Ethnic Attachment Research Articles

A Post-Fordist Ethnicity: Insecurity, Authority, and Identity in South Africa

The expression of ethnicity in postcolonial public life is typically regarded as a regression to the legacies of a colonial rule of difference. Taking the case of Jacob Zuma’s controversial appeals to his Zuluness in the run-up to the South African elections of 2009, I propose a different analysis that grounds a more contemporary mode of ethnic attachment in the dynamics of post-Fordist sociality. Zuma’s supporters utterly rejected the concatenation of culture, local authority, and ethnic population. It was Zuma’s own identification with Zuluness in his personal life that made him into an intimate, of the very most up-to-date kind. Through this identification his supporters hoped to inhabit an unmediated relationship with a powerful and loving state, in scenes of embrace with ethnically grounded normalcy and security.

Assimilation, habitus and drug use among Irish Travellers

The Travellers in Ireland maintain a strong sense of ethnic identity, attachment and affiliation to their culture against rising assimilatory efforts by governments and policies. The Traveller community is at increased risk of problematic substance use, as a consequence of marginalisation, social exclusion and health disparity. The aim of the research was to explore the assimilation process within the context of Traveller habitus and heightened drug activity within Traveller communities, once virtually non-existent. Qualitative research using 12 gender specific focus groups with Travellers (n = 57) was conducted; see Western Regional Drug Task Force report [Van Hout, M.C. 2009a. Substance misuse in the traveller community: a regional needs assessment. WRDTF report, Galway: Western Regional Drug Task Force, Series 2. ISBN 978-0-9561479-2-9; Van Hout, M.C. 2009b. Irish travellers and drug use – an exploratory study. Ethnicity and Inequalities in Health and Social Care 2 (1), 42–49; Van Hout, M.C. 2010. Travellers and substance use in Ireland-recommendations for drug and alcohol policy. Policy Paper. Drugs: education, prevention and policy (in press)]. This initial descriptive drugs research was plotted against a selective assimilation theoretical framework, using the concept of habitus in exploring the recent advent of drug activity within Traveller associational life. Traditional anti-drug Traveller culture is diminishing in potency, as families become fragmented and Traveller youth assimilate within educational settings, and over time one would question if drug use among Travellers will replicate or even exceed that of the ‘settled’ population, given the marginalisation and discrimination they experience. Young Travellers are experiencing contradictory drug norms and values in their assimilatory experiences of cultural and social change, with the sedentarist world presenting normative contexts for drug activity. The level of Traveller attachment to both Traveller and sedentarist values, and development of new action schemas in Traveller habitus will predict Traveller negotiation of the risk environment, as this ethnic group strives to retain their culture within the dominant sedentarist Irish society.

Explaining inter-ethnic harmony in Enugu city, South-eastern Nigeria, 1970–2003

Ethnicity is a prominent feature in Nigeria’s socio-economic environment and is fervently exhibited within the context of the ‘indigene-settler dichotomy’. As this encourages exclusivism, it has been a major factor responsible for violent conflicts across the country. While many urban spaces in the country have witnessed such conflicts, a few have not. This study examines the indigene-settler inter-relations in Enugu to determine why and how the city sustained ethnic coexistence, cooperation and harmony since the end of the civil war (1967– 1970). It demonstrates how, while ethnic attachment appeared to be strong, and while conflicts and occasional tensions did occur in the city, inter-ethnic relationships were cordial and symbiotic. It further identifies and interrogates cogent factors responsible for this trend. The paper argues that the constructive management of ethnic conflicts, as demonstrated in the city, could be efficient and productive. Despite optimism in Enugu’s peaceful condition, however, it concludes that potential complications could emanate, as the factors responsible for Enugu’s condition are amenable to change. Both primary and secondary sources (eighty-six in-person interviews, twelve focus group discussions, archival and secondary materials) were used within a multi-disciplinary framework.

