This blog is intended for students taking Introduction to Sociology with Professor McCoy at UC Davis during spring quarter 2016. It is a private blog administered by Joshua Hayes (TA) for students in sections 1 and 2. This is the location for the blog responses and student comments described in the course syllabus.
Jobseekers resort to ‘resumé whitening' to get a foot in the door, study shows
This article talks about job seekers does “resume whitening”, which is minimizing the signs of them being people of color in order to increase their chance in landing a job. For example, people would change their name from “Lei Zhang” to “Luke Zhang” on their resume to make them look more “white”. Although these changes seem insignificant, people do in fact get better chances of callbacks which suggests how serious racial discriminations are. And it also shows that racial minorities are doing something about being discriminated. They are toning down their proof of being “non-white” to show that they could fit in with the “white” work environment. This article suggests that racial discrimination does exist within the job seeking process where employers take race into consideration when selecting candidates for interviews.
If the author were to rewrite this article, I think it would be helpful for Keung to include quotes and interview excerpts of racial minorities of their view on being discriminated. Do they think that this is unfair or are they used to being discriminated and think this is no big deal? Also, the author should interview employers who discriminate applicants regarding their race. I would be interested to find out if employers would admit to being racist, and if they do, their reason behind their decisions. This would shed light on racial discrimination and enable the readers to further understand why racial discrimination exists. Lastly, I think the author should interview white people as well to see if they take white privilege granted and how they feel about racial minorities. This way, the article would include more perspectives of different groups of people and present a fuller picture on this issue of white privilege.
I like your analysis of the article. The example that you used, people changing their first name from something such as "Lei" to "Luke" to show more American in them really shows how the society is still struggling with this. I agreed with the changes that the author could make if Keung were to rewrite the article. For so many people, it's a struggle to not get a call back, to not get the same respect that they deserve because of their race, but including quotes from them would be great. Overtime, one would think that people would get used to being discriminated, but are they really used to the idea of not being treated equally? I also like your suggestion of interviewing white people because for many, they don't realize that they have white privilege. By interviewing the white people, we get a perspective on how they feel about people of color being discriminated.
I agree with Jamie that many minorities would change their names, such as from "Lei" to "Luke," in order to increase their chances of getting the job. This does show the seriousness of racial discrimination; however, many people fail to realize it. I especially agree with Jamie's that the author should include quotes and interviews of the minorities. This could possibly be beneficial for the readers of this article because it would be great evidence in seeing how the minorities truly feel about the racial discrimination. I also agree that incorporating this would provide different sides of the story from different people in order to demonstrate the wide issue of their racial discrimination.
I agree with your idea to interview racially biased employers, but I think it would be difficult to actually get them to discuss this topic. A better way than straight out asking them would be to do extensive data collection on 1 particular employer, send in 100 resumes, of varying ethnicities, and qualifications and try and show if their discrimination through trends of calls backs. If you wanted to take it a step further you could extend this to several employers of different fields to see how racially discrimination permeates all different jobs and careers.
I agree with Jamie's view and believe that interviewing people including those who are being discriminated against, the privileged, and the employers would shed some light on how unjust our system is. I think that interviewing the people being discriminated against and seeing if they view this as a natural phenomenon (because of social construction of reality) would show how accustomed ethnic groups are to discrimination and how that's sort've a norm in our society these days. I don't think that employers would necessarily point out that they are discriminating against certain races since that would either bring down their reputation or breach contract. I agree with interviewing, "whites," to see if they feel more privileged or if they felt some kind've discrimination would be interesting since it would also point out whether there's a social norm that white people are getting treated better than other races.
In the article by Johnson, he did a great job at conveying the problem that we, the people in the society, as a whole is facing. The author first started off talking about the similarities that we all shared, such as being dependent on others when we’re young, however, once we get older, there are other people that depends on us. Not only that, but he also talked about how we want to feel accepted into the society, how we want the respect that we feel we deserve, but what sets us apart from others is based upon our skin color and our race. If we’re not white, we’re being looked at more differently, have a more difficult life than those that are white, and the reason being is that racism only lean turns the people of color. Johnson talked how white people can walk a lone at night without feel scared, but that same situation can’t apply to a any other people of color, and the problems that the people of color experiences aren’t the problems that the white people experiences because they have some privileges. He specified how this is a problem as a whole, and that the only way that we could fix it is if we take color out of the problem and looked at everyone equally. The author wants the readers to realize that we shouldn’t give certain groups of people a harder time based upon their skin color. If the author were to rewrite this article, I think he should interview people of colors. He talked about his African American friend, yet, the readers never got her own perspective of this problem that the society is facing. Johnson brought up the topics of the struggles that people of color faces in society, such as walking alone in the street at night, the safest place to park his/her car. It would also be great if he could interview white people and ask them questions, on what they think about this privileges that white groups are able to have while other groups aren’t able to experience because of their skin color. Do other people see the same issues that Johnson is pointing out? Johnson overall did a great job at conveying his message on white people having the privileges in this society more than other people but I think his article need more perceptions from other people on the situation.
I agree with Thu Quynh Nguyen's opinion that our skin color and our race set us apart. Although people nowadays keep emphasizing that racism is no long the issue in this society, we can't deny the truth that it still exist in today's world. Like Nguyen mentions in her post, white people have some privileges over other people of color. It's a good thing for white people to have the privileges. Indeed, majority white people take advantages of those privileges, and make the society a better place. While there are some people who abuse the privileges, and use it to discriminate people who have different skin colors. As you said, the only way to solve this problem is to ignore people's skin color, and appeal everyone to treat each other equally. In fact, I think our society is making a lot of progress on dealing racism problem every year, and I believe one day, racism issue definitely will get eliminated.
