No Race, Less Problems

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          In the film, “Race: The Power of an Illusion, Episode 1,” microbiologist Pilar Ossorio stated that the genetic variation between people of the same racial group are greater than that of different racial groups. Before the experiment was conducted, many students imagined that they were going to be the same biologically as the person they considered as part of the same race.  As I suspected, the students were not correct and were stunned to see the results. They discovered that not only were they unique within racial groups but also that their DNA was similar to other people that were across the globe. 

          While watching the film, I noticed that each student automatically knew who he or she was. Some knew they were white, and others considered themselves black. As for me, my parents always told me I was Mexican. I always followed Mexican tradition, including holidays, and my parents made sure I learned their language first. After some time, I changed from being entirely Mexican to now Mexican-American, although it is not an option on any application that I have seen that requires ethnicity. In Madera, where I currently reside, to be Mexican has a negative connotation. Since I classify myself as Mexican and because to most I look Mexican, there is always a lot to prove with my identity. People always assume Mexicans will not get far in education and they will either work in the fields or accept welfare for the rest of their life. Since race does exist and since people create stereotypes, being Mexican motivates me to prove everyone else otherwise and to eventually see myself as successful.

           listening to what the film said about Race, it made me realize how many people are misinformed on what they believe race is, myself included. What is most interesting is that race isn’t a single definition but instead on how each person was raised to believe what it is. Like for example, what might be considered white to Americans might not be considered white to Mexicans. It all depends on the majority. About four months ago I was hired by Sal’s Mexican Restaurant. I noticed that everyone around me always spoke to me in English, even people that hardly knew how to speak it. I knew they suspected I was white because of how unbelievably “white” my skin is to be considered Mexican. After speaking Spanish to a customer everyone was shocked and confronted me about it. That incident proved my theory right, that everyone has his or her own definition of race. Even though I am against having classifying people, I still catch myself believing some of the stereotypes/race that people create and spread. Until we stop seeing and focusing on who belongs where, then will the whole idea of race start to minimize. I still consider myself Mexican because of how use to it I am, if I didn’t have a label to my identity it would make me feel awkward and out of place. Hopefully one day in the near future race will no longer exist and the problems that already exist because of race will start to slowly decrease.

          Even though scientists haven’t discovered any genetic based difference between “races”, I am certain this idea will continue to exist. Within the years it is no doubt that “whites” have benefited from classifying people based off what race they are. They were seen as the superior, white, educated, rich, business owning type of people who were above any other race in America. I believe it is still around because of a tradition we have as Americans. We got so use to classifying one another that it would be odd to have a world without racial identities. Who we are as a race does shape us whether we know it or not it. Like mentioned earlier, to be Mexican motivated me to do better in life and to prove people in my city wrong about their stereotypes. In my perspective, the people who presently benefit socially are the people who have a good education and or a successful life. One thing is for sure, if race does get eliminated one day, I know it will reduce problems around us; discrimination included.

Ideas Have Power, Regardless of Moral Ground or Misconception

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In the film, Race: The Power of an Illusion, Episode 1, critics debunk the notion that race is inherently biological and provide evidence that there is no genetic marker for race. Historically, society has used race as a biological construct to divide different racial groups by distinct intellect and abilities that are unchanging.  However, this widely held misconception fuels the divide of distinct physical categories filled to the brim with even more distinct genetic stereotypes used to justify inequality.  Rather than focusing on the different genetic markers between races, which are nearly nonexistent, Pilar Ossorio stated in the film that “there is as much or more diversity and genetic difference within a racial group as there is between people of different racial groups” (Race: The Power of an Illusion, Episode 1).       

The lack of genetic evidence to support race as a biological entity is presented through out the film. For instance, high school students of various racial backgrounds participate in a science experiment to see how different or similar their genetic makeup is compared to others.  It was no surprise that one racial group believed themselves to be more genetically alike to their own racial group because the idea of race being biological has been engrained in society for centuries. Yet to the students’ disbelief, they are more genetically alike to those outside of the group to which they identify.  Similar to the student’s findings, evidence set forth by Phillip Sharp in the 1970s using Gel Electrophoresis was a precedent for the illustration as to why humans cannot and should not be divided by race because, just as Ossorio stated, there is more genetic variation within a racial group (Race: The Power of an Illusion, Episode 1).  Sharp’s findings, from separating components of DNA, undermine the long held idea of the pre-ordained natural order to which racial groups were divided by, therefore also hindering the stereotypes that have been associated with the biological view of race, like that of intellect, athletic ability, or musical aptitude.     