Divided Loyalties? Understanding Variation in Latino Attitudes Toward Immigration*

Objective. In this article, we develop and test a model of competing theoretical explanations of Latino attitudes toward immigration; specifically examining their policy preferences on legal immigration, illegal immigration, and a proposed policy for dealing with illegal immigrants. We also consider whether Latino attitudes toward legal and illegal immigration are related and comprise a single coherent structure. Method. Using data from a 2004 national survey of Latinos, we perform regression, logit, and ordered logit analyses to examine the determinants of Latino attitudes toward immigration. Results. We highlight three important findings. First, our results demonstrate “within-group” differences in immigration attitudes among Latinos, based on both national origin and generational status; we find that Mexicans are more pro-immigration than Latinos from other countries and that foreign-born Latinos have much more positive attitudes about immigration than second-generation and third-generation Latinos. Second, we find that Latino support for various aspects of immigration is primarily a function of ethnic and linguistic identity and attachment to American culture, with self-interest, contextual variables, and political and demographic attributes playing a smaller, more specialized role. Finally, we demonstrate that Latino attitudes toward legal and illegal immigration are highly interrelated. Conclusion. There is a coherent structure underlying Latino attitudes toward legal immigration, illegal immigration, and a policy option for dealing with illegal immigrants. Our tests of competing theoretical approaches reveal the importance of national origin and ethnic attachment and acculturation in explaining differences among Latinos on their attitudes toward immigration.

The Galatian Shield in Egypt

In the Hellenistic world Galatian mercenaries were extremely popular in the armies of the successor kingdoms. They were a non-aligned ethnic mercenary element which would be loyal to its employer, the king, rather than the local community. The Ptolemaic kingdom was no exception, hiring many of these mercenaries and settling them in Egypt. Once the Galatians arrived in Egypt, an effort was made to preserve the uniqueness of these “barbarian” troops among the rest of the population. Nowhere is this distinction clearer than in the symbols used to identify Galatians in art. The most prevalent of these symbols is the shield. With its distinctive boss and horizontal handle, the Celtic shield used by the Galatians has an appearance that conveys an ethnic attachment. Greek and Egyptian shields are smaller with a different boss and handle combination that would have made the distinction clear for a person living in Egypt at the time. In Ptolemaic Egypt the Galatian shield became an identifying symbol of the Galatian mercenaries living in the kingdom, a symbol reinforced by their Greek neighbors.

Generational differences in ethnic and religious attachment and their interrelation. A study among Muslim minorities in the Netherlands

Are there generational differences in ethnic and religious attachment among Muslim minorities in the Netherlands? To answer this question, we assess patterns of ethnic and religious identity and practice as well as their interrelation among Dutch Turks and Moroccans. Classical assimilation theories predict a decline in ethnic attachment over generations, but are less clear on consequences of migration on religious attachment. We use quantitative analysis to test propositions among first and second generation minorities (N = 1,861). Our data indicate that the second generation reports weaker ethnic and religious identities, and engages less in ethno-cultural and religious practices. We do find, however, that religious and ethnic identity become increasingly related for the second generation. These differences can only partly be accounted for by differences in education, employment and life course events.

Accounting for Jewish Secularism: Is a New Cultural Identity Emerging?