I agree with Thu Quynh Nguyen that the author should include the perspective of his African American friend on the issue of white privilege. Does she feel the same way that Johnson describes minorities do about privilege? Or does she not feel that way because she is already in a job position with higher power? Perhaps the fact that she has a job as an executive in a large insurance company still doesn’t mean that she feels excluded from the non-privilege stereotypes that exists. Her situation does not separate her from others in her group, she’s not an individual, she’s part of a group. Therefore, the author’s friend might be considered as a deviant of African Americans because she has a job with a higher power position. Oftentimes, being labeled as deviant greatly depends on who is committing that deviant act itself. It would be interesting for Johnson to include this in his article because it could tell us a lot about the degree to which a person in a minority, non-dominant group is seen as existing as only part of a group and the degree to which a person in a dominant, privileged group is seen as an individual. And that in turn could help us see how much we actually buy into the idea of generating equality in society.
Racial Bias, Even When We Have Good Intention by Sendhil Mullainathan
From Mullainathan’s article, he brings out two opposite opinions about racism in nowadays’ society. One is arguing racism is a thing of the past, while the other is arguing skin color is a huge factor on how people are treated. Although Mullainathan doesn’t state his own opinion about racism apparently, he implies that discrimination on people’s skin colors still exist in this world. The article starts with a black criminal killed by police officer event in Ferguson, MO, claiming that “the death of African-Americans at the hands of the police” (Mullainathan P1). This is not the first time that we watch news that report white police officers kill black criminals. Some people even claim that things will be completely different if the criminals are white. The author’s argument clearly points out black people have fairly low income and life quality compare to white people, but it doesn’t give the rights to some white employers to discriminate black employees. Everyone should work together with equal human rights and respects.
If the author were to rewrite his article, he should add the explanations to the audiences’ stereotypes about African-Americans, which probably will be the main reason of discrimination. Especially the negative stereotypes about African Americans. For example, the author can mentions the crime events that caused by gangs, the underground economy (illegal drug and gun dealing). Those two factors will have a great impact on people’s point of views. What’s more, the author can talk about the discrimination in high school, universities or even junior high school, studying how students’ behaviors affect their views of race. For example, bully is what we always see on the news too, and I’m wondering if the bully has sort of relationship with racism. Although most bully events may simply cause by students’ emotional acts, but are there any potential effects to those students who bully other students? I think the article will be even more interesting if the author can discuss this point.
I agree with your argument that the article talks about two opposite opinions about racism is today's society. I also said that the author said how we have good intentions and try to not discriminate, but we still unconsciously discriminate against Africans-Americans. The media plays a huge role in this because if we hear something over and over it becomes ingrained in our minds. I think your point about how everyone should work together to end racism is interesting because this article addressing that we are racist and do not even notice, is the first step in ending discrimination all together. I had not thought about the author bringing up more about why we discriminate, such as media coverage on gangs and not positive things that African Americans contribute. I also thought it would be interesting to hear more about non-white groups of people are affected by discrimination.
I agree with your attempt to include more personal experience of their racist socializations. Asking people some personal experiences also might reveal some things that the people did not know things about themselves. Everybody has prejudices, but it is very easy to claim that racism is gone today, especially if you are a minority. Just as we saw in the documentary True Colors in class, people are treated differently solely based off the color of their skin. The documentary was a wake up call for me, even though I knew racism still existed. I also agree that there needs to be more media that portrays people of color in a positive light. We should be talking about racism more so that we can fight against it. Racism shouldn't be the taboo topic it is today, but rather, an open issue that people can discuss. We should openly talk about our own prejudices, because admitting that we are biased is the first step in realizing that racism is still prevalent.
Jobseekers Resort to ‘Resume Whitening’ to Get a Foot in the Door, Study Shows
In Nicholas Keung’s article, he argues that a lot of minority have to change their name and resume status to improve their callback results from companies. In his study, he found that a lot of black job applicant as well as Asian applicants changed their African or Asian-sounding names on paper and experience to improve their chances of getting the job. He discovered that the chances of getting a job for these applicants drastically increased by 25.5 Percent for black applicants that changed their affiliation with their ethnicity and 21 percent for Asian applicants. The applicants typically changed their names, student involvement, and chair positions in various clubs to sound more, “white.” For instance, a black applicant with the name Lamar J. Smith initiated his L. James Smith instead and an Asian applicant with the application Lei Zhang changed his first name completely to Luke Zhang to seem more American or in tune with white culture. Interestingly, he found that the rate of callback went up for both typical employers like law firms, hospitals, etc, as well as firms that are pro diversity.
I found the research conducted by Keung interesting and I agree with how a lot of ethnic groups have to change their names and organization status to stay in tune with present day America. However, I think that Keung can improve his article by gathering more data nationwide instead of just within local newspaper ads. I think that this will help see if there is a big discrepancy nationwide between how American companies perceive who they hire or if this is just an outlier in the data. For example, if a lot of companies nationwide don’t have this problem where they favor, “whitened,” resumes then maybe Keung’s data doesn’t represent the majority of America and it’s just the city or state that he is in. Also, I think it can be improved with more data. For instance, in the third part of his research he used 1,600 fictitious resumes with various levels of whitened experience and/or name sent to job ads. I think that the data depends on how many applications are sent per job/company since this could discourage companies from looking at all of the application due to time constraint and/or practicality for the employer.
I agree with Jason’s suggestion that the author should have broadened his analysis by including data throughout the whole nation. The geographic location and population of his sample may not be an accurate representation of the nation as a whole. Perhaps there is more “resume-whitening” in some states than others. I also think it would be interesting to compare the United States to a different country such Canada or England. Do the minorities in these countries also participate in “resume-whitening”? I also think that in addition to using fictitious resumes, the author should have acquired data of real people and real resumes to see the real-life applications of this practice.
