested or sent somewhere else. Slavery today plays a role on how society view black males and how they view themselves compare to society.

The word “nigga”

The word “nigga” is a good example or a word that has different meanings and that has been re-appropriated in society depending on who uses it. The word “nigga” comes from the word nigger which was originally used to refer to black people. The word was also used in the time of slavery for the black who were trying to escape. Today many African American men use the word amongst each other like white people would use the word “brother”. Although if a white person were to use the word nigger it is seen as insulting and some African American men take it to the extreme of being offended they might even beat someone up. Nigger for the African American culture is a sign of self identity amongst one another and pride. It is a moment in time of history and they want to hold onto this. In the 1970 the word nigger was seen as racists, offensive and as early as today it is a word that many will refrain from using.

Slavery and hypermasculinity

Men have enslaved other men to show their mastery over them, and think it is a weakness to show or express their feelings towards other human beings. Patriarchal masculinity has caused problems that are so complex. Long after “legal racial segregation ended ( Lips, 2001, p.2 )”, it is still clear how the white society treats Black men. Unless close attention is being payed to little factors which make a difference; often Black men are “referred to not as men but as boys (Lips, 2001, p.20)”. Black men lived through times where they were never given the same privileges as white men, and they always had to earn their masculinity, most of the time not feeling good about being a man. Black males were always viewed as inferior to other cultures and always had to prove themselves one way or another. They were always stereotypically related to drugs, poverty and violence. Black American youth during the period of black power to Hip Hop, were denied opportunities to exercise their citizenship; this having an effect today, they don’t want to fall back down beneath everyone. Being denied opportunities, rights and not able to achieve personal goals has stuck with the black society until today. Not only is being labelled “black” a mental damage, but creates physical aggression as well.

It seems that an individual who has been constantly emasculated over the years would at least try to conform to the dominant culture in hope of their being some acknowledgment of acceptance. It has been proven throughout society especially in the United States, that growing up as a black male has been a tough process. “Being a black male is a burden at times because some people see and think of me, and men like me, as “menaces to society.” The masculinity that has been a part of my life has been one that has been used to oppress others and oppress me (Clifford, A. 2006, and p.4)”.

The status of poverty for African American youth is the one that is the most revealing. ” In 2001 among all American children under the age of eighteen, the poverty rate was sixteen percent, but it was three times as high for black children; 30 percent (Collins, H, P. 2006, p.3)”. Black youth are the ones who are affected the most by social problems. Increasing employment opportunities for African American males would be ideal, this would give them a better environment, better surroundings and influence them that they are like the rest of the society. This is also why many black males rape, because that act of aggression towards a women is a form of status in which they would use in a workplace which is often not available for them. In other words, having the right to work and live a “normal life style”, will affect them positively. Several African American men have shaped their understandings and realities based on the past and keep exercising those actions. Having a normal life style remains a dream for many black youths living under the age of eighteen. The main problem that touches upon poverty is the “ineffectiveness of political strategies that strive to resist it (Collins, H, P. 2006, p.9)”. The civil rights movement was the primary strategy to solve racial integration, although African American politics are trying new social challenges to meet old responses. Despite some accomplishment, African Americans are frustrated because they don’t see anything opening up ahead of them and they are still dealing with high unemployment rates. Beyond social problems resulting to poverty, unemployment and lack of civil rights, masculinity today is a big part relating to the past. African American societies have developed strong personalities to prove who they are and what they are capable of. For instance when you look around today, you will see more black males working, neighbourhoods are less poor and opportunities and chances have been and are being given to black communities. Considering that young African American males occupy such a visible position within society, they have demonstrated a zero tolerance for “race, nation, gender, age and sexuality (Collins, H, P. 2006)”. All these different aspects that influenced black men have created the drives towards manhood today. When black men were in slavery they were being ordered around and always given commands; comparing that to this new generations they are the ones who are in control, and for the most are the ones giving commands.

Conclusion:

The issue of hypermasculinity is one that is quite complex and a total solution cannot be found. Research has shown that African American men believe in proving themselves as “real men”; this leading to behaviours in which can no longer be controlled. These actions are being ‘tolerated’ by society today especially for young black males. Sexual aggressivity, dominance and hypermasculinity are highly responded within the culture for a countless amount of reasons. Media is portraying false misinterpretations as to what it means to be masculine, there is always a constant pressure being brought upon black males which enforces violent and controlling behaviours and they are being accepted as ‘normal’. Thirdly, African American culture has such a strong influential past of slavery that their culture is looking at society through a different lens.

Black male needs to accomplish giving themselves an identity that will cause them to be comfortable with themselves. Ideally black males should critically assess the dominant culture’s norm of masculinity instead of reworking the norms to satisfy their social situation. Many black males have failed to see the problem of the dominant culture’s norms of masculinity in their lives. Society in general has labelled black men as being dangerous, and regardless if you know the person or not before even speaking to many black men they fall into that category that they are violent, dangerous or a sex maniac. Society has enforced black males to feel this way and cause them to do things in which they shouldn’t do. It has caused a psychological problem which is hard to erase. In no way do African American men believe they can show weakness, this would mean they are not men. Violence in the media is glorified, and is exposed to children of all ages. Police will not hesitate to use violence against suspects, and these young black males are often the targets of violent behaviours in their neighbourhoods; drugs, rape, gang related fights or domestic violence.

