Question 1

Which of the following statements about Trayvon Martin and George Zimmerman is NOT accurate?

Accepted Answer

A

Question 2

What term describes the police practice of giving extra scrutiny to people of color?

Accepted Answer

Racial profiling is the correct term, as it refers to the discriminatory practice by law enforcement officials of targeting individuals for suspicion of crime based on the individual's race, ethnicity, religion, or national origin.

Question 3

What did W.. E. B. Du Bois mean when he said that "the problem of the Twentieth Century is the problem of the color line"?

Accepted Answer

Du Bois was highlighting the enduring issue of racial segregation and discrimination, indicating that overcoming the ingrained racism in American society would be a significant challenge of the 20th century.

Question 4

The Thomas theorem helps us understand that race is socially constructed because it shows us that

Accepted Answer

The Thomas theorem posits that situations defined as real are real in their consequences. This means that if people act as if race matters, it becomes a significant factor in social interactions and structures, illustrating how race is a social construct rather than a fixed biological reality.

Question 5

Which theory analyses modern Western-and especially American-society as structured by a historically developed "racial common sense"?

Accepted Answer

Racial formation theory, developed by sociologists Michael Omi and Howard Winant, focuses on how social, economic, and political forces determine the content and importance of racial categories, and how they are in turn shaped by racial meanings. It analyzes society through the lens of race and ethnicity, considering how racial identities are constructed and evolve over time. This theory specifically addresses how a "racial common sense" is historically developed and institutionalized in society, particularly in the context of the United States.

Question 6

Which of the following statements about human genetic diversity is accurate?

Accepted Answer

The majority of human genetic diversity exists within racial groups rather than between them. This means that individuals from the same racial group can have more genetic differences among themselves than they might have with individuals from different racial groups. This challenges the concept of race as a strict biological categorization.

Question 7

Initially during the Age of Exploration, as Europeans began to travel beyond Europe, they argued for the superiority of Europeans over others they met due to

Accepted Answer

Initially, Europeans justified their sense of superiority over others they encountered during the Age of Exploration primarily through cultural and religious differences, rather than biological or physical characteristics. They viewed their Christian beliefs and European customs as superior to those of the peoples they encountered.

Question 8

Why did Europeans come to view race as so important by the 1700s?

Accepted Answer

Racial hierarchies were used to justify the enslavement of Africans, as it provided a rationale for the economic exploitation and social stratification that benefited European colonial powers.

Question 9

All of the following were agricultural products produced primarily through the labor of enslaved people that helped Britain establish economic and political dominance in the 18th century EXCEPT

Accepted Answer

Mustard was not a primary agricultural product produced through the labor of enslaved people that contributed to Britain's economic and political dominance in the 18th century. Cotton, sugar, and tobacco were key commodities produced in the colonies through slave labor, significantly benefiting the British economy.

Question 10

To say that race is socially constructed is to say that

Accepted Answer

Race as a social construct means that the definitions and significance of race vary across cultures and historical periods, rather than being fixed or rooted in unchangeable biological characteristics.

Question 11

When Europeans created racial classification systems in the 18th century, they

Accepted Answer

European racial classification systems in the 18th century often placed Europeans at the top, reflecting and reinforcing their own biases and justifying colonialism and imperialism.

Question 12

Racial determinism is a theory that says that

Accepted Answer

Racial determinism is the belief that different races are biologically distinct and have inherent differences in abilities, which aligns with option D.

Question 13

In their quest to justify oppressing non-white people, white scientists of the mid-1800s used all of the following pseudo-scientific measures to place white people at the top of a racial hierarchy EXCEPT

Accepted Answer

The pseudo-scientific measures used by white scientists in the mid-1800s to justify racial hierarchies typically focused on physical attributes like skull size and shape, and sometimes physical strength, but not on metaphysical concepts like the existence of a soul.

Question 14

In the Great Migration,

Accepted Answer

The Great Migration refers to the movement of African Americans from the rural South to the urban North in the United States during the 20th century, seeking better economic opportunities and escaping racial segregation.

Question 15

How did World War II contribute to changing understandings of race in the U.S.?

Accepted Answer

Nazi atrocities highlighted the dangers of racial ideologies, prompting many Americans to reconsider their own racial prejudices and discriminatory practices.

Question 16

One of W.. E. B. Du Bois' many contributions to our sociological understanding of race was to help us understand that

Accepted Answer

W. E. B. Du Bois emphasized the importance of social structures, opportunities, and experiences in shaping racial disparities, rather than inherent differences or heredity.

Question 17

The work of anthropologist Franz Boas provided evidence that language, culture, and behavior were not inherited but learned. This gave further evidence to the sociological insight that

Accepted Answer

Franz Boas's work showed that language, culture, and behavior are learned rather than inherited, supporting the idea that cultural factors are more significant in understanding human differences than biological ones.

Question 18

From a sociological perspective, race is

Accepted Answer

Race is considered a social construct rather than a biological reality, meaning it is a category of group membership defined by society.

Question 19

Ethnic groups are held together by all of the following EXCEPT

Accepted Answer

Ethnic groups are primarily defined by cultural factors such as shared ancestry, history, language, traditions, and rituals, rather than biological or genetic similarities.

Question 20

The social construction of race is illustrated by the way that

Accepted Answer

The social construction of race is demonstrated by how societal perceptions of race can change over time, as seen in the historical shift in the racial classification of Irish people in the U.S.

Quiz 8: Race, Ethnicity, and Multiculturalism