"Jobseekers resort to ‘resumé whitening' to get a foot in the door, study shows" -Sonia Kang The author’s most important argument in this article is that racial discrimination in the workplace still exists. She backs up this article by explaining what “resume whitening” is and why more ethnic applicants may feel obligated to do it. Resume whitening is when an ethnic person down plays specific things on their resume that highlight the fact that they are not white. An example used in the article is that the name Lamar J. Smith would become L. James Smith in order to seem more western/white. They do this to prove they can fit into the work place, even though they are a different race or ethnicity. Sonia Kang also backs up her argument by showing data that proves that the call back rate for a “whitened resume” is greater than one that is not. This is an important argument because it shows that discrimination still exists and people have to pretend to be something they aren’t in order to obtain certain opportunities they wouldn’t be able to get being 100% themselves.
If Sonia Kang where to rewrite this article I think she could have further talked about how white people do not have to worry about this. She could compare everything a white person has to do in order to get a call back in comparison to a more ethnic person. This would highlight the extra obstacles non-white applicants have to go through to obtain the same opportunity as a white individual. This would be an impactful and interesting addition to her article. She could have also focused on a few more races/ethnicities rather than just Black and Asian applicants. It is important to cover as many races as possible in order to prove that this is not just an issue for black and Asian people. However, I still think Sonia Kang’s article was very informative and this extra information would only add to its great argument.
I agree with your suggestion about the author expanding on how white people do not have the same worries.I think it would be beneficial to interview white applicants and see how they change their resume to make them more fitting for the job. In addition, asking whites for their opinion on resume whitening, that many minorities do, would provide an interesting perspective. I also agree with expanding minorities to more than blacks and asians. It would be interesting to see in which professions certain races prove to be more advantageous. This could illustrate the use of stereotypes in certain scenarios. Kang should also explore why white Americans seems to be the favored race amongst employers. This could show whether this issue is more deeply rooted in the institution or the individual who is hiring. Either way, this information could improve the article by providing more evidence and perspective.
I agree with Drew that the author should have included the situations of different races as well, and not just black people. The author did a good job analysing the unfairness of black people finding jobs compared to white people. but it doesn't tell the readers whether this problem happens to all non-white people or just black people in particular. I think the author can include different ethnicities on their unequal treatment when finding a job because of their skin color, for example Asian, Indians etc. By including more perspectives from different races, it could present a better picture to the readers of whether racial discrimination only happens to black people or actually happens worldwide to many other races.
“Racial Bias, Even When We Have Good Intentions” by Sendhil Mullainathan
In this article, Mullainathan discusses how the issue of racism is brought back to the forefront after the occurrence of several deaths of African Americans in the hands of Ferguson police. The author looks to empirical research to answer a rising debate about race. The most challenging hurdles come from eliminating all other factors and being able to confirm that racial discrimination is the source of the problem. This includes relevant issues that society faces such as: the widening pay gap between white and black Americans. This issue can be traced back to either racism or the statistics that show African Americans to live in impoverished neighborhoods providing them with fewer resources. Social scientists have coordinated experiments that allow them to isolate the variable of race in each scenario. With this method, they were able to illustrate the outcome of an experiment as dictated by a person’s race. This was exemplified with resume whitening or whitening ethnic sounding names. Essentially, in various situations, it is made apparent that society shows racial bias towards white Americans. Some of these scenarios include whites getting better offers at car dealerships, whites getting more call backs than blacks for job offers (even with the same qualifications), and blacks getting less response in apartment rental ads. This issue extends to the criminal justice system. Yet, in other arenas such as universities, it is often found that bias towards minorities exists. Mullainathan states that this prejudice can often go subconsciously and relies on stereotypes and prior associations to make snap judgments. Even if people try to fight it and remain unbiased, it is an innate action. The author suggests that it is not easy to point out the bigot, as everyone in some way is guilty of discrimination. The author essentially reminds us that racial discrimination can appear from anywhere and not from the obvious suspects. If the author were to rewrite the article, he should include more studies that illustrate discrimination as an uncontrolled factor amongst everyone. Mullainathan ends the article with a large statement claiming that everyone commits bigotry as our instincts rely on stereotypes to make fast judgments. Society created the concept of race, so discrimination based on skin color is a learned practice. The author needs to expand on why we came to develop these stereotypes in the first place. It would also be beneficial to see whether the impoverished positions blacks find themselves in can be linked to racial discrimination. This includes high involvement in crimes and gangs a well as the lack of opportunities made available to minorities. Mullainathan should also go into how this discrimination creates a cycle for subjugated races and negates them from bettering their situation. By shedding light and understanding on the truth behind these stereotypes, this could hopefully eliminate the beliefs that people associate with certain races.
I agree with your suggestion for the author to improve the article. I would be very interested in the author explaining the initial reason for stereotypes being developed. I agree that if people were given more of an insight into the original reasons for stereotypes being created that people have more chances in recognizing their own stereotypes towards others and putting an end to it. It would be impossible to put an end to stereotypes on a large scale, but if it begins bit by bit within each individual, there can be a difference made. Eventually, I believe that slowly (with enough individuals reached) we can learn to “unlearn” the practice of discrimination based on stereotypes. If it can be learned, we can work on learning to “unlearning” them for the sake of progress in society. Stereotypes are heavily dictated and rooted in the past, and it is definitely time to move past it and adapt to the present.
Jobseekers Resort to 'Resume Whitening' to Get a Foot in the Door, Study Shows
In his article “Jobseekers Resort to 'Resume Whitening' to Get a Foot in the Door, Study Shows,” Nicholas Keung’s main argument is that many minorities do “resume whitening” which is when they attempt to hide any signs of race or ethnicity on their resume in order to receive improved callback rates. One of the examples used is when they change their original name “Lamar J. Smith” into “L. James Smith.” The result of doing this was an improvement in callback rates, since the changed name appears less of a minority on their resume. In a study led by Sonia Kang, it was shown that only 10 percent of black applicants who used their original names received callbacks, as opposed to 25.5 percent when they “whitened” their names on their resumes. This study supports the argument that as Sonia Kang states “Discrimination is still a reality,” which is prevalent in minority jobseekers.
