Question

Omi and Winant (2014) make the case that rather than understanding race as an inherent feature of human beings, it is essential to understand that race is a social construction. What does it mean to think of race as a social construction and how do racial identities form? How does understanding this concept help scholars better analyze the politics of race?

Answer 1

Answer:

The "race" as a social construction

The "race" is not a human biological category, but a social construction that is based on different historical, political, economic and experiential contexts. The term "race" should not be associated with an ethnic group, a population or ancestry. Different scientific research has shown that it is a myth that there are "white", "yellow" or "black" genes. All human beings that live on the planet have one hundred percent of the same genes, what changes are the types, sequential variations called alleles. Neither the blood type nor the skin color determines the origin or origin of someone. Humanity shares a history of nomadism and migration. Comparing populations does not mean that there are races, it means that there are thousands of humans that vary in their DNA sequences.

Racial identities

The analysis of racial identity starts from people's perception of themselves in racial terms. The social race exists and can have a biological impact. It is important to keep this in mind since we cannot go against the self-denomination of each person (being considered white, black or mestizo).

• Understanding this concept help scholars better analyze the politics of race because it shows how necessary it is to eradicate the structure of racism based on systems of discrimination based on identity.