Fifty years ago, the abomination of slavery seemed like a thing of the past. But history has a way of repeating itself. Today, we find that human slavery is once again a sickening reality. At this moment, men, women and children are being trafficked and exploited all over the world. The Thirteenth Amendment did not abolish slavery completely, in fact, human trafficking is now the modern day slavery and is a problem in countries all over the world. Sex trafficking, illegal child labor, and illegal immigrant trafficking are all examples of human trafficking. A global underground problem, it is not only happening in the third world countries but civilized countries as well. Very seldom do victims of trafficking ever escape the vicious crime and many end up in dead or with diseases.

Human Trafficking: Modern Day Slavery

What is Trafficking?

Every year, millions of people are trafficked into the modern-day equivalent of slavery. They are secretly transported across borders and sold like commodities, or trafficked within their countries for the sole purpose of exploitation. It is a crime that violates the basic human rights of victims. (What is Trafficking, 2010). “Trafficking in persons” means the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person, for the purpose of exploitation. Exploitation shall include, at a minimum, the exploitation of the prostitution of others or other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labor or services, slavery or practices similar to slavery, servitude or the removal of organs. (What is human trafficking?, 2010).

What does trafficking involve?

Trafficking involves forcible movement of a person from one place to another and forcible utilization of their services with the intention of inducting them into trade for commercial gains. The word ‘forcible’ means that the action is against the person’s will or that consensus has been obtained by making deceptive claims and false allurements. In some cases, consensus is obtained because of the victim’s social conditioning, where the victim is not even aware that s/he is being exploited. (What is human trafficking?, 2010). Trafficking in persons include but are not limited to sex trafficking, child labor, and immigrant labor.

Why People Fall Victim

International trafficking is not limited to poor and undeveloped areas of the world-it is a problem in virtually every region of the globe. Countries with large (often legal) sex industries create the demand for trafficked women, while Countries where traffickers can easily recruit provide the supply. Generally, economically depressed countries provide the easiest recruitment for traffickers. In such nations, women are often eager to leave the country in search of better employment opportunities. Traffickers exploit this fact and often trick victims into thinking they will be going abroad to work as nannies or models.

Sex Trafficking

Sex trafficking is a modern-day form of slavery and its victims are majority women and girls, but can also be men or boys. Sex trafficking victims are induced to perform commercial sex by force, fraud, or coercions and they’re also lured into this situation because they’re promised a good job in another country, a false marriage proposal turned into a bondage situation, being sold into the sex trade by parents, husbands, boyfriends, or being kidnapped by traffickers. “Types of Sex Trafficking have different forms of commercial sexual operations such as prostitution, pornography, stripping, live-sex shows, mail-order brides, military prostitution and sex tourism. ” (Rescue and Restore ). Trafficking of women is a transnational industry that generates billions of dollars. Although men, women and children are all victims of trafficking, it is a crime that disproportionately affects women and girls who make up approximately 80% of those trafficked transnationally, the majority of whom are trafficked into commercial sexual exploitation

Child Labor

There are millions of children whose labor can be considered forced, not only because they are too young to choose to work, but also because they are, in fact, actively coerced into working. These include child bonded laborers — children whose labor is pledged by parents as payment or collateral on a debt — as well as children who are kidnapped or otherwise lured away from their families and imprisoned in sweatshops or brothels. In addition, millions of children around the world work unseen in domestic service — given or sold at a very early age to another family. Forced child labor is found primarily in informal, unregulated or illegal sectors of the economy. “It is most common among the economically vulnerable and least educated members of society such as minority ethnic or religious groups or the lowest classes or castes. ” (Forced and Bonded Child Labor, 2010) Children are especially vulnerable to exploitation because their lack of maturity makes them easy to deceive and ensures that they have little, if any, knowledge of their rights.

Immigrant Smuggling

Much like sex trafficking and child labor, the majority of people smuggled are immigrants and non-residents to the county they are being smuggled into. People are promised a good job with good pay with room and board provided. They fall for the trap and answer to the ad without knowing it is a trick. When they are brought to the place, traffickers already stole the immigrants’ passports and everything they own, making it impossible for the immigrants to go back home. Instead of the good job and pay they were promised, they end up working 12+ hour shifts, with basically no pay, and have bad living conditions. Men have been overlooked as potential victims of trafficking. Even when signs of exploitation that would sound alarms with women – such as confiscation of travel documents – are clear, immigration officers or assistance groups often classify men as “migrant workers” and send them on their way. In addition, men often don’t want to admit that they were trafficked because this signifies weakness or “failure.” (Cardais, 2009)

Recruitment Tactics

Traffickers used a variety of means to draw girls into the sex trade. The four key tactics of sex trafficking identified include: employment-induced migration via a broker; deception, through false marriage; visits offer; and force, through abduction. The majority of respondents (55%) were trafficked through false job promises. (Simkhada, 2008)

Trafficking In Nepal

Many girls involved in sex work do so because they are compelled by economic circumstances and social inequality. Some enter sex work voluntarily; others do so by force or deception, sometimes involving migration across international borders. Nepalese girls trafficked from Nepal to India are typically unmarried, illiterate and very young. Key routes to sex trafficking include employment-induced migration to urban areas, deception (through false marriage or visits) and abduction. Young girls who have been trafficked for sex work are a hidden population, largely due to its illegal nature. Employers of trafficked girls may keep them hidden from public view and limit contacts with outsiders. Trafficked girls may not identify themselves as such through fear of reprisals from their employers, fear of social stigma from involvement in sex work or their HIV-positive status or from their activities being revealed to family members. (Simkhada, 2008).