If Keung were to rewrite this article, he should include primary research from the many minority jobseekers affected. The author has some statistical evidence regarding minorities being discriminated and affected with “resume whitening;” however, there are not enough evidence told by the minorities themselves. For instance, interviews and questionnaires of the minorities would support his arguments even further and help his credibility for the readers. Keung should also state whether the racial discrimination of minority jobseekers happen with white or non-white employers. In his article, he only mentions “pro-diversity employers.” If he also includes this, there would be sufficient evidence in determining whether the statistical evidence of lesser callback rate is related to the ethnicity of the employer.
I agree with Victor's idea of adding primary research to the authors article. Primary research is an excellent way to get meaningful and detailed information about the issue. This would also make the article more personal and give the reader very specific examples of resume whitening. I agree that the combination of statistical data and evidence told by discriminated minorities would strengthen his argument. I do believe the article was very interesting and taught me a lot, but adding primary research would make it even more informative.
“Racial Bias, Even When We Have Good Intentions” by Sendhil Mullainathan
In this article, the author talks about how we discriminate against African-Americans unconsciously and unintentionally. His main point was that even if we have good intentions and try to consciously avoid discrimination, it is not always possible because unconsciously we are processing stereotypes that we’ve seen on television or any other media and applying it to real life and situations. While there are some clear and possibly intentional biases and discrimination that people have against African-Americans such as choosing to pass on them based on their name, or not responding to them, there are also biases which may not be conscious or intentional. As the author pointed out, this is because there are “slow” and “fast” thinking. With slow thinking we consciously and deliberately focus our thinking, but with fast thinking we depend on schemas or things we recall which can include stereotypes we’ve seen or heard from the media. So while
I think if the author were to rewrite the article he could have included more examples on the counterexamples on how diversity is being sought out in certain contexts or institutions such as universities. He could also elaborate on why this could be another form of discrimination because seeking out minorities or people of color just for diversity might not be entirely beneficial for anyone and could result in tokenism. He could also include information on whether the businesses who looked at the same resumes but with stereotypical names were run by whites or African-Americans and whether the race of the business owners played into their decision on hiring which resume.
I agree with your opinion, I feel like the author could have made more of a statement towards the end concerning the racial and unbalance against African-Americans in the US society. I do really appreciate the fact that she used great empirical evidence to prove that racism in America was not something made up. She did point out that a lot of our racial opinions may not be conscious, I thought she could have done a better job of showing how our snap judgments of people may prove to be a racial bias. All in all, I thought it was a very interesting read that opened my eyes to the unfairness that people of color face in the United States.
In the excerpt from Privilege, Power and Difference Allan G. Johnson, states that in order for equality to exist among all races and genders, humans must first recognize that certain people are more privileged than others. The society in which we live, has attached privilege to white heterosexual nondisabled males. People who are privileged often believe that they are not part of the problem, but privilege is always in relation to others and so one group will always benefit at the expense of another group. The privilege in our society has created in income, wealth, education, safety and health. When privileged people understand that they are part of the problem and that those who are underprivileged are not in a position to help themselves then people can work together to tackle this problem. The author recognizes the importance of involving dominant groups in the conversation, and that is the only way that minority groups will stop receiving the lower end of the bargain. Many people in dominant groups seem to shy away from the fact that they are part of the problem. They don’t seem to understand that their possessions and wealth have resulted in the deprivation and suffering of someone else. The author should mention how he plans on bringing dominant groups into the conversation. And how he plans on motivating privileged people to take action and feel obligated to make a difference. I think that the author should focus on educating people about how inequalities came to be and how society and therefore people are responsible for these inequalities.
Jobseekers resort to ‘resumé whitening' to get a foot in the door, study shows The author’s main argument is that employers are more likely to hire an applicant if they seem white compared to a minority. Additionally, applicants actively “whitened” their applications by changing their name to sound more white and removing minority leadership positions. When applicants “whiten” their application, they are more likely to be called back for the job than if they left their application as it was. The author also argued that though companies stated that they supported minority applications, they were in fact providing an “illusion of diversity that might end up making things worse for minority applicants”. Although companies may say they are interested in minority applications, companies fail to follow through with it, shifting the blame from employers to the employees. If the author was to rewrite the article adding a section about if whitening applications had any effect on hiring if the hiring staff was a minority. In the article the author did not specify what race the hiring staff were. It would be interesting to see if hirers would think more deliberately over applicants of the same minority race or look over their applications more quickly. Additionally, it would be worth seeing if minorities develop the same biases that are associated with their own minority. It would also be interesting to see if minority applicants would discriminate against white applicants in order to favor applicants of the same race.
I agree with Bryant's points. These new additions to the article could possibly clear biases out on what recruiters want. This study would help understand both sides of the group and make accurate statements. What would also be interesting to add to Bryant suggestion is seeing what type of positions minorities dominate(if they do) compared to white employees. This could suggest more recruiters prefer minorities for this position, because they "fit in" and are knowledgeable. This can also lead to other questions as to why minorities are mostly in that field? Is it because white dominated field are accepting more white than minorities, which forces minorities to look at other fields?
Excerpt from "Privilege, Power and Difference" by Allan G. Johnson
In the excerpt from “Privilege, Power and Difference” by Allan G. Johnson, Allan argues that privilege is everyone’s problem, not just to those who have it. It is easy for whites to think that privilege is only an issue for those of color but it’s impossible to have a problem of “difference” without including both parties. You can’t have one without the other, dark without light, happy without sad etc. So the privilege of one group comes at the expense of another group. Johnson argues that privilege within one group is directed related to the privilege that another group doesn’t have. This is important because that means inequality in wealth, safety, and health is created, making for a divide between groups of people everywhere and in all institutions. We have attached what it means to be privileged to the white, heterosexual, non-disabled male members within our society who are of middle and upper class. Johnson therefore argues that those who fall in that category must realize that they are part of the privilege problem if there is to be any positive change made towards that issue. This is important because without the inclusion of the dominant groups into a solution for the privilege problem, the minority groups have no chance of doing anything about it by themselves. If they could do it by themselves, then they would have done something by now. So including dominant groups into the conversation is the only means of solving the issue.
