Rhetorical shields

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In the context of race, rhetorical shields are semantic moves or strategically managed propositions to safely state certain views. [1] They commonly appear as nonracial utterances between racial statements. [1]

Contents

Examples

"Rhetorical shields are just that: shields, pieces of armor to protect us when we want to avoid making mistakes when talking about race. They are face-saving techniques used when pushed on a slight undertone of racism to quickly move back to a position of neutrality."

My Racial Journey, University of Pittsburgh Office of Child Development.

Disclaimers

Disclaimers serve as a strategy to dismiss the racial nature of a story. [1] They are used to save face, as they allow a return to safety in situations. [1] Examples of such utterances are "I am not a racist, but..." and "Some of my best friends are black". [1] The phrase "yes and no" as a response to a question about an issue could also be used in such a manner, as it is a way to portray ambivalence on a controversial issue, apparently taking or examining all sides, even though it may conclude with strong support for one side of the issue. [1]

Another way to achieve this is through credentialing, which entails a discursive practice of listing characteristics that makes one not a racist. [2]

Projection

Projection may serve as a strategy to escape from guilt or responsibility and affix blame elsewhere. [1] For example, people may blame other groups for segregating themselves to explain their lack of friends within that group. [1] Another example is the expression of concern for how other people would feel. [1] This is sometimes seen in the issue of affirmative action, where opponents may argue that minorities would feel bad and inferior due to preferential treatment, even though they themselves may be the recipients of preferential treatment. [1]

Diminutives

Diminutives may be used as a strategy to lessen the impact of statements. [1] This strategy could also be used to portray other people as too sensitive, as issues would be reduced to only a little thing. [1] For example, people may say that they are "a little bit" against affirmative action, even though they strongly oppose it. [1]

Indirectness

Indirectness is employed as a protective way to approach certain topics. [3] For example, the question "Where are you from?" is often used as a substitute for "What is your race?" by people who are not comfortable to ask the latter outright. [3]

Related Research Articles

Racism is discrimination and prejudice against people based on their race or ethnicity. Racism can be present in social actions, practices, or political systems that support the expression of prejudice or aversion in discriminatory practices. The ideology underlying racist practices often assumes that humans can be subdivided into distinct groups that are different in their social behavior and innate capacities and that can be ranked as inferior or superior. Racist ideology can become manifest in many aspects of social life. Associated social actions may include nativism, xenophobia, otherness, segregation, hierarchical ranking, supremacism, and related social phenomena. Racism refers to violation of racial equality based on equal opportunities or based on equality of outcomes for different races or ethnicities, also called substantive equality.

Affirmative action refers to a set of policies and practices within a government or organization seeking to benefit marginalized groups. Historically and internationally, support for affirmative action has been justified by the idea that it may help with bridging inequalities in employment and pay, increasing access to education, and promoting diversity, social equity, and social inclusion and redressing alleged wrongs, harms, or hindrances, also called substantive equality.

Racial discrimination is any discrimination against any individual on the basis of their race, ancestry, ethnic or national origin, and/or skin color and hair texture. Individuals can discriminate by refusing to do business with, socialize with, or share resources with people of a certain group. Governments can discriminate explicitly in law, for example through policies of racial segregation, disparate enforcement of laws, or disproportionate allocation of resources. Some jurisdictions have anti-discrimination laws which prohibit the government or individuals from being discriminated based on race in various circumstances. Some institutions and laws use affirmative action to attempt to overcome or compensate for the effects of racial discrimination. In some cases, this is simply enhanced recruitment of members of underrepresented groups; in other cases, there are firm racial quotas. Opponents of strong remedies like quotas characterize them as reverse discrimination, where members of a dominant or majority group are discriminated against.

Racial color blindness refers to the belief that a person's race or ethnicity should not influence their legal or social treatment in society.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Race card</span> Idiom

"Playing the race card" is an idiomatic phrase that refers to the exploitation by someone of either racist or anti-racist attitudes in the audience in order to gain an advantage. It constitutes an accusation of bad faith directed at the person or persons raising concerns as regards racism. Critics of the term argue that it has been utilized to silence public discourse around racial disparities and undermine anti-racist initiatives.