Barry Kosmin, Ariela Keysar, and Egon Mayer have observed an increase taking place in the number of Jews who identified with “no religion” during the 1990s. They have proposed two explanations. Kosmin and Keysar interpret this increase as part of a larger American secularization trend. Mayer understands it to be a specific “disaffection from organized Jewish life.” Implicit in both explanations is the emergence of a new secular Jewish identity that excludes identification with Judaism. As such, this new identification represents a radical departure from the American Jewish norm. American Jews have long been comfortable identifying with Judaism even though their outlook is as secular as the most secular of all Americans. Using the 2000–2001 National Jewish Population Survey and the 2001 American Jewish Identification Survey these two hypotheses are tested and rejected because secular Jews were found to be less “ethnic” than Jews by religion both in terms of attitudes and behaviors. Instead a third explanation is explicated which attributes the increase in the number of secularly identified Jews to a compositional change in the American Jewish population. Jews with no religion are overwhelmingly of mixed ancestry; and the number of such Jews increased dramatically between 1990 and 2000 as a result of intermarriage. Two OLS regressions show that both ethnic attitudes and behaviors are influenced primarily by Jewish background experiences. Jews of mixed ancestry are less likely to have these and thus score lower. A third OLS regression shows that these background experiences strengthen ethnic attachments which in turn influence ethnic behaviors. A logistic regression demonstrates that ancestry does have a direct influence on identification as secular above and beyond Jewish background experiences. Secular Jews choose the “no religion” option because it allows them to identify as Jews without having to choose between either of their parents’ two religions.

Identity issues in urban ethno-communal con! ict in Africa: an empirical study of Ife-Modakeke crisis in Nigeria

This paper examines identity issues in urban ethno-communal con" ict focusing on the case of Ife-Modakeke in Nigeria. ! e data used in the study is from a larger survey carried out by the author in Ife and Modakeke communities. ! e data collected was analysed using simple frequencies, percentages and correlation statistical technique. Given the circumstance that led to the birth of Modakeke; the status of Modakeke and that of its people has always been a source of dispute and con" ict. First, is the issue of landlord/tenant relationship and second, is the issue of indigene/non-indigene status and by extension the problem of citizenship. In both communities ethnic attachment is high, and, inter-personal relationship among the people in the two communities is not that very cordial. Signi# cant negative relationship is found between inter-personal relationship and age, age of the youngest child, and if most important organization belonged to is ethnic organization. Signi# cant positive relationship is found between inter-personal relationship and having relative in the other community (Ife or Modakeke). the result of the correlation analysis between ethnic attachment and inter-personal relationships among the people of the two communities though found not to be signi# cant shows a negative relationship. this result suggests that for sustainable peace to be attained there is the need to pursue policies that encourages social integration, as well as policies that discourage strong ethnic attachment and the spread of ethnically related organizations in the two communities.

Institutional Structure and Democratic Values: A Research Note on a Natural Experiment

The presidential nominating contest of 2008 resurrected an earlier debate about the democratic impact of the main institutional alternatives for delegate selection. This time, however, the debate came packaged with a major 'natural experiment' comparing the impact of primaries versus caucuses, courtesy of the Democratic Party of Texas which actually used both institutions on the same day to select different parts of the Texas delegation. Evidence from their simultaneous use suggests that the power of strong racial and ethnic attachments is not much influenced by the choice of institutions. Yet the same evidence suggests that the power of social class and class position is powerfully influenced by just such a choice. This result appears to present a particularly sharp dilemma for the self-conscious party of the less advantaged, the Democrats.

Ethnic and sub-ethnic attachments among Chinese, Korean, and Indian immigrants in New York City

This article compares ethnic and sub-ethnic attachments in Chinese, Indian, and Korean immigrants in New York City, based on results of a survey. Indian respondents, with much higher levels of education and fluency in English, show a lower level of cultural ethnic attachment than the other two groups. The Chinese show the lowest level of formal ethnic affiliation, mainly due to their much lower level of religious affiliation. All three groups show extremely high levels of informal ethnic networks. However, Chinese and Indian respondents largely limit their close friendships to their sub-ethnic group, based on national origin, religion, regional origin and/or language, while Korean respondents, characterized by group homogeneity, tend to maintain close friendships with all other Koreans. Much larger proportions of Chinese and Indian respondents than Koreans choose the sub-ethnic identity label and they show much lower levels of loyalty to their homeland than Korean respondents.