If the author were to rewrite this article, he should include results from interviews with people in both groups, privileged and non-privileged. He could look into not just whites and blacks, but also other minorities such as Asians, Latinos, middle-eastern, etc. By dong this he could see if ALL minority groups feel the same way about privilege or do we just stereotype it to blacks? It would also be interesting to see how the issue of privilege takes place in countries outside the US. Is it based on skin color? Social class? Titles? For example, how might privilege exist in neutral countries such as Sweden, Finland, or Denmark? Are refugees into those countries now the non-privileged group? By conducting interviews on people who live in countries that are primarily that ethnicity and race, we can see the degree to which the existence of privilege can matter to the overall function of a society.
I agree with Sogol’s assessment of the author’s argument and agree with the overall idea that the author presents in his excerpt. Given that humans are social beings and our interactions and relationships shape institutions and individuals, it is important to consider that privilege can be viewed as a relationship that connects two groups rather than a characteristic that identifies one single group. Furthermore, I agree with Sogol’s idea to include interview results from groups identified as privileged and non-privileged. The idea of privilege goes beyond just racial and ethnic terms since it can also identify relationships where power affects relationships, such as wealth. Since this is a relationship, I agree with Sogol’s idea to see how the groups in question view and identify the existence of privilege and whether it puts groups at an advantage or disadvantage. By viewing privilege as an idea that affects relationships rather than single groups, society can work together in order to reduce privilege and discrimination toward specific groups and bring individuals on a more equitable level.
I agree with you in that the author should include more information about other minority groups because other minority groups also are faced with the problem surround white privilege. Being Asian American, when the topic of racism is brought up when thinking about American most of the time people think of White and Black people. In addition, white privilege and the idea of privilege is not just an American thing. I believe there are different forms of racism, sexism, privilege in other countries many Americans fall blind to see. Furthermore, I would have to agree with Johnson when he states that if the minority group could find a solution and change the problem surrounding privilege we would by now. However, this problem has to be fixed from both parties - both the privileged groups and the minority group in order to actually make a difference.
“Jobseekers resort to ‘resumé whitening' to get a foot in the door, study shows”
Nicholas Keung reported a two year study done by the University of Toronto that 40 percent of minorities seeking job “whiten” their resumes by using American names and downplaying their experience to fit western culture. For example, changing a black applicant name from “Lamar J. Smith” to “L. James Smith” or an Asian applicant name from “Lei Zhang” to “Luke Zhang.” The study also finds that 10 percent of black applicants who used their real profile got a call back, compared to an increase of 25.5 percent of black applicants who “whiten” their profile. These tactics used by minorities is a way of fighting back towards discrimination and signaling to recruiters that they are able to “fit in” with white employees and not create political tension. This article is raising awareness that discrimination is de facto in the workplace and that the workplace needs to do something about this issue.
An interesting study to add would be interviewing applicants who “whiten” their name compared to applicants who did not “whiten” their names and see how they were treated in the workplace. If applicants who are black or Asian feel mistreated it would suggest that recruiters chose them, because they looked like they "fit in"(as well as having the skills to do the job). On the other hand, if they do not feel mistreated it would suggest that the work environment is welcoming. What will also enhance this study is adding different ethnicities into this study. This could possibly support that not only Black and Chinese people are discriminated in the workplace. I know from experience I had to do multiple interviews to the same internship, compared to my white male friend who did one (even though I was more qualified, and yes he did get the job).
I agree with your view of the author's main argument. Based on the examples the author gave, resumes of minorities have the unspoken requirement of fitting western culture. If the applicant does not create a resume that reflects that they end up having a harder time than someone equally as qualified that does. I also agree with your idea of adding a section to see how applicants are treated in the workplace based on if they had whitened their resume. It would be interesting to see if the hiring staff would feel deceived by the "whitened" candidate or if they would realize their own unconscious bias.
In the excerpt, "Racial Bias, Even When We Have Good Intentions" by Senhil Mullainathan, The topic of racial discrimination against African-Americans as discussed. Test after test shows that African-Americans are continually discriminated against concerning issues such as job interview likeliness, to car dealership pricing, even to eBay account showing events that are slanted against African-Americans in our country. She does a very good job in this article highlighting the mist treatment of people with colored skin. Also I really like the way that she shows an unbiased opinion by using purely empirical research. In this way, she is genuinely researching like a sociologist. This usage of sociological vernacular continually shows that this widespread discrimination is not necessarily a sign of widespread conscious prejudice. Instead she is showing how people make "fast thinking" judgments without consciously filtering their prejudice against skin color. I think if the author work to redo this article, I would love to see some empirical evidence of how "slow thinking" thought processes filter prejudices. I feel like, she broadly announced that racism is less prevalent when people consciously think about it. She definitely goes into detail and shows the evidence needed to show how "fast thinking" judgments aren't as filtered. Another thing that could've been added to improve the articles legitimate see would be to show more counterexamples of where this discrimination against blacks isn't as common. She does list one talking about the universities, I just think another one would help the depth of the article.overall though, I thought the article was very well written and it showed the obvious unbalanced we have in society without using a Bias. I thought the use of the empirical data was very well done.
“Racial Bias, Even When We Have Good Intentions” by Sendhil Mullainathan
In the article “Racial Bias, Even When We Have Good Intentions” by Sendhil Mullainathan, the author argues that the central challenge of isolating race from other factors has shown that internalized, unconscious racial bias still exists in society despite previous difficulties in isolating race from factors such as income and neighborhood statuses. Based on a previous study conducted by the author, resumes with “white” names received a 50% higher callback rate compared to resumes with stereotypically African-American names; despite having identical resumes except for the name, meaning the difference is due to the name. Furthermore, in other studies involving similar White and Black individuals, Black individuals were at a disadvantage in getting services or incentives that were more likely to be offered to White individuals. However, many of these discriminatory offenses even surprised individuals that prized the idea of being inclusive and cultivating diversity in their companies. This shows that much discrimination in society reflects “fast”, instinctual thought processes that individuals are socialized to believe through social media or other beings. As the author concludes, good intentions, or “slow” thought processes, to prevent being discriminatory can be overridden by instincts, which allows society to unconsciously continue discrimination in society.