Critical race theory (CRT) is an academic field focused on the relationships between social conceptions of race and ethnicity, social and political laws, and media. CRT also considers racism to be systemic in various laws and rules, not based only on individuals' prejudices. The word critical in the name is an academic reference to critical theory rather than criticizing or blaming individuals.

Covert racism is a form of racial discrimination that is disguised and subtle, rather than public or obvious. Concealed in the fabric of society, covert racism discriminates against individuals through often evasive or seemingly passive methods. Covert, racially biased decisions are often hidden or rationalized with an explanation that society is more willing to accept. These racial biases cause a variety of problems that serve to empower the suppressors while diminishing the rights and powers of the oppressed. Covert racism often works subliminally, and much of the discrimination is done subconsciously.

The model minority myth is a sociological phenomenon that refers to the stereotype of, as well as data on, certain minority groups, particularly Asian Americans, as successful, and well-adjusted, as demonstrating that there is little or no need for social or economic assistance for the same or different minority groups. The model minority stereotype emerged in the United States during the Cold War in the 1950s and was first explicitly used as a term in the 1960s during the Civil Rights Movement as an antithesis to African American claims of racial oppression and has perpetuated notions that other minority groups can achieve the same success through hard work and that discrimination and systemic barriers do not impede upward mobility. The model minority myth has been widely criticized as oversimplistic and misleading, and for being used to justify discriminatory policies and neglect of marginalized communities.

Whiteness theory is a field under whiteness studies, that studies what white identity means in terms of social, political, racial, economic, culture, etc. Whiteness theory posits that if some Western societies make whiteness central to their respective national and cultural identities, their white populations may become blind to the privilege associated with White identity. The theory examines how that blindness may exclude, otherize and perhaps harm non-white individuals and segments of the population.

Reverse racism, sometimes referred to as reverse discrimination, is the concept that affirmative action and similar color-conscious programs for redressing racial inequality are forms of anti-white racism. The concept is often associated with conservative social movements, and reflects a belief that social and economic gains by Black people and other people of color cause disadvantages for white people.

Internalized racism is a form of internalized oppression, defined by sociologist Karen D. Pyke as the "internalization of racial oppression by the racially subordinated." In her study The Psychology of Racism, Robin Nicole Johnson emphasizes that internalized racism involves both "conscious and unconscious acceptance of a racial hierarchy in which a presumed superior race are consistently ranked above other races. These definitions encompass a wide range of instances, including, but not limited to, belief in negative stereotypes, adaptations to cultural standards, and thinking that supports the status quo.

Aversive racism is a social scientific theory proposed by Samuel L. Gaertner & John F. Dovidio (1986), according to which negative evaluations of racial/ethnic minorities are realized by a persistent avoidance of interaction with other racial and ethnic groups. As opposed to traditional, overt racism, which is characterized by overt hatred for and discrimination against racial/ethnic minorities, aversive racism is characterized by more complex, ambivalent expressions and attitudes nonetheless with prejudicial views towards other races. Aversive racism arises from unconscious personal beliefs taught during childhood. Subtle racist behaviors are usually targeted towards African Americans. Workplace discrimination is one of the best examples of aversive racism. Biased beliefs on how minorities act and think affect how individuals interact with minority members.

Laissez-faire racism is closely related to color blindness and covert racism, and is theorised to encompass an ideology that blames minorities for their poorer economic situations, viewing it as the result of cultural inferiority. The term is used largely by scholars of whiteness studies, who argue that laissez-faire racism has tangible consequences even though few would openly claim to be, or even believe they are, laissez-faire racists.

