Key Issue 1 Human Geography Larson. Geographic Perspective Geographers reject race as biological...
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Transcript of Key Issue 1 Human Geography Larson. Geographic Perspective Geographers reject race as biological...
Key Issue 1
Human GeographyLarson
Geographic Perspective
• Geographers reject race as biological classification because it doesn’t tell them anything about WHY people live WHERE they do.
• Ethnic classification are important because ethnicity is tied to place.
• However, race matters only as a tool to explain WHY certain groups of people who look similar live, attend school, or play near one another.
Ethnicity
• Identity with a group of people who share the cultural traditions of a particular homeland.
• Tied to place. • We get our ethnic traits through connections
with, and isolation from, other groups.
Where are ethnicities distributed?
• Clustering- different ethnic groups can live in distinct areas of both the country and a city.
City Ethnic Clustering
• African Americans- live in urban areas.• 1/4 of US citizens live in Urban areas• ½ of African Americans live in Urban areas.• Similar numbers for Hispanics
Ethnicity in the United States of America
• 3 Prominent Ethnic Groups determined by different criteria• African Americans
– Split into 2 groups– African American Ethnicity– Cultural Heritage from Latin America
• Asian Americans– Also a Race– Includes many Ethnicities
• Hispanic Americans– Not a race– On U.S. census Latinos may select whatever race they like
Racial Characteristics
• Genetically transmitted– Like father like son– Height, eye color, skin, shape, etc. determined by
genes passed along to people from their parents– Very little differences between races. All human. – Because of a lack of isolation among groups race is
too complex to be understood under a microscope.
Race and Racism
• A belief in one groups ‘genes’ are superior, better than, another groups ‘genes’
• Is race the primary influence on human traits and capacity?– i.e. Are Blacks better at basketball?
• Racist- a person who believes race is the primary influence on human traits and capacity
2010 U.S. Census Results
• 77.7% White• 13.2% Black• 5.3% Asian• 1.2% American Indian or Alaskan Native• 17.1% Hispanic*** no box available
• 2.9% selected more than one box
Separate But Equal
• Segregation or the separation of races in American History
• Plessy vs. Ferguson legalized “Separate but equal”• Jim Crow Laws
– Back of the bus– Separate facilities, schools, bathrooms, drinking fountains,
etc.– Separate but Equal inherently unequal- Brown vs. Board of
EducationHistorically, governmental regulation, now cultural preference. (voluntary segregation) thus creating an ethnic enclave.
White Flight
• Ethnic enclave-to have one ethnic neighborhood surrounded by a different ethnicity.
• Reaction to Brown vs. Board of Education: desegregation of schools.
• Alternative: white population to relocate to suburbs• Detroit Demographics 1950 1970 1990 2000
• White population 1.7 mil .9 mil .3 .2
• Black population .3 mil .7 mil .8 .8
Blockbusting-1950’s+
• Whites sell homes (quickly and cheaply which would cause property values to decrease) in fear neighborhood changing from dominant white to dominant black
• Blacks move into new neighborhood (at an increased price) to escape “Ghetto”.
• Neighborhood switches from predominantly white to dominantly black
Do we live in a segregated society?
• Does our city appear to be segregated?• Are other American Cities similarly
segregated?• Are certain neighborhoods or sections of the
city dominated by a specific ethnicity?• Are suburbs dominated by certain ethnicities?