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We Will All Be Minorities?
Gender and sex are a social construct performed across all levels of Western or colonized societies, especially in mundane and subtle ways. As a concept as a tool, it operates as an instrument of social control describing a range of characteristics, attitudes, and behaviors associated with Western notions of femininity and masculinity. Ultimately, gender is the performance of power. As a method of social control, gender can best be described as concepts used to justify and excuse initial division of labor in Western societies and homes. Gender, as well as sexuality, becomes a way to police people to behave, act, and think in binary terms. In said cases, “men” (males) continued their education and trade outside the home as breadwinners while “women” (females) stayed home to care to domestic affairs and possibly children. Those babies that did not meet either category at birth or thereafter were often subject to genital mutilation or socially obligated to perform a binary gender, with few exceptions, for the rest of their lives. The dominant framework for thinking about sex/gender in binary terms is reproduced by “discourse” and culture – the verbal or symbolic associations made about people, identity, and gendered roles – commonly framed through the Master Narrative.
Sexuality is one area where power and control are expressed in the most intimate of ways. Our infatuation with sex is an extension of power’s operations by keeping sexuality complicit in the functioning of power. “Sex” is, historically speaking, subordinate to the agency of sexuality. It is a mistake to view sexuality in the service of sex (Foucault 157). In contrast, to oppose power it is necessary “to counter the grips of power with the claims of bodies, pleasures, and knowledges, in their multiplicity and their possibility of resistance” (Foucault 157). In introducing sexualities into theory of power, Foucault shows how power is tied to desire and, even more important perhaps, how desire is reconfigured by power.
Minority is a term used to describe any group of people who does not get equal access to power, wealth, and resources compared to a dominant group (majority group) based on its cultural and physical differences. A minority group consists of characteristics such as race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sex, and disabilities. A related term is Minorities, used to describe more than one group of people who does not get equal access to power, wealth, and resources compared to a dominant group. It is usual for the dominant group to refer to African Americans, Native Americans, and Latinos as “minorities.”
Minoritized is to consider people as a minority (= any small group in society that is different from others because of their race, religion, political beliefs, etc.) or make them feel as though they are a minority, in a way that is harmful or unfair. In contrast to “minority,” this term places the emphasis on the power struggle, and on the systemic issues at play. It’s also an adjective, which requires you to add “group” or “people” so it’s people-first language. To treat a group as a lesser status is to minoritize the group, which marginalizes their place in society.
Begin to think and think again
You have a mind; what’s it thinking?
Instructions: Write 100+ words on one (1) course concept above.* Define what the concept means in your own words (3 pts).
Think of a useful description or example of the concept (4 pts).
Create your own reason that explains why this concept is significant to Ethnic Studies (3 pts).
Guidance: Follow the three (3) requirements above to receive maximum points. No other rules apply (citations, format, etc.). Base your response on what you already know, not the unit lecture. In other words, use your own knowledge to create knowledge about a concept: you can tie in your own personal experiences, stories, and examples. You can also use other concepts from this course to explain any aspect of your response.