Racial identity is not always obvious nor is it straightforward.  I find it hard to discern my race because I have to distinguish between the physical and cultural traits that define the social construction.  I identify as white, while also identifying as Mexican –American and Native – American.  I was adopted at birth and my adoptive parents are not white which resulted in a constant battle I had of finding my racial identity and figuring out which box or boxes to check off.  I came to realize that my racial identity has been one that is quite unique and cannot fit comfortably in a category set forth by historical precedents.  Even with the physical differences, I never thought that race was attributed to genetic divisions.  This film solidifies my view of race as a social construct, endowed with meaning generation after generation.  With the lack of a genetic marker and the almost nonexistent genetic variations between racial groups, race has been socially constructed to benefit a select few. Science has debunked the idea of a scientific division between people, yet race remains an important factor in individual identity and difficult questions remain illustrating deep societal divisions. How does the information presented in the film affect the way people are seen within their racial group? Why are a number of racial groups going unrecognized?

Though questions remain, racial divisions have created a disenfranchised human race filled with stigmas and stereotypes that proliferate historical divisions in a modern setting.  Originating in colonialism and magnifying with the justification of inequality to science, historical moments that created racial divides between white Europeans and the rest of the world are evident and engrained in society today.  At the birth of the United States, all men were created equal, however that was contingent on the person being male, wealthy, and Protestant.  Before the slave codes and the idea of biological differences, distinguishing social status was based on religion and class.  However, slave codes separating the European indentured servants and African slaves created a social structure that made power relationships “have a natural quality about them” (Race: The Power of an Illusion, Episode 2).  The meaning of race in the United States is rooted in the ideology of colonialism and white supremacy in the sense that African slaves, after the slave codes were introduced, where merely seen as property with the biased scientific findings to justify such inequalities.  Coupled with the justification of race on biological lines, the civilization of peoples looked outward to the international world; coined “the white man’s burden” by Rudyard Kipling with a poem of the same title.  As a relatively young country compared to many around the world, the United States is not long out of colonialism, slavery, imperialism, and the fight for civil rights.  Though historically constructed, race persists because certain groups benefit from such social divides that are rooted in grave misunderstandings. The political, social, economic, and educational hierarchies maintain a historical importance on the perpetuation of those considered white at the top.  The ideology of the time not only hindered society then, but it continues to be a persistent player in today’s world.

Our Race Does Not Define Us

In the film, “Race: The Power of an Illusion, Volume 1,” microbiologist Pilar Ossorio, states “There’s as much more diversity and genetic difference within any racial group as there is between people of different racial groups”. Put differently, the genetic differences between people of the same racial group are just as diverse in comparison to those of different racial groups. In the film, the tests and experiments that the students had conducted using their blood and DNA provided evidence for the point that Ossorio made. These students came from different backgrounds: white, black, Hispanic, and Asian. The students assumed, prior to the experiment, that members of the same race would be most similar to them in concerns to their genetic code. However, the results showed that even students of completely different races can share similar genetic codes. In fact, the professor showed them that those who were of the same race had more differences than with those who were of different race. In the film, a geneticist stated that 85% of genetic differences are found among local populations which also support what Ossorio had to say.                     

I have always preferred identifying myself as an Asian American. Like many, I find it important to attach my heritage to being an American because it is a part of who I am. At times, there is a sense of not belonging to any of the two. Many people have told me for the longest time that if you are a citizen of the U.S.A, you are American. Despite being born here, I feel like I will always be seen as a foreigner because the first thing people will take notice of is my skin and other physical traits of an “average” Vietnamese person such as having brown hair, brown eyes, and being shorter than most Westerners. As a result, I feel like I do not have that spark of patriotism for the United States, but I do consider this country my home. I also consider Vietnam to be my home even though I may only be there for 2 months every few years.

Despite of everything, my own racial identity will not change. I would still identify myself as Asian American because race is simply a social construct, an idea that people build and organize their actions and thoughts around. Scientists were not able to find a connection between race and biology, showing that race is not rooted in biology. This is because people define race based off of what they “see.” Race is a human intervention according an interviewer in the film. It is created to categorize groups of people and served as a means to distinguish and justify domination. Whenever we meet people, we are quick to label them by their race and our society tends to be sensitive when it comes to race. We feel uncomfortable if we are not able to identify the race of someone we are with. We would not be able to say anything about that person for fear of them playing the race card so we oftentimes opt on taking the easy way out by not getting to know them. However, race is no more a part of who we are than our height, intelligence, or musical ability.