Enforcement in Nepal

In Nepal, high-level decision makers, lawmakers and politicians at the local level are often accused of being the protector of the traffickers. Many commentators blame the lack of legal enforcement arguing that policies are sound in Nepal but not their implementation and that political commitment is required to implement public policies. Political leaders and higher authorities in bureaucracy are accused of releasing the arrested traffickers from custody and taking political and monetary benefits from them or having associations with brothel-keepers. If a slave is trapped in a form of bondage other than commercial sexual exploitation, he or she is highly unlikely to be freed through police intervention.

Infections amongst Girls in Nepal

South Asia is currently home to 2.5 million HIV infected persons, 95% of whom are from India. However, HIV seroprevalence in a subset of neighboring South Asian countries has rapidly increased in recent years, due in part to migration and human trafficking from these countries into India. Female sex workers, especially those who are victims of sex trafficking to India, are increasingly recognized as a major factor in Nepal’s growing HIV epidemic. HIV seroprevalence among female sex workers in Nepal rose 24-fold (from <1% to 17%) from 1992 through 2002 (Silverman, 2008). Women and girls trafficked for sexual exploitation from Nepal to India are considered particularly vulnerable to HIV infection because of their typically young age at trafficking, limited ability to negotiate condom-protected sex, and experiences of forced sex. Despite high rates of HIV infection among sex-trafficked victims and substantial prevalence of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among female sex workers in South Asia and elsewhere little is known about STI prevalence and co-infection with HIV among sex-trafficked women and girls. We therefore explored prevalence of syphilis and hepatitis B and co-infection with HIV among a sample of female sex-trafficking victims in Nepal. (Silverman, 2008)

Trafficking in Russia

Russia from small towns and rural areas to metropolitan areas, and into Russia from the former Soviet space to work on urban and rural building sites, in shops, and in the sex industry. As a low risk, high reward business, trafficking in people now rivals drug trafficking in its profitability in a globalised world. The lifting of many former restrictions on foreign travel from the former post-Soviet space, more permeable borders and the desire to migrate for work abroad provided a fertile legal, economic, social and attitudinal context in which traffickers, whether part of organized crime and large mafia rings or not, could take advantage of potential migrants, including children. When analyzing different patterns of trafficking, social scientists in Russia began to use the term torgovlya lyud’mi (literally ‘trade in people’), which was also adopted by some journalists, and later treffiking, awkwardly imported from English. (Buckley, 2009)

Interpretation in Moscow

The group in Moscow thought that work in prostitution was one variant for women. Whereas some condemned it as negative, the male student lightheartedly commented ‘if the girl is attractive . . . for an attractive girl it is easier’. The electrician, however, warned that ‘if a person goes to a modeling agency, when they show the clothes, it turns out to be a massage parlor’. The barman added, ‘in large towns, I literally saw this notice yesterday ”Girls are needed in a sauna. No work experience necessary”-interesting, in principle’. The barman gave another example: ‘Let’s say the girl is looking for work. She came to Moscow to enter an institute. She meets a young man. The young man already has several girls in such a profession and off she goes’. When pressed by the moderator as to whether the girl received a wage, the student answered, ‘naturally. Perhaps it is his business. Such girls are needed. It exists. The girl gets a percentage. There is a mass of variants’. The older singer added ‘the girl needs money. If she needs money, it is very simple to become a drug dealer’. Another interjected, ‘that means finding such structures’. The elderly economist in Moscow contributed another version: ‘she could marry unhappily, whether formally or not, and could learn a lesson in life from that. He could get her to sign a work contract, as they usually do to enlist girls in such work’. Her point was that social life and a partner could also lead to disastrous and unexpected work in prostitution. (Buckley, 2009)

Asian Culture

Asian culture, similar to many other cultures, subsequently socializes children to respect and obey parents and to contribute to the family’s well-being. This can be seen with Asian children who were trafficked and repeatedly explained how they put themselves at risk for the sake of economic improvement for their families. Many of them felt it necessary to make sacrifices for the benefit of their families, therefore living up to the cultural value of filial piety. Some of the girls who were trafficked for commercial sex talked about their mixed reactions to their experiences. They didn’t like what they were doing, but also felt that to not engage in commercial sex work would disappoint their families in terms of making a financial contribution and providing support. Some girls did not want to leave prostitution and return home because they hadn’t saved enough money to return without shame or embarrassment about the lack of savings to contribute or send home. A Thai saying captures the concept of filial piety. That saying is: ”Repaying the breast milk”. (Chung, 2009)

Western takes on Asian Culture

Western Asian female stereotypes constitute another factor that contributes to the abuse of power, since these stereotypes create the demand for Asian girls to be trafficked into commercial sex work. The Western stereotypes of Asian girls and women being subservient, obedient, hard working, submissive, passive, docile, shy, demure, softly spoken, eager to please, and exotic, all lead to the China doll, Suzy Wong, and geisha syndrome. These stereotypes increase the demand for Asian girls and subsequently trafficking into the sex industry. (Chung, 2009).

Child Abductions in Haiti?

