Racism Is the Reason for Ethnic Inequality

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Marxists ideas of ethnic stratification are based on distinctive view of capitalism and the class system. Where capitalism creates a deep rift between the privileged ruling class and the oppressed working class. Most ethnic minorities are members of the exploited working class and this is the reason for their inequalities, rather than their ethnic features- which can largely dictates their economic fate.

Savirandan (1982) states that ‘economic reductionist’ explains everything in terms of economic and class factors. Which means that people of ethnic backgrounds are automatically find themselves in the working class. However, others would argue that race relations have a ‘relative autonomy’ which means that racial conflicts are certainly connected to class struggles but they also need to be treated as important in their own rights.

The racial divide between the working class become useful as it allows the ethnic minorities of working class people to be exploited.

Castles and Kosack claims that ethnic diversions in society ensure that there is never enough solidarity for the proletariat to form revolution.However Britain is multicultural society and ethnic minorities are becoming more integrated in every walk of like, many are middle class people.Castles and Kosack also claims that ethnic minorities make up the reserve army of labour the employers in their eyes prefer them to be divided by racisms so that they can be played off against one another. Employers may use the black force as ‘reserve army of labour’ to prevent white workers from demanding higher wages. This supports the divide and rule principle because ethnic minorities are often scapegoated in hard times as the cause of unemployment and suffer the most hardship. This why,the ruling class allow the racism to exists as it helps the ethnic divide in the society to be kept in order to make sure that the working class will be kept weak,so that they can be easily be exploited.

Weberian sociologists define classes in terms of economic market position. Even through all the different members of ethnic minorities are separated from each other across all the social classes, they remain to..stay unlikely to be found in the same underclass position. Weberians also treat an ethnic minorities as a status group (which means having a community of people who are sharing the same or similar degree of prestige or respect) The nation of social closure can be used to show how ethnic groups engage in constant struggles for power, status, income and wealth. However status and power are in hands of the majority-ethnic groups, thereby making it difficult for ethnic -minority groups to compete equally for jobs, housing etc. Ethnic minorities who are doing manual jobs are technically part of working class, but they are likely to face discrimination or prejudice from the white working class because they are the people who suffer from status inequality as well as class inequality.

Rex and Tomlinson (1979) claims that ethnic -minority of people experience both class and status inequality, which for them can lead to poverty, which is more severe by racism.

therefore the way in which people experience both class and status might be a significant reason for ethnic inequality in our society.

Weberians arguments would suggest that ethnic inequality is related to the market situation and status differences. Barron and Norris suggests that there is dual labour market consisting of primary and secondary sector. The Primary sector is well paid and secure employment and secondary sector is insecure and low paid. The low status of ethnic minorities lead to them being found in the secondary sector more often. Barron and Norris (1976) point out that the people who are more likely to be found in the secondary sector are women and black people as They are less likely to gain primary-sector employment because employers may subscribe to racist beliefs about the unsuitability of black people and even practise discrimination against them, either by not employing them or by denying them responsibility and promotion. Rex and Tomlinson suggest this perpetuates disadvantage through generations leading to a black underclass.Structural factors might be there reason for ethnic inequalities as they ethnic minority of people are treated differently at the workplace.

Explanations of ethnic inequality vary a great deal. Marxists explanations tend to focus on the workings of capitalism and how this will disadvantage ethnic minorities, although their arguments cannot be used to explain ethnic inequalities alone. Weberians explanations focus on status which does go someway towards acknowledging that ethnic minorities may be treated unfairly in society. The most useful explanation is that racism in society still exists in an implicit way in school, the police and in the workplace and this leads to the inequalities we see today.