Empathy

Empathy is an important term that refers to the ability to understand and share the feelings of another person (or animal). Have you ever heard someone say, 'Before you judge people, try walking in their shoes?’ Having empathy or being empathic is very important when someone is trying to understand society and how different groups in society interact with each other. Empathy is different from sympathy. Watch or listen to this short video to learn the difference between these two concepts:

Think about a story that you’ve heard in the past. Maybe it was one that someone else told you, one that you listened to, or one that you read. Regardless of where you learned the story, if you can remember it now, then you must have made a connection with it. Storytelling is a very effective way to communicate knowledge, but it also helps us - as listeners - to understand another person’s (or people’s) perspective(s).

There are many websites that hold and share people’s stories. For example, Passages Canada is a national storytelling program of Historica Canada where people - newcomers (definition:someone who has recently arrived)to Canada - can share their personal stories about their heritage, their identity, and what it was like immigrating to Canada. These stories offer great cross-cultural dialogue; they also help us to appreciate one another’s different histories and lived experiences.

There are also online libraries that hold and share stories about addiction and mental health, for example:

Heros in Recovery

I Am Project

Understanding that everyone has a different and unique (definition:being the only one of its kind)story, and trying to see the world through other people’s eyes - their perspectives - might help us to ‘walk a mile in their shoes’ and build empathy. It also helps us learn from and with a diverse group of people, and this, in turn, helps us to become better global citizens. Because Canada has such a diverse and multicultural population, we have a unique and awesome opportunity to listen to, and learn from, members of our communities. When we take the time to view the world from other people’s perspectives, then we are more likely to make connections, and those connections bring us together as a stronger society.

Did you know? Indigenous Peoples have used storytelling to pass on knowledge, culture, beliefs, values, customs, history, rituals, ways of life, and relationships for thousands of years?

It is important to note that the following major (i.e., essential) question will guide this activity, “What are the impacts of prejudice and discrimination on society?” You will explore different topics that relate to, and explain, this question as you work through Activity 2.

Remember to advocate for yourself. If you’re not sure that you understand what you are learning, what can you do? Don’t hesitate to ask for feedback from a peer or from your teacher. Be sure to use your metacognitive thinking questions (found in Unit 1, Activity 1) along the way, as well.

Developing empathy and trying to understand different perspectives, will help you to appreciate some of the concepts and complex issues that you will learn about in this unit, and in the world around you.

Hopefully you will notice a theme of social justice(definition:the fair and proper representation of all people in laws and policies) and equity(definition:being fair and impartial) throughout this unit. This means that, by the end of the unit, you will better understand and appreciate that wealth, opportunities, and privileges are not equally distributed amongst society’s members.

Take a moment and activate your background knowledge! You have likely heard the following terms before, for example, in your Grade 10 History class, or your previous Health and Physical Education classes. Match each term with its correct definition.

Prejudice_and_Discrimination_Drag_and_Drop

Long Description

Minority Groups, Prejudice, and Discrimination

Think back to Activity 1 of this unit.  Remember that Conflict Theorists argue power is not equally spread out among all of the different groups in society. This means that dominant groups in society tend to be powerful, while minority groups have less influence. Dominant groups in society have different privileges or advantages that other groups do not possess.

What does it mean to have an advantage or privilege? In society, people who are in the majority group - the dominant group - tend to have social advantages. This means that they have better opportunities available to them, which results in more favourable or superior positions - more so than people who are in the minority groups. The term minority in sociology refers to a group of people that lack power and are considered to be socially disadvantaged.

A group is considered to be a minority for different reasons. These could involve:

• physical characteristics;
• cultural characteristics;
• race;
• ethnicity;
• gender;
• sexual orientation;
• ability;
• religion;
• age; and/or
• appearance.

When it comes to both minority and majority groups, the size of the group doesn’t matter - it’s all about the power, advantages, privileges, and social status that the group has (or does not have).

Visible Minorities

In Canada, the term visible minority is defined by The Employment Equity Act as ‘persons, other than Aboriginal peoples, who are non-Caucasian in race or non-white in colour.’ The following groups (together) represent much of the visual minority population in Canada: Chinese, South Asian, Black, Filipino, Latin American, Arab, Southeast Asian, West Asian, Korean, and Japanese. (source)

Examples of social advantages that majority or dominant groups may have include: the power to make political and economic decisions, having access to money and resources, and representation of their voice in the media (e.g., news, magazines, articles).

A very important point to note and understand is that, because of prejudice and discrimination, minority groups very often experience a lack of power and resources.

Take a few moments to read this image:

Long Description

Another important point to consider is that the variables or markers that are used to label groups in society - e.g., race, ethnicity, culture, sexual orientation  - have been socially constructed. This means that, at some point, a dominant group (e.g., law makers, politicians, white males, heterosexual people, etc.) has targeted certain variables or markers (e.g., religion, skin colour, race, ethnicity) and said that some people are ‘better’ than others (the Social Constructionist Theory studies these ideas). Once that happens, groups in society begin to judge others, and think that if people aren’t part of the dominant group, then they aren’t equal.  This very quickly creates in-group and out-group biases (a concept that you learned about in the last unit).