The recent earthquake in Haiti left thousands of children homeless and orphaned. A group of ten American missionaries collected thirty-three children (some of whom had living parents) after the January earthquake. They were stopped as they attempted to return to the Dominican Republic, where they planned to establish an orphanage. Because the missionaries had neglected to get official permission to transport the children out of the country, Haitian authorities charged them with child abduction and jailed them. The prisoners’ families released a statement asking for leniency: “We are pleading to the Haitian prime minister to focus his energies on the critical tasks ahead for the country and to forgive mistakes that were made by a group of Americans trying to assist Haiti’s children.”

The Americans’ intentions may have been pure. Human trafficking, however, is a grievous problem in Haiti, and protecting children from exploitation was a “critical task” for the government even before the earthquake plunged the country into chaos. There have been calls for Haiti to lift restrictions on international adoptions in light of the greater number of children now in need. On the New York Times

Web site, journalist E. J. Graff noted the risks involved. “If you were a child trafficker or adoption profiteer,” she asked, “wouldn’t you pretend to be a humanitarian worker trying to save orphans?” (Commonweal, 2010)

Activist – Somaly Mam

Somaly Mam knows the harsh truth of the commercial sexual exploitation of children. For years she lived it from the inside. When she was 12, her grandfather sold her into the sex trade in Cambodia. In the ensuing decade she was traded through brothels across Southeast Asia where she suffered unimaginable horrors. She counts herself fortunate to have escaped death at the hands of entrepreneurial pimps and brothel keepers. But, unable to forget the faces of the girls she left behind, Mam decided to rescue them. Today, she fights child sex trafficking, sexual slavery, illegal confinement and sexual violence at home and abroad. (Olivera, 2010). Mam has won international acclaim and numerous awards for her activism. She has infiltrated brothels to save enslaved girls, engineering their escape and providing them with a safe refuge. She has, without hesitation, pressured the police to raid brothels – in spite of the fact that the legal system in Southeast Asia often supports the criminals, not the victims. In 1997, Mam and her ex-husband founded AFESIP, an organization dedicated to rescuing, housing and rehabilitating women and children in Cambodia, Thailand, Laos and Vietnam who have been sexually exploited. (Olivera, 2010)

U.S Takes on Trafficking

The United States has taken steps to respond to this trafficking dilemma. Congress first voted on an antitrafficking act in 2000, then again in 2003 and 2005. The government has appropriated $528 million toward this effort. In December, the government’s tools for combating trafficking were strengthened by the passage of the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA) of 2008. On the international front, TVPRA establishes the Trafficking in Persons Report as a diplomatic tool to encourage foreign governments to increase efforts to refrain and fight against modern-day slavery. The annual publication will include reports on individual countries’ progress or lack thereof. The bill also contains provisions for penalizing countries that violate trafficking laws in an attempt to steer any traffickers. The passage of TVPRA was a big step forward for U.S. antitrafficking efforts overall. (Todd, 2009). Today virtually every credible antitrafficking organization-including UN agencies, NGOs and responsible governments- agrees that engagement with law enforcement is the best and only sustainable way to protect victims and apprehend perpetrators of sex trafficking. Corruption within police forces should not be a reason to deny trafficking victims the enforcement of laws designed to protect them.

Hollywood Movie – Taken

The recent release of the Hollywood film “Taken” opened up the eyes of all the viewers who watched it. It was about a man who loved his daughter very much and when she goes on a trip to Europe, she is abducted and enters the world of human and sex trafficking. The fathers stop at nothing to find his daughter. Movies like this give an overview of what the trafficking world really looks like .For a person that has never heard of the term, it really opens up one’s eyes and perspective.

Educating Women

Research has shown that investing in the education and financial power of girls and women generates multiple social benefits. Better educated women have higher incomes and raise healthier children. They are more likely to be able to plan the size of their families, and they choose to have fewer children. Women are more likely than men are to use their earnings to support the health and education of their children. One study showed that women invest 90 percent of their income in their families, whereas men invest only 30 to 40 percent. Investing in young women is the key not only to ending sex trafficking, it’s the key to changing the world.

Opening the World’s Eyes

Trafficking is a global problem and will probably always be a problem. It has been around for centuries and one can only tell when it will ever stop. Though there may never be an end to human trafficking, knowledge is the ultimate power and people working together to fight human trafficking, lives can be saved.

Human rights refer to the legal, social or ethical principles of entitlement or liberties to which all humans are entitled (James, 2009). Proponents of this concept assert that each person is endowed with certain entitlements by reason of being human. These entitlements can be justified as moral norms, natural rights or even as legal rights, either at a national level or within international law. However, this concept has been the subject of intense debate and criticism as there is no consensus as to what should or should not be regarded as a human right.

The modern conception of human rights, universalism, developed in the aftermath of World War II and its globalization was awakened by the crimes committed by Hitler’s government (the Holocaust), which increased pressure on the need for a global system of accountability and stability. This resulted in the adoption of this concept by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), a declaration adopted on 10 December 1948 by the United Nations General Assembly. This forum aimed at paving the way for universalism by resolving the cultural differences between member nations, an approach which some argue, has led to the needs of certain cultures being compromised. The concept of universalism was further boosted by the adoption of the International Criminal Court in June 1998, with its core aim being the enforcement and promotion of the values agreed upon by the member states of the United Nations.