If Mullainathan were to rewrite this article, I think it would be interesting to include statistics or anecdotal responses regarding hiring managers or other individuals that examined the statistically identical resumes or records depending on the study being conducted. This perspective would give more insight into whether the individual looking into the record is attempting to show little bias between candidates and whether they realize that the records presented are identical except for the name on the record. If the name noticeably makes a difference in the scrutinizer’s objective analysis of the document, it may show that discrimination in that individual may not actually be unconscious, but a conscious decision they try to mask through company ideals of diversity expansion. We would be given insight into the thinking and scrutinizing process to identify a consciously or unconsciously driven decision. Furthermore, it would be interesting to see systemic discrimination playing on other minority groups in addition to Black individuals. With Latinos, Asians, Biracial, and other minority groups, society dictates certain stereotypes to each group and I think it would be important to see how these stereotypes play on the success of people in all minority groups.
I agree that the author’s main point is that internalized, unconscious bias still exists among people. I also agree that it would be interesting to see the results of the individual hiring managers regarding their choice on why they chose to hire one person over another even though they have the same qualifications. By showing the reasons why they chose to choose someone just by their names it would be clear if they have a bias or not against a certain race even if it might be unintentional. To add to that, I think the author should give some kind of suggestion on how this should be fixed by perhaps appointing several different people to look over the resumes then come into a consensus to discuss their hiring choices. I also agree that it would be interesting to see this study performed on other minority groups to find out whether there is a similar bias against them.
Jobseekers resort to ‘resumé whitening' to get a foot in the door, study shows
In Nicholas Keung’s article, he argues that if people change their name to be more “white” will increase they chance to get callback when they send they resume to companies. In his study, he found that a lot of black and Asian applicants if using their own African or Asian names will get less chance to get callback from the companies to get the interviews. For example, one of the Asian change their name from “Lei Zhang” to “Luck Zhang” on their resume to make their become more “white”. Although this is not meant to be lie about their name to the companies, but still will get a bigger chance to have the companies’ callback to have interview with them. Other example of black applicant changes his name from “Lamar J. Smith” to “L. James Smith instead. Why people need to judge a person only by their name is not that “white”. People who qualify for their job required that make them will send their resume to the companies to hoping have a chance to work in that companies. But how come people being so racism because their name is not “white” enough. Don’t judge the book only by it cover. In fact, people in society are judging people by their resume name. People should have an equal chance to get a job, not only because their name is not white enough.
If the author were to rewrite this article, he can interview some white people from college and some white people in work. How they feel to being white in from the past that make them more convenience and how they think about companies are viewing they resume only by their name. They can do the survey about how other race people think about the whole society being racial discrimination just like in the past. All the people are saying they have no more racism in the society. But in fact, people are still being racism in some way. Also, they can do the study about how companies hire more people that name more “white” than the regular African and Asian name people. Companies should not only view resume by their name is not white enough. They should focus on how they job experience are and how they have passion about the job. Companies should give everyone a equal chance to interview all the qualify worker.
I agree with your points in that companies should hire applicants based on their qualifications. However, certain people are already overlooked because of their name. This is bad for both the applicant and companies, as they are potentially passing on really good employees. The way it is now, applicants have to make changes to their resumes, and yes it isn’t lying to companies but they should not have to do so in the first place. I also agree the interviews would be a good idea. It would be very informative to get the perspectives of applicants and how their feel about this discrimination. I disagree in that I feel interviews with white people in college and work wouldn’t necessarily contribute to the article’s point. They could say “I don’t see it” or perhaps “Yeah I know way more qualified people than me.” However, this doesn’t add information on how other applicants view this discrimination. Also, I somewhat disagree in there isn’t really a significant amount of people who say racial discrimination no longer exists. It can be seen everywhere and is a clear issue to most people, which is why this article is saying how it hurts all parties.
In Mullainathan’s article, he argues that we are all essentially racially biased even when we don’t think we are. Issues such as police brutality have generated opposing opinions -- with some people calling the events isolated and disregarding racism while others point to racism as the key problem. Researchers have done studies to further analyze the effects of race and have come up with some fascinating conclusions. Examples include how many employers are more likely to hire minorities who have “whitened” their resumes, doctors being less likely to recommend helpful treatments to black patients, and more offers on auctions on eBay if a white hand was used in the picture showcasing the product than a black hand. Many people are shocked when they learn about these findings due to the fact that most racial biasness comes from our fast-thinking processes, which escape our awareness. Even when people actively try to avoid this “fast-thinking” discrimination, the stereotypes that society has instilled in our minds will always influence our decision-making.
If the author were to rewrite this article, I think he should include more examples of racial bias toward other minority groups. He does a great job of providing examples of racial bias toward African-Americans and explains how this is due to associations we make due to racial stereotypes. I think it would be more effective to include other racial groups to get a broader sense of how all minority groups are affected by this “unconscious” racial bias. Also, I think it would have been interesting to include interviews of people who have taken part in this “fast-thinking” discrimination, such as the human resource managers that were mentioned. If people become more aware that they are being discriminatory, would this have a positive effect and allow people to try to actively avoid being racially biased?
I agree that there should be more exploration into other minority groups as well. Racism is an issue for all groups of people and an expansion on this could give more meaning and depth into the meanings behind the unconscious biases. It would certainly be interesting to see the managers reactions to these studies. If the people became aware it would be interesting to see if they did have a slight change in this manner. Also, if they started to actively avoid being racially biased, how would that effect their decision making and businesses or whatever they were choosing between people for.
