What is the Definition of Race?

Race presents itself with a complex definition because of the amount of differing opinions on the word and also because its definition has changed over time. At its core, the term race in 21st century America consists of individuals classified into a group based on the similar tangible and viewable characteristics they possess; however, it must be noted that there are many factors that affect what race is.

In 21st century America, a race consists of a group of individuals with similar viewable intrinsic characteristics. By using these intrinsic characteristics, society creates races consciously and sometimes subconsciously. The intrinsic characteristics used to assign an individual to a race include and are limited to ancestral origin and place of birth, physical characteristics, cultural rituals, and the environment the individual surrounds themselves in. One of the main purposes of a race is to trigger racial stereotypes, which are defined as “a preconceived and oversimplified idea of the characteristics which typify” a race. One instance of this is elucidated through the following fictional example. Darryl is dark-skinned. He is driving a decrepit car slowly through a white suburb late at night when an on-duty police officer stops him. The officer notes that Darryl is driving a decrepit car, and in this case, the car symbolizes the environment Darryl surrounds himself in. This along with Darryl’s skin color brings a low-class African-American stereotype to the officer’s mind. By using this stereotype, the officer assumes that Darryl is poor, lazy, “thug-like”, and probably up to no good in an affluent white suburb. Racial stereotypes like this are created by society as a whole, but racial stereotypes for an individual race v...

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...from Asia. I am Asian because I have brown skin and Asian because I have black hair. I am Asian because my hair is not like a white boy’s hair – straight, pretty, and pliable. I am Asian because I speak another language. I am Asian because I excel at math and science and because I make all As. I am Asian because I am an “overachiever” in the eyes of many. I am Asian because I am Hindu and not Christian. I am American because I watch football every Saturday and declared myself an Auburn Tiger at age two. I am American because I talk with a slight southern accent. I am American because I understand slang. I am an American because I love to voice my opinion and not be oppressed. I am American because I love to interact with and entertain people. I am American because I strive to not blend in. Society classifies me as an Asian-American, and I feel like an Asian American.