Take One for the Team? Limits of Shared Ethnicity and Candidate Preferences

This study tests the theory of politicized ethnic identity’s shaping Latino political behavior. The authors consider whether candidate quality moderates the effects of political ethnic attachments on co-ethnic candidate preferences. Ordered logistic regression models are developed to predict Latino voter preferences for co-ethnic candidates with varied degrees of qualification. Candidate quality significantly mitigates collective ethnic political behavior, yet the authors find Latinos with strong ethnic attachments remain inclined to prefer a co-ethnic even when less qualified than a non-Latino candidate. Political ethnic identity theory is useful in explaining minority political behavior, but there are boundaries to collective identity’s shaping political preferences.

New Americans or Diasporic Nationalists?: Mexican Migrant Responses to Naturalization and Implications for Political Participation

Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork and in-depth interviews in a citizenship class in Southern California, this paper analyzes Mexican immigrant responses to naturalization. Far from being a conduit for Americanization, the citizenship class emerges as a space where Mexican migrants make the naturalization process intelligible on their own cultural and political terms, positing it as a potentially empowering institution for the immigrant rights movement. Among respondents who were once reticent to seek U.S. citizenship, there seems to be a shift in consensus in favor of naturalization as a political tool to secure stability and community empowerment. Similarly, the newly eligible also share a sense of urgency to naturalize in an immigrant-hostile and increasingly precarious political environment. However, ethnic attachment to the homeland does not always wane over time or upon naturalization. The interview data suggests that naturalizers retain their Mexican ethnic identities and loyalties largely in response to the institutional discrimination they face throughout the process of political enfranchisement. Far from being an impediment to political participation, ethnic identification and attachment to the homeland post-naturalization may drive immigrant political participation across international boundaries.

Understanding the Limits to Ethnic Change: Lessons from Uganda's “Lost Counties”

The historically constructed nature of ethnicity has become a widely accepted paradigm in the social sciences. Scholars have especially have focused on the ways modern states have been able to create and change ethnic identities, with perhaps the strongest case studies coming from colonial Africa, where the gap between strong states and weak societies has been most apparent. I suggest, however, that in order to better understand how and when ethnic change occurs it is important to examine case studies where state-directed ethnic change has failed. To rectify this oversight I examine the case of the “lost counties” of Uganda, which were transferred from the Bunyoro kingdom to the Buganda kingdom at the onset of colonial rule. I show that British attempts to assimilate the Banyoro residents in two of the lost counties were an unmitigated failure, while attempts in the other five counties were successful. I claim that the reason for these differing outcomes lies in the status of the two lost counties as part of the historic Bunyoro homeland, whereas the other five counties were both geographically and symbolically peripheral to Bunyoro. The evidence here thus suggests that varying ethnic attachments to territory can lead to differing outcomes in situations of state-directed assimilation and ethnic change.

Ethnicity and the Politics of Land Tenure Reform in Central Uganda

There has been much debate in recent years about land tenure reform in Africa. However, this debate has largely failed to acknowledge the role ethnicity can play in the success or failure of reform. The case of Buganda in central Uganda, where land has long been strongly associated with ethnic identity, provides a counterexample which underlines the importance of ethnicity. The paper demonstrates how attempts by the current Ugandan government to implement badly needed land tenure reform have been undermined by its reluctance to acknowledge this ethnic attachment as well as its failure to address perceptions of ethnic bias towards western Ugandans.

The Uneasy Relationship of Ethnicity and Nationalism: The French-Speaking Populations of North America

Surveying the destiny of two contemporary North American ethnic groups of French origins, the Acadiens and the Canayens, this article attests to the difficult coexistence between ethnicism and nationalism. Ethnic attachments have had a hard time when facing four successive nationalisms: the French colonial, the British imperial, the Canadian federal, and the Québécois souverainist.