In “Jobseekers resort to ‘resume’ ‘whitening’ to get a foot in the door, study shows”, Keung gives many statistics on trends found in job applicants and their results. He states that there is still an issue of discrimination in employers whether they’re aware of it or not. Statistics show that applicants who choose to “whiten” their resumes have a higher chance of being called for an interview than those who don’t. Additionally, minorities seeking jobs are more likely to whiten their resumes when they think it’ll help; when they apply for jobs where an employer is publicly known for being pro-diversity, they are far less likely to whiten their resume. Additionally, participation in groups that imply a certain ethnic background are often removed in the process of whitening resumes. These are things that would normally look good in a resume, yet they are removed to increase chances of hire. While Keung has good content, I would personally make a chart or graph for certain statistics. The significance behind these statistics are often lost when presented in this manner as they become simple numbers when they are so casually and repeatedly used. Also, it seems as though Keung is very focused on “proving” that employers are biased and doesn’t try to see any other viewpoints. Perhaps there is an other reason for the increased rate of calls that has been overlooked. Or at the very least, his point would be made more strongly if it could somehow be realized or even explained by such an employer. As it is, the article seems very one sided and despite having some very solid statistics, doesn’t make such a strong impression in trying to get its point across.
I completely agree with your suggestion that the author should include more data to support his argument. In the article, Keung discusses the fact that those who "whiten" their name have a higher chance of receiving an interview than those who do not. However, he does not provide any statistic data to support his argument. I think it would be interesting if he were to do so as it would show whether or not the data is statistically significant. Keung should include other views and statistical evidence in order to further strengthen his argument.
In "Racial Bias, Even When We Have Good Intentions", the author, Sendhil Mullainathan, argues that isolating the effects of race from other factors shows that racial bias still exists in society even though racism is thought to be a thing of the past. For example, in a study conducted by the author, thousands of resumes were sent to employers to study which received callbacks given that stereotypical African-American and White names were used. It was found that people with "White" names received roughly 50% more callbacks for an interview. In other similar studies, it was found that African-Americans were at a disadvantage in getting low-wage jobs, responses, services, and convictions. The author concludes that the urge to call out a bigot is powerful and satisfying because it lets themselves off the hook. We should be looking inwards versus outwards and examine how, despite best intentions, we discriminate in big and small ways.
If Mullainathan were to rewrite this article, he should include actual quotes from the hiring managers in his study. The way in which the hiring managers respond to this finding would be insightful as to how they viewed their own racial tendencies. Furthermore, it would provide them with a look into whether it truly was based on race or if there were some factors not accounted for in the resume study. Either way, it would primarily reflect on their unconscious discrimination towards the individuals. It would also be interesting to see these same studies done with other groups of ethnicity to see if they have the same effects or whether there is a different discrepancy in the data.
I think it would be great to read responses from the employers. I wonder if any of the hiring staff would try to dispute their bias. Since the only thing changed between the resumes was their names, the position would be indefensible, but the responses would still be interesting. It would reinforce the idea that these people have good intentions; they truly believe they would never be racist. It could really help the article's point, and maybe make people more open to acknowledging other forms of racism.
Jobseekers Resort To ‘Resumé Whitening’ To Get A Foot In The Door, Study Shows by Nicholas Keung
The author’s main argument is that many people of color practice something called “resume whitening” and face racial discrimination in the professional world. According to the article, “resume whitening” is when people try to hide and avoid telltale signs of race or ethnicity from their job applications in order to receive a higher chance of landing a job. Due to workplace racial discrimination, studies have shown that by “whitening” applicants’ resumes and cover letters, applicants have a higher percentage of receiving callbacks from employers. An example of “resume whitening” is changing an applicants name from their African, Mexican, or Asian sounding name to be more white or Americanized. Keung states that the chances of an applicant receiving a callback is 50% more likely if an Asian person uses a whitened name and remove their Asian experience on their resume. In addition, some applicants even go to the extent of not involving their involvement in cultural clubs or organizations to avoid being identified with a specific race or ethnicity.
If Nicholas Keung were to rewrite this article, the issues or topics I would suggest them add is to include information from employers on the reasoning behind why they are more likely to callback applicants with more whitened names and experience/background and the perspective of people of color on their thoughts and opinions about this issues. By including information from the employers reasoning, it may put into perspective why they tend to callback people with whitened resumes. While I believe that it is wrong for employers to do this, I think readers would like to get a better understanding as to the reasoning behind employers’ decision-making and thought process. Furthermore, there is not a lot of information from the viewpoint of the minorities groups. I think it would be very interesting to learn more about how this practice came to be because from my understanding “resume whitening” is ultimately lying on your job application. While I understand that by whitening one’s resume my lead to a callback, once employers find out applicants lied on their resume I believe it is just as bad on the applicants part. Overall, more insight from both parties would definitely help understand their practice and the ethics behind employers hiring process.
Jessica, I agree with you that the authors should definitely include more information on the perspective of the employers, as this article is rather one-sided. Even though this tendency toward white encouragement and minority suppression in the job market is wrong, there might be other indications on these resumes that gave the employers reason to choose the whiten ones over the unwhitened ones. For instance, the skills and experience background may be more applicable to the job position or the way the resume was formatted may be more appealing to the employers. Understanding both sides would shed more light on the issue of job discrimination. However, I don't wholly agree with your point that there need to be more of the minorities' perspectives incorporated. I think the authors presented the reasoning behind resume whitening just fine and included appropriate quotes from those who actually participated in resume whitening that gave enough insight into their thought processes behind the practice.
