Ethnicity Ethnic Relations

This course develops an understanding of ethnicity as a social concept and phenomenon in which group boundaries are defined and maintained on the basis of inherited or acquired cultural characteristics (e.g., language and customs). In particular, it considers the relationship between ethnic identity and minority status in plural or multicultural societies, especially in relation to racism or other forms of discrimination. The subject also examines patterns of ethnic integration and ethnic conflict - and the politics of identity - in different societies, especially in light of flows of new immigrants from global diasporas.