Sadly the idea of race still persists despite there not being a genetic difference because it is deeply ingrained in American values and beliefs. We have viewed other races as inferior for so long that race is deeply ingrained in our society; much so that it impacts everything! Most of us are not even aware of how our actions and responses are driven by racism. Although we have made great strides in equality, I know that we still make assumptions about people based on physical appearances, including race. After watching the first part of “Race: The Power of an Illusion,” I realized that everyone has similarities and differences no matter what race and that race does not define a person.

The Social Construction of Race

In the film Race: The Power of an Illusion Pilar Osario comments about how there is just as much or possibly even more diversity between people of the same race than there is between people of different races. Most people would have a hard time believing this statement because we are taught to believe that things that are put into the same category are going to be similar in many different ways or at least more so than they would be to something in a separate category. Genetically, it’s obvious that human beings are going to be similar when it comes to their general structure, but other than that it’s hard to believe that an African American person with dark colored skin and thick curly hair could be more similar to a white person with fair skin and light blonde hair than they are to another person of their same race. The way people look, as pointed out in the film, isn’t really a definite marker of how genetically similar people can be. For example, there is more genetic variability between identically looking fruit flies and penguins than there are between a human being and a chimpanzee.

The mistake people make that leads them to this misconception of racial similarity is that race is a biological construct, when it is in fact a social one created during the era of colonialism in order to justify enslavement of Africans and the terrible treatment of the Native Americans. If Africans and Native Americans were naturally inferior to whites then it made sense to treat them as outcasts, to enslave them, and to deny them basic human rights. 

Because race is a social construct people are constantly made aware of which racial group they would belong to. I identify myself as being African American, but I’m only really consciously aware of this when I am around other people. Over time, society has attributed certain qualities such as athleticism, intelligence, and personality to race when, in fact, many of those qualities are a result of both genetics and the environment. Society has stereotyped African Americans as being intellectually inferior, extremely athletic and as having loud and animated personalities. I would consider myself to be a more reserved person and I’m not really into sports which goes against the stereotypical behavior of an African American person. Because I don’t fit society’s standard of what an African American person is supposed to be people sometimes say that I am “white-washed” because I express qualities and interests that reflect what is considered to be stereotypically white. The frustrating thing about this is that I identify myself as being African American and I feel proud of being African American, but so many people say that I don’t “act black” or that I “might as well be white” because I don’t act a certain way or do certain things. But, as the evidence in the film has shown, race has nothing to do with qualities such as a person’s intelligence or their personal interests. These things are a result of a person’s environment and the way they interact with that environment just as a person’s skin color, something often used as a racial marker, is a result of their environment.

Race has no biological foundation and people have been using traits that can be traced back to a person’s biology such as skin color or hair texture as a determinant for traits such as intelligence and level of morality for hundreds of years. The idea came about in order to rationalize the terrible treatment of minority people during colonization and persists today for the very same reasons. White people profited from the invention of race. The proposed racial inferiority of other people allowed them to experience power and reap the benefits of having that power. White people were able to vote and own land as well as own the people who worked on that land. White people were able to determine who was able to come and live in America and, once they were allowed inside, they were allowed to determine what they could and could not do. Today, despite the claim that all people are equal in the eyes of the law, white people still benefit from the presence and belief in the existence of race. Race provides people with a scapegoat and allows people to think of each other in terms of “us and them.” It gives people an easy way out when explaining behavior and allows people to experience certain perks. Even though it’s problematic, race creates a sort of social organization in that it forms a hierarchy of people which then helps in determining distribution of resources and power. People like organization and the notion of race helps us to make sense of the world around us.

Once people are able to realize that a person’s biology is not a determinant of their race and that their race is not a determinant of more complex qualities there will be less tension between people. I think race is important and that it is helpful in terms of bringing people with common interests together. However, the way it’s viewed now separates people because a lot of the world holds this belief that everyone is so different from one another or that one group is more important than another when that really isn’t the case. Once people realize that we are all people who are made up of pretty much the same things and understand that race is something society has created, there will be more unity and less tension in the world and people will have a better understanding of themselves and of each other.