Stop and consider the enormity or wickedness of this point: minority groups experience prejudice and discrimination in society because of a characteristic (or characteristics) that a dominant group has labelled undesirable or not favourable. Hopefully we can all agree that this is not just(definition:unprejudiced) or equal treatment of society’s members.

(If you are interested in learning much more about issues such as, equity, social justice, and oppression(definition:prolonged, unjust, and cruel treatment), you may want to speak to your teacher about how you can access or register for a Grade 11 or 12 Equity Studies course.)

Unfortunately, it doesn’t take long for people to judge others based on socially constructed variables.  Think back to Jane Elliott’s Brown Eyes, Blue Eyes experiment and consider how quickly the children’s behaviour and expectations of themselves and each other changed when they were the group with (or without) privilege (e.g., when they were the minority or majority group).

In the first activity from this unit, you learned about an important concept in sociology called social institutions. Remember that social institutions govern or guide the ways that we are expected to act. The media (e.g., television, movies, magazines, newspapers, social media sites, etc.) is a social institution that has a very significant impact on us as a society.  For example, it affects our attitudes, the way we dress, our language, how we think about groups in society, and many other areas. The media also has incredible power to reinforce or dispel (definition:make a belief, feeling, or attitude disappear) stereotypes, attitudes, and biases about groups in society. You’ll learn more about the impact of media as an agent of socialization later in this unit.

Indigenous Peoples and Discrimination

Watch or listen to this video to be reminded of the systemic discrimination(definition:policies or practices that are part of the structures of an organization) that Indigenous Peoples have faced in the past, and continue to oppose today, in part, because they are a minority group that resists oppression.

You’ll use your background knowledge of Canadian identity (or identities), citizenship, and heritage that you have learned in your history, civics, and geography classes here, as well. You will also use your knowledge of ethnocentrism(definition:evaluating other cultures based on the standards and customs of one's own culture) to understand the magnitude (or great extent of) past (and horrible) decisions that were enforced by majority groups.

“

The idea that while Indigenous Peoples (especially children) were being told they were nothing, savages, inferior…the rest of Canada heard this same message. How has this formed opinions/prejudices about Indigenous Peoples today?

„

~ Justice Murray Sinclair

Prejudice and Racism

Is Canada as accepting of different identities as it sometimes says it is? A new and unnerving(definition:discouraging) study is challenging the direction that our country may be headed in.

Take a moment to read this article. Remember that tools (e.g., Rewordify.com) are available to help make sure that you understand the material.

Read this article, Study Finds Canadians Aren't As Tolerant Of Immigrants As We Like To Think from The Huffington Post (Original article)

Remember that sociologists study groups in society. They would be especially concerned about why there is a change in Canadian attitudes and beliefs. So, let’s assume there is some truth in the research findings. The article raises an important question: Why has there been a shift in Canadians' attitudes towards immigration? What explains this shift in thought?

Sociologists (and social psychologists) have presented different theories that attempt to explain prejudice and discrimination.

Here are two examples of such theories:

The Scapegoat Theory (proposed by social psychologists) says that prejudice and discrimination happen when people want to ‘vent their anger.’  Further, prejudice and discrimination grow out of the frustrations of people who want to unfairly blame someone else or a group of people for their own problems or for problems in society. Let’s consider an example from the past (which is still relevant today). In Germany, prior to and during World War II, Jewish people were blamed or scapegoated for poor economic times and hardship in society.

Another theory, the Authoritarian Personality Theory, says that (extreme) prejudice and discrimination are personality traits of people who strongly believe in following cultural norms, traditions, and values. Anyone (or a group of people) that doesn’t follow the cultural norms, traditions, and values of society is looked down upon and treated with hostility (e.g., marginalized). Some people may argue that the German Fuhrer, Adolf Hitler, or Soviet leader, Joseph Stalin, have authoritarian personalities. With help from the media, their voices, ideas, and beliefs spread to, and influence, other people’s attitudes, beliefs, and values.  

Schools of Thought and Explanations of Prejudice and Discrimination

The specific sociological Schools of Thought also provide us with explanations about prejudice and discrimination in society - from each of the respective(definition:belonging to the specific theory) lenses that they use to view groups and society.

Recreate this table or organizer in your notes. Locate resources that can help you complete this chart. Be sure to ask for help or clarification along the way to ensure your understanding.  After you have completed your organizer, share it with your teacher for feedback.

Schools of Thought and Explanations for Negative Social Relations (e.g., Discrimination and Prejudice)
Name of Theory	Description of Theory: How does this theory explain prejudice and discrimination?	Name a sociologist who is associated with this theory.	Resource(s) Used Include a properly APA formatted reference for the resource or resources you used.
Structural Functionalist Theory
Conflict Theory
Symbolic Interactionism Theory
Marginalized Voices and Social Theory