How systemic racism entangles all police officers — even black cops In an article written by German Lopez, the bias of the law towards minorities are explored. Lopez explains the notion of systemic racism that is widely spread in America. In our country, there is cultural and systemic biases towards minorities. The article discusses the narrow perspective of the country that leads to the law working against people of color, especially in the way that cops typically treat those among minority groups, even those who are within the same group. In general, a lot of work that police do is based off of race. With the way that cops are trained to patrol poor neighborhoods and are often exposed to crime through their patrol of the poor neighborhoods, they become accustomed to taking action against people of color. An explanation of this is that high-crime areas are often filled with more minority residents. With police encouraged to arrest and ticket as many people as possible while working, it becomes routine for them to arrest the disproportionate number people of color they come across in their job. Lopez also discusses the cycle of people fearful and uncomfortable around police, which can be viewed as “suspicious” behavior, as well as the way that racism develops on an “implicit level” where people’s subconscious lead while they are unaware. Eventually, due to all these factors, police officers begin to unconsciously connect race and crime together. If the author were to rewrite the article, it would be interesting for them to support their article with more real-life examples and stories. I enjoyed reading the article, but I definitely would appreciate more references towards cases and instances to help illustrate their statements. For example, I think it would also be interesting if the author had interviewed different police officers, people of different backgrounds, and people of different ethnicities to include as many perspectives as possible in the article. The more perspectives there are, the more insight people are given into the thought processes of different people. In this way, the presence of racism within our society can be further deconstructed and analyzed. Just as the article states that “awareness can force tops to consider and control their own biases,” the presence of different perspectives with the topic of race, can force those who come across the article to consider their own racial biases.
Abby, while I agree the article lacks interviews and stories, I don't think it would necessarily make the article stronger by pulling anecdotes from other ethnic groups. While the micro-level analysis could certainly help to provide unique insight on the issue, the article is focused on how black men are targeted by cops. I think that anecdotes from other groups would most likely water down this story, and a broader focus on all races, while invaluable in understanding how society works, might detract from this article, considering the specific subject matter. I think that this article is strongest by maintaining focus on the groups discussed in the article, but I think follow up studies would definitely be useful, if not directly connected to this article. If interviews were to be conducted, I would be most interested in hearing from black men and cops, those most directly involved in the issue, and from other groups afterwards.
In the excerpt from Privilege, Power and Difference, “We’re in Trouble”, Allan Johnson asserts that privilege is not only a problem for those who do not have it--but for society as a whole. According to Johnson, we currently live in a society which attaches privilege to those who are White and heterosexual. Johnson begins his argument with the example of how he would be treated in comparison to an African American woman. If they were to both go out shopping, Johnson would benefit from the privilege of the cultural assumption that since he is White, he is a serious customer who wouldn’t steal. On the other hand, the African American woman would not have such privilege no matter how she may act in society. Her being black in a racist white society is all it takes for her to be discriminated against. Johnson argues, that the problem of privilege is not restricted to only those who do not have it. In order to solve the problem of privilege, those who have privilege must be able to see it as a problem and be willing to take action against it as well. If Johnson were to add something to this excerpt, I think it would be interesting for him to interview those with privilege. As Johnson’s main argument was that privilege is not only the problem of those who do not have it, I think it would be interesting to see how the more privileged of society view this issue. Whether or not they believe that privilege exists and what we could do in order to end it. Johnson could also explore how they feel their privilege has benefited them in society, whether they feel as though it is a problem or even how they believe we can end the issue of privilege in society. It would also be interesting to see how privilege takes place in other societies.
Jobseekers Resort to ‘Resume Whitening’ to Get a Foot in the Door, Study Shows
Nicholas Keung illustrates the process of "resume whitening," a process in which names on resumes are altered to appear more Caucasian. Often, non-white people have names that are not typically "American," and they adopt Anglicized names to fool the employers. Unfortunately, this process has been proved to work, as altered names get more callbacks and interviews than unaltered names. For example, Lei will become Luke and Jose will become Joe. The success of this twisted process illustrates both systemic and internalized racism. Employers are constantly choosing white people over people of color to hire. People are also changing other positions that may connect them to their ethnicities. A woman who was involved in many black organizations felt almost ashamed to put them all on her resume, and she changed her resume accordingly. People are being taught to hide their native cultures instead of embracing them because of the success the follows whitened resumes.
I noticed Nicholas Keung has a very Caucasian name, "Nicholas." I wonder if this article is perpetuating resume whitewashing because Nicholas Keung sounds like a name that has been whitened. If the author were to rewrite this, I would like to hear about his personal experiences if he has any. I would also like to hear about people who might be affected by this article. If people did not know about resume whitening before this article, will they start resume whitening in an attempt to become employed? Or will they be outraged enough to not erase their identities to cater to the racial needs of the employer? While it would be difficult to resist the temptation to Anglify your name, I believe it is important to discourage the process of resume whitening. It only encourages employers to choose white people to work for them.
As Biftu stated, the author, Allan G. Johnson, recognizes that in order for his African American friend to experience the same rights that he does, society must realize that a certain group of people are more privileged than others. This privilege divides people and creates inequality in all aspects of life. It hinders people from achieving the milestones that their equal counterparts are able to reach. Because minorities do not have access to the services and benefits that privileged people have they alone are not able to change the system. It is up to the privileged class to recognize this problem and be part of the solution. They must motivate themselves to take action and undo the unjust labeling that this society has created. In this society it is beneficial to be a white heterosexual male, only because society assigned this particular category of people a higher value. We have the power to undo this type of labeling. I agree that it would be interesting if the author had interviewed people who are privileged and asked them whether or not they recognize that they are privileged and if they think that racism is their problem as well. The author should also include how he thinks people (who are privileged) should go about solving racism in this country. Are most people unaware that their privileged results suffering and deprivation of someone else?
I agree with your idea to interview people who hold privilege. It reminds me of the documentary in class about WASPs, and how so many of them were incredibly privileged. We should also emphasize that those with privilege are not to blame. Systemic racism is to blame, but those with privilege can help those without privilege. Acknowledging privilege is the first step in becoming an ally. There is certain connotation surrounding the word "privilege." We need to remove that connotation, because denying privilege is denying discrimination. It is also difficult to let other people know that they do have privilege without being rude, but it is necessary.
"Racial Bias, Even When We Have Good Intentions" by Sendhil Mullainathan
The author of this article talks about how we have good intentions and try to not discriminate