Over the course of the 20th century, many movements and groups have achieved intense social changes in the name of human rights. In North America and Western Europe, labor unions brought about laws which granted workers to strike and established minimum work conditions. The women’s rights movement succeeded in gaining voting rights for women while the National liberation movements succeeded in driving out colonial powers in many countries. The United Nations, together with its member states, have developed much of the discussion and bodies of law that currently make up international human rights law and international humanitarian law.

In reality, the concept of Universalism is basically based on Western philosophies and the values they place on the individual. This approach can be seen as a product of Christianity as well as the Greek philosophy and contends that one can use reason or nature to identify basic rights inherent to every human. This concept was challenged by a delegation led by China, Iran and Syria at the 1993 United Nations Conference on Human Rights which was held in Vienna. They argued that the current definition of human rights was not universal, but was based on Western morality and should therefore not be imposed as norms in non-western societies. They further argued that this concept disregarded the non-western societies’ historical and economic development and their cultural perceptions of what is wrong and right.

Cultural relativism, by contrast, is based on the thought that there are no objective standards by which others can be judged. It was introduced by the sophist Protagoras, among others who empirically established that there exist many different cultures in the world and each are equally worthy. For example, female genital mutilation is not mandated by any religion, but has become a tradition in many different cultures in Africa, South America and Asia. On the other hand, it is considered by the international community as a violation of girl’s and women’s rights, which has resulted in the outlaw of the culture in some countries. However, International Law has only recently begun to tackle the issue of cultural relativism by paying more attention to certain themes (Bozeman, 1971).

In Saudi Arabia, human rights are intended to be based on Sharia, a set of Islamic religious laws under the rule of the House of Saud, the royal family of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (US Department of State, 2004). The government of Saudi Arabia has often been criticized for its treatment of political and religious minorities, homosexuality and women. The Human rights of this country are specified in article 26 of the Basic System of Governance of Saudi Arabia, a constitution- like charter which is in accordance with Sharia. The National Society for Human Rights was the first independent human rights organization in Saudi Arabia, and was established in 2004. In 2008, the Consultative Assembly of Saudi Arabia, also known as the Shura Council, ratified the Arab Charter on Human Rights, a charter which affirms the principles contained in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the UN Charter and the Cairo Declaration of Human Rights in Islam. It provides for a number of traditional human rights, such as the right to liberty, protection of persons from torture, freedom to practice religious observance, among others.

Saudi Arabia is one of the few countries in the world with judicial corporal punishment, the formal application of caning, whipping, birching and strapping as an official sentence by order of a court. In Saudi Arabia, judicial corporate punishment is carried out under Sharia, and includes whipping for lesser crimes such as drunkenness and “sexual deviance” and the amputations of hands and feet for more serious crimes such as robbery. This country also engages in capital punishment, which includes public executions by beheading. This is in accordance to strict interpretation of Islamic law as a punishment for rapists, murderers, and armed robbers. There were 191 executions in 2005, 38 in 2006, while in 2007; there were 153 executions (International, 2009).

The government of Saudi Arabia has been criticized for lack of protection and violation of several human rights such as the freedom of religion. In this country, the practice of non-Muslim religions is aggressively prohibited. With the government declaration of the Holy Quran and the Sunna (tradition) of the Prophet Muhammad as the country’s constitution, Saudi Arabian law does not recognize religious freedom. Saudi Arabia, being an Islamic State, offers preferential treatment for Muslims and prohibits the burial of Non-Muslims on Saudi soil. During Ramadan, the month of fasting, eating, drinking or smoking during daylight hours in public is not allowed, even for Non-Muslims (Abdul, 2008). Foreign schools operating in Saudi Arabia are required to teach a yearly introductory segment on Islam and missionary work by any religions other than Salafi/Wahabi Islam is forbidden.

Anti-Semitism, prejudice towards Jews as a result of hatred of their culture, religion and/or ethnic background, is very widespread in Saudi Arabia. In 2007, it was reported that a state website prohibited Jewish people and Israeli passport holders from entering the kingdom. The Saudi administration removed the offensive language, claiming that it was a mistake (CNN, 2004). A study of Saudi Arabia’s revised schoolbook curriculum in May 2006 discovered that the eighth grade book included text that discriminated against “Christian infidels of the communion of Jesus”.

In Saudi Arabia, LGBT rights, initials referring to the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender, are not recognized. In accordance with Islamic morality, cross-dressing and homosexuality are seen as decadent acts and are treated as solemn crimes. These acts, as well as the involvement with any activity that hints at the existence of an organized gay community, are punishable by imprisonment, lashing, deportation for foreigners and sometimes execution.

According to the law, all Saudi citizens infected with HIV or AIDS are entitled to protection of their privacy, free medical care and equal employment and educational opportunities. However, most Saudi hospitals will not treat infected patients and many hospitals and educational institutions are reluctant to share out government information about the disease. This is because of the stigma and strong taboos associated with how the virus can be spread (Yamani, 2005). However, the situation has started to change, with the government recognizing World AIDS Day, and permitting information about the disease to be published in local newspapers and journals. Any foreigner found to be HIV positive (or with any other serious medical condition), is deported back to their country.