Perfectionism and eating disorder symptomatology in Chinese immigrants: Mediating and moderating effects of ethnic identity and acculturation

Three hundred and one Chinese drawn from the University of Auckland and local communities in New Zealand completed an anonymous questionnaire consisting of the Eating Disorder Inventory (EDI), the Positive and Negative Perfectionism Scale (PANPS), the Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure (MEIM) and the short form of the Marlowe–Crowne Social Desirability Scale (MCSDS). Negative Perfectionism significantly predicted more eating disorder symptoms as measured by the EDI. A strong positive evaluation of other ethnic groups together with high Positive Perfectionism predicted lower body dissatisfaction and drive for thinness, whereas the opposite was true for a more negative evaluation of other groups and high Positive Perfectionism. A strong sense of belonging and attachment towards the Chinese culture and valuing other ethnic groups were found to mediate the relationship between Positive Perfectionism and eating disorder symptoms, predicting a lower sense of interpersonal distrust. Immigrant Chinese showed better adaptation with strong ethnic attachment as well as valuing the mainstream culture. Results also suggest that promoting Positive Perfectionism together with strong ethnic identification and values towards the mainstream culture may be advantageous to Chinese immigrants.

Options: Racial/Ethnic Identification of Children of Intermarried Couples*

Objective.Whites of various European ethnic backgrounds usually have weak ethnic attachment and have options to identify their ethnic identity (Waters, 1990). What about children born to interracially married couples?Methods.I use 1990 Census data—the last census in which only one race could be chosen—to examine how African American‐white, Latino‐white, Asian American‐white, and American Indian‐white couples identify their children's race/ethnicity.Results.Children of African American‐white couples are least likely to be identified as white, while children of Asian American‐white couples are most likely to be identified as white. Intermarried couples in which the minority spouse is male, native born, or has no white ancestry are more likely to identify their children as minorities than are those in which the minority spouse is female, foreign born, or has part white ancestry. In addition, neighborhood minority concentration increases the likelihood that biracial children are identified as minorities.Conclusion.This study shows that choices of racial and ethnic identification of multiracial children are not as optional as for whites of various European ethnic backgrounds. They are influenced by race/ethnicity of the minority parent, intermarried couples' characteristics, and neighborhood compositions.

LATINO POLITICS

▪ Abstract This review addresses key issues in the study of Latino politics. Foremost among these is the question of low voter turnout. Such factors as income, education, nativity, religion, political party, organizational involvement, neighborhood composition, ethnic attachments, and mobilization of Hispanic turnout have a limited impact on Hispanic votes. I suggest that this is due to differences in the political socialization of Latinos and Anglos. The review also shows that immigrants are focused on U.S. politics rather than home-country politics. Additionally, it describes significant differences regarding the factors that shape Hispanic versus Anglo partisanship. Among the other issues considered is the limited significance of ethnic factors, as compared to partisanship and state of residence, in determining electoral and policy preferences.

Social capital and economic outcomes for immigrants and ethnic minorities

The ambiguities of “social capital” can be clarified by reformulating it as a group-based resource derived from social relations, the effectiveness of which is contingent upon the extensity and intensity of social ties and the group’s resources, and the creation of which may involve a potential cost to an individual. This paper reviews the literature on immigrants and ethnic minorities to see how ethnic attachment as a form of social capital has affected the economic well-being of immigrants and minorities, and refines the concept of social capital. Studies of “ethnic attachment” and of the “ethnic mobility trap” have stressed the “penalty” of ethnic ties and affinity. However, studies on the ethnic enclave economy and transnational communities have attributed the prosperity of the enclave economy and the economic success of some ethnic diasporas to ethnic networks. The paper concludes that social capital can be enabling for individuals and groups, subject to the level of other forms of capital present. But social capital cannot replace other forms of capital to produce unrealistic outcomes beyond the material limits of its contextual boundaries. Thus, social capital is a useful concept, not as a universal virtue, but as a situation-based capacity bounded in specific social and class contexts.

Product Review: Ethnic Attachments in Sri Lanka: Social Change and Cultural Continuity

Product Review: Ethnic Attachments in Sri Lanka: Social Change and Cultural Continuity