Symbolic racism is a coherent belief system that reflects an underlying one-dimensional prejudice towards a racialized ethnicity. Symbolic racism is more of a general term than it is one specifically related to prejudice towards black people. These beliefs may cause the subject to discriminate against black people and to justify this discrimination. Some people do not view symbolic racism as prejudice since it is not linked directly to race but is indirectly linked through social and political issues.

Racism on the Internet sometimes also referred to as cyber-racism and more broadly considered as an online hate crime or an internet hate crime consists of racist rhetoric or bullying that is distributed through computer-mediated means and includes some or all of the following characteristics: ideas of racial uniqueness, racist attitudes towards specific social categories, racist stereotypes, hate-speech, nationalism and common destiny, racial supremacy, superiority and separation, conceptions of racial otherness, and anti-establishment world-view. Racism online can have the same effects as offensive remarks made face-to-face.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Race relations</span> Sociological concept of relationship between races

Race relations is a sociological concept that emerged in Chicago in connection with the work of sociologist Robert E. Park and the Chicago race riot of 1919. Race relations designates a paradigm or field in sociology and a legal concept in the United Kingdom. As a sociological field, race relations attempts to explain how racial groups relate to each other. These relations vary depending on historical, social, and cultural context. The term is used in a generic way to designate race related interactions, dynamics, and issues.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anti-racism</span> Beliefs, actions, movements, and policies adopted or developed to oppose racism

Anti-racism encompasses a range of ideas and political actions which are meant to counter racial prejudice, systemic racism, and the oppression of specific racial groups. Anti-racism is usually structured around conscious efforts and deliberate actions which are intended to create equal opportunities for all people on both an individual and a systemic level. As a philosophy, it can be engaged in by the acknowledgment of personal privileges, confronting acts as well as systems of racial discrimination and/or working to change personal racial biases. Major contemporary anti-racism efforts include the Black Lives Matter movement and workplace anti-racism.

Racial biases are a form of implicit bias, which refers to the attitudes or stereotypes that affect an individual's understanding, actions, and decisions in an unconscious manner. These biases, which encompass unfavorable assessments, are often activated involuntarily and without the awareness or intentional control of the individual. Residing deep in the subconscious, these biases are different from known biases that individuals may choose to conceal for the purposes of social and/or political correctness. Police officers have implicit bias, regardless of their ethnicity. Racial bias in criminal news reporting in the United States is a manifestation of this bias.

White Racial Identity Development is a field of research looking at how white identity can develop and affect a person throughout their life. Through the process, White people become more aware of their role in American society, with the power and privilege they hold through systematic racism. Dr. Janet Helms created the White Racial Identity Model in 1992 to provide a way to categorize white racial identity. Another theory, the White Racial Consciousness Theory was created as an alternative to Helm's model.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 California Proposition 16</span> Measure to undo the states ban on affirmative action

Proposition 16 was a failed California ballot proposition that appeared on the November 3, 2020, general election ballot, asking California voters to amend the Constitution of California to repeal Proposition 209 (1996). Proposition 209 amended the state constitution to prohibit government institutions from considering race, sex, or ethnicity, specifically in the areas of public employment, public contracting, and public education. Therefore, Proposition 209 banned the use of race- and gender-based affirmative action in California's public sector and public university admissions.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Bonilla-Silva, Eduardo (2006). "The Style of Color Blindness: How to Talk Nasty about Minorities without Sounding Racist". Racism Without Racists: Color-blind Racism and the Persistence of Racial Inequality in the United States (2nd ed.). Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN   978-0-7425-4685-1.
  2. Rabii, Watoii (November 2022). "One of the Good Ones: Rhetorical Maneuvers of Whiteness". Critical Sociology. 48 (7–8): 1275–1291. doi:10.1177/08969205211046658.
  3. 1 2 Sims, Jennifer Patrice; Njaka, Chinelo L. (2020). ""Sometimes It's the First Thing People Ask": Daily Experiences of Mixedness in the US and UK". Mixed-race in the US and UK: comparing the past, present, and future (First ed.). Bingley, UK: Emerald Publishing. ISBN   978-1-78769-554-2.