Political freedoms in Saudi Arabia are also curtailed, with the Saudi government restricting the freedom of speech and the press to forbid criticism of the government. Political organizations and trade unions are banned, public demonstrations are outlawed and Internet reception within Saudi Arabia’s borders is actively censored by the government. The arrest of Fouad al-Farhan, a prominent Saudi blogger and reformist in December 2007, was seen as a crackdown by the Saudi government on online dissent. He was jailed in solitary confinement, without charges, after criticizing several prominent Saudi business, media and religious figures (Murphy, 2008). Fouad was released on 26 April, 2008.

In Saudi society, gender roles come from Sharia, Islamic law, as well as the tribal culture. All women, regardless of social status or age, are required to have a male guardian. Saudi women do not have voting rights, and cannot be elected to high political positions (Sasson, 2001). However, there is substantial evidence that Saudi women do not want radical change. Advocates of reform in this country reject the Western critics of Saudi Arabia for failing to understand the Islamic uniqueness of the Saudi society (Zoeph, 2010). Advocates argue that Saudi women do have rights, though these rights are dependent on their obligations in life.

Majority of the Saudis do not view Islam as the main obstruction to women’s rights and dismiss perceptions of Islam as being patriarchal as a Western typecast. To prove that Islam allows strong women, Saudis often invoke the life of Prophet Muhammad. Khadijah, the Prophet’s first wife, was a powerful businesswoman who employed him and is the one who initiated the marriage proposal. Aisha, another one of his wives, commanded an entire army at the Battle of Camel, a battle that took place in Iraq, at Basra in 656, and for this, she is the source of many hadiths (Betsy, 2010).

Saudi women face discrimination in many aspects of their lives, such as the civil, common and religious systems. Despite the fact that they make up over 70% of those enrolled in public universities, due to social reasons, Saudi women only make up 5% of the national workforce. The efforts by the government to support expanded employment opportunities for women in this country met fierce resistance from the religious police, the labor ministry as well as the male citizenry (Canlas, 2006). In most parts of this country, it is believed that the role of the woman is to care for her husband and family. There is widespread segregation in Saudi homes, with some rooms having separate entrances for the men and women.

Driving had been banned for women, until 1990, when it was introduced as official legislation after 47 women drove cars through Riyadh, the Saudi capital. Though illegal, women in areas outside the cities and in the rural areas of Saudi Arabia do drive cars (Y, 2009). Saudi women are permitted to fly aircraft, though they are required to be chauffeured to the airport (Bascio, 2007). Many Saudis believe that allowing Saudi women the right to drive could lead to an erosion of traditional values and Western-style openness. Before a Royal Decree in 2008, women were not permitted to enter furnished apartments or hotels without a mahram or chaperon. With the decree, the only requirements they needed were their national ID cards, and the hotel must inform the nearest police station of their length of stay as well as the room reservation (Canlas J. , 2008).

The current government, under King Abdullah, is considered reformist. This government has appointed the first female cabinet member, opened the nation’s first co-educational university and is also credited for passing legislations against domestic violence. However, critics say that the reform is very slow and is more symbolic than substantive. Conservatives see the Saudi society as the center of Islam and hence the deed for unique conservative values. They seek to preserve the culture’s traditional gender roles, while on the other hand; radical activists compare the condition of the Saudi Arabian Women to slavery (S, 2010). A government poll conducted in 2006 found out that over 80% of Saudi Arabian women do not think that women should work or drive with men. A subsequent poll found that most Saudi women are not of the opinion that women should be allowed to hold political office. Saudi women are in high support of their traditional gender roles and are of the opinion that reforms would be opposed to Islamic values. They argue that they already have a high level of independence and that reforms would bring about unwanted Western cultural influences (Saleh Ambah, 2010).

In Saudi Arabia, all women are required to have a male guardian, who can be a father or husband. This guardian has rights and duties to his woman in various aspects of civic life. Saudi women must first seek their guardian’s permission for various matters such as marriage and divorce, education, travel (if below 45 years), employment as well as opening a bank account. Guardian’s requirements are not written law, but are applied according to the society’s customs, as well as the understanding of particular institutions such as hospitals and banks. Official transactions initiated by women are often abandoned and officers often demand the presence of a guardian in order to prove authorization. In a recent interview, Saudi women defended male guardians as providing love and protection (Zoeph, 2010).

In 2008, some Saudi women launched a petition defending guardians, which gathered over 500 signatures. The petition also requested the punishment for those activists equality and mingling between Saudi men and women. Liberal activists on the other hand reject guardianship and see it as demeaning to women. They object to the treatment of women as subordinates or children (Wagner, 2010). They cite cases of women whose careers were ended by their guardians, or who lost custody rights over their children. In a case in 2009, a father prohibited several of his daughter’s attempts to marry outside their clan, and sent her to a mental institution as a form of punishment (Jahwar, 2009). Activists agree that most Saudi men are caring, but see this kindness as a result of pity, from lack of respect for their women, and they compare male guardianship to slavery, with ownership of a woman being passed on from one man to another.

The ludicrousness of the guardianship system is shown by what would happen to a woman if she tried to remarry: she would have to seek the permission of her son (Betsy, 2010). The Saudi government has defended itself by saying that there is no law of male guardianship and maintains that agreements are applied in the courts and other legal channels.

The male guardianship system is very closely related to sharaf, a system which involves the protection of females in the family by a male individual. The male provides for them, and in sequence, the women’s honor is reflected on him. Since the honor of the male guardian is affected by that of the women in his family, he is expected to control their behavior. If a man loses his honor because of a woman under his care, he is permitted to cleanse his honor by punishing her, which can be death in extreme cases. In 2007, a young Saudi lady was killed by her father for chatting with a man on Facebook. Conservatives called for the government ban on Facebook, because it causes social causes social strife by encouraging inter-gender mingling and inciting lust (Frthjof, 2007).

