Social Construction of Race in America

In the 19th Century, Europeans came to believe that they were naturally, biologically and racially superior to the people they had conquered and colonized. Because of this movement, many people came to believe that different races were separate due to biological and evolutionary factors, with white people as the dominant, stronger and more intelligent race and people of color as the inferior, less able races. Race mattered, and still does, in the United States because it gave justification for conquering and enslaving the indigenous people and those who were brought here against their will. Naming each different race, and recognizing each different culture by white and non-white is part of the struggle over power, rewards, privilege and rights in our society.…