In many Islamic states, women are required cover parts of that are arwah i.e. not meant to be exposed, which is mainly the face. However, in Saudi Arabia, the whole of the woman’s body is considered arwah, with exception of the hands and eyes. Women are therefore required to wear the niqab, or veil, a hijab; whish is s head covering, as well as an abaya, which is a full black cloak. In this country, women’s clothing must not reveal anything about her body and is therefore required to be loose, thick and opaque. It is generally required to be unadorned and of a dull color and should not raise interest to the male (Saleh, 2009). Saudi women are however not bothered by the dress code and place it low on the list of priorities for reform. Majority of the women wear the veil with pride, and say it reduces destructions from their male counterparts.

Sex aggregation is anticipated in public, especially between non-mahram women and men. Most official and educational institutions have separate entrances and exits for both men and women. According to law, there should be clear visual and physical separate sections for both sexes at all meetings and gatherings, including weddings and funerals. Public places such as amusement parks and beaches are also segregated, sometimes by time, so that men and women visit at different hours. Many Saudi homes have different entrances for men and women, with private space being associated with women and public space such as living rooms being reserved for men. Since eating requires the removal of the veil for women, most Saudi restaurants are segregated to different sections and they also bar entrance to women who come without their mahrams or husbands (Murphy, Saudi Arabia: Dining by Gender, 2010).

Even Western companies for instance Starbucks and McDonald’s enforce Saudi religious regulations and maintain sex-segregated zones in their restaurants. This has often led to these companies being criticized by Western activists as the facilities in the women’s zones are usually lower in quality. The segregation rules sometimes apply to banks and even hospitals. However, the number of mixed-gender workplaces has been on the rise since the crowning of King Abdullah, though they are still strange.

Some clerics issued fatwa, a religious opinion issued by an Islamic scholar concerning an Islamic law, which encouraged women to provide breast milk to any man with whom she comes into frequent contact with. The milk should not come directly from the woman’s breast, and reduces the difficulties of strict sex segregation by allowing him to become a relative of the family. In Islam, this breast milk kinship is considered to be as good as blood relationship and therefore allow the males to come onto contact with the without having to break Islam’s rules about mixing. Another scholar disagreed, saying that the milk should come straight from the womb’s breast, an issue which was ridiculed by reformists who argue that this could end up being more erotic, and definitely not maternal.

Women’s economic rights in Saudi Arabia are also severely infringed. In order for a woman to buy or sell a piece of property, she is obligated to bring two men as witnesses to identify her identity. In addition, she is required to bring four other male witnesses to testify that the first two are valid witnesses and that they actually know her. This makes it hard for women to attain their legal rights, and therefore, they often end up finding other solutions such as paying bribes.

Since childhood, Saudi girls are taught that their key role is to take good care of the household and raise the children, though Sharia allows women to work, as long as she does not neglect her essential homemaking duties. Government offices strictly advocate for the minimization of interaction between women and non-mahram men. They are allowed too work as long as their male guardians or husbands approve. A woman’s work must be deemed suitable for her physique and mentality and for this reason, they cannot be appointed as judges or to positions of high public office.

The Saudi labor ministry has been inconsistent in its support for reforms promoting women’s right to work. In 2006, the then minister of labor, Dr.Ghazi Al-Qusaibi was quoted as saying that the labor Ministry was not acting to promote women’s employment because the best place for a woman to serve is in her own home (Al-Awsat, 2006). In recent years, mixed gender workplaces have become more common, especially in industries that must serve women such as medicine and banking. In this country, 71% to 78% of females are literate, compared with males who have 85% literacy rates. The number of women who receive secondary and tertiary education is higher than that of men with over 50% of working women having a college education (Forum, 2009).

The freedom of movement for Saudi women is strongly limited as they are not supposed to leave their houses or neighborhoods without the consent of their male guardian or in the company of a mahram. Women are not allowed to drive and are forbidden from using public transport. When allowed, they are required to use a separate entrance and sit in sections reserved for women. However, the bus companies with the widest coverage of Saudi’s capital, Riyadh, do not allow women at all.

In Saudi Arabia, women are not allowed to run for public offices, but they are permitted to hold positions on boards of chambers of trade. There is one woman in a cabinet position, as assistant minister for women’s education. In court cases, the testimony of one man is considered to be equivalent to that of two women. In April 2010, women were issued with new ID cards with fingerprints and GPS tracking features. Women are registered in their father or husbands’ identification card and conservatives argue that cards which show the unveiled face of a woman violate Saudi’s customs. Though the government banned the practice of forced marriages, females are not allowed to make their own decisions on this issue.

Just like in any other domain, states should not be pushed into creating local or universal structures that bypass their levels of control. As in the case of Saudi Arabia, most of the groups in society whose rights are violated do not have equal access to the law. This demonstrates how both theories create a double standard, with men readily accepting western norms and women bearing the brunt of cultural authenticity. However, with realistic strategies, cultural sensitivities in countries like Saudi Arabia can be reconciled with universal goals.

Since the beginning of Human Rights until recent Human Rights issues, the interpretation and concept of Human Rights have been diversified significantly. Western construct have played a big role in the creation of Human Rights and in questioning the meaning of ‘universal’ rights. “The rights one has because one is human” is a clear and concise meaning of human rights, which is an appurtenance to an individual, where certain parts are not included, such as benefits. The western ideology of Human Rights have greatly inputted in Human Rights through various concepts that have been introduced to non western societies. These various concepts of western construct have influenced Universal Human Rights, where western politics have greatly altered the concept of Human Rights, also through colonisation which is particularly affected Indigenous communities, and by western cultures and societies. The western construct of Human Rights is eminently viewed in Human Rights, which are present in both western and non western societies.

Human Rights have gradually been altered and changed to insert western values and political thoughts into non-western states and societies. The western political emphasis for “the right to development and to freedom from hunger” is predominate in Africa as a rightYet, some of these rights do not correlate within societies in Africa. In result of this, many African leaders repudiated western political emphasis of Human Rights into their societies and designed their own Human Rights Charter, or also known as the “African (Banjul) Charter on Human Rights”, to suit their society.3 Even though the African Charter was created to suit the African society, western political influence is still clearly evident in the charter. “Individual freedoms and rights as values” has lost its significance in non western political thought, which is much of a variance, though non western societies have trouble determinating this significance that would be easier in western societies. Political influence is widely viewed in Human Rights and it influences the rights that are also used in non western societies.

The western concept was also brought through colonisation and it too affected the Human Rights significantly. It is how the western ideology was introduced in non western societies. Colonialism creates the basis and idea of Human Rights throughout history. The colonisation of certain states that have Indigenous People has influenced the Human Rights that are present in their societies. The fleet that arrived in countries with Indigenous People, particularly Australia, were asserted in the Indigenous Community without their permission, thus resulting in ascendancy in the communities. Bringing “civilisation” and “the religion of Christianity” was a priority for the fleet, to introduce them with their style of Human Rights. Though, this occurrence ended in a bloody way by killing and damaging many of the Indigenous People in order to universalise “universal moral values.” Indigenous People were greatly affected through colonisation all due to insertion of western construct of Human Rights, which resulted in many casualties questioning whether basic Human Rights have been breached just for introducing the western construct of Human Rights.

The post colonisation period, many Indigenous people have been ridiculed and degraded in society. Many rights, which are of western construct, are evident in the Indigenous society, where it lacked some rights or in some cases the rights did not fit in. Group rights, which are rights intended for a group of people, created problems in the Indigenous community. Group rights were mainly to do with economy and social class, rather than individual problems such as racism and ethnicity. Some speculate that if the existence of Group Rights was not evident, “ethnic integration” would not have been as difficult, and an end to “ethnic hostility” would have been seen.6 Indigenous People are seen to be excluded from the “social life” and “economic opportunity”, through practical questions such as “why are their health conditions worse?” et cetera. Only a handful of governments apologised to the Indigenous People, which brought them closer to the western society and the reconciliation process was starting to take effect.6 Colonisation was seen to affect Indigenous Communities and result in western rights implemented into their societies.

Through colonisation, western culture has been introduced and changed, through Human Rights, in non western societies and cultures. It differs greatly from the cultures evident in non western societies. Indigenous Rights, in Latin America, was seen to be the main priority. It focused on the state abusing the Indigenous people and pushing for Indigenous people to have rights to their land and culture The Spanish community and people in Latin America have been introducing western culture into the Indigenous community of Latin America, thus implementing the Human Rights as a western construct. It is evident that in Universal Human Rights, the “cultural imperialism” is dominant by the west. The argument brought by Fernando Teson is that domination of certain attitudes seen in cultures, are accordingly “appropriate” and “moral. Another point Teson argues is that “ethnocentrism” that relativists view are not supplying the same basic rights to “non western cultures” as opposed to the “western cultures” receiving those rights. Western culture has been a big influence in the non-western cultures and societies, it change the rights significantly in the non western society and adapted the western idea and thought but in the same time the western construct of rights was viewed differently in the non western cultures.

The western society has also greatly impacted on the non western society, with the influence of western life and living which altered the Human Rights, and thus impacting it on the non western society. Human Rights, to a certain extent, accepts the idea that they are “rights of the human in society”. In 1789 the French recognised and stated the fundamentals of Human Rights which are evident in society, suggests that society too is in power to deliberate those rights, stating that western society can change and dismantle any specific right in any society.Edmund Bourke creates one of the most protruding “historical criticism” of the notion that Universal Human Rights derives from western construct and western societies that are implemented into non western societies. He argues that the French revolution changed the rights of many individuals and groups in society into a western for of rights. Bourke’s “Reflections on the Revolution in France”, states a large argument of “traditional communities” and problems in “traditional values”, such as “religion and loyalty”, creates problems, disorder and integrity of western societies, thus the western societies alter many of the rights in order to suit their desires and to comply with the way they live Western society has changed many of the traditional concepts in non western society, thus the western society impacting greatly on non western societies with Human Rights.

It is evident that the western construct has greatly impacted and significantly changed and altered the idea of Human Rights. These Human Rights are being implemented into non western societies, and the eastern oriental community are having to follow these concepts and ideas. The ironic title of The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is much seen as a western creation of Human Rights. The examples shown in this essay argues the idea of western construct in the universal human rights through various factors such as politics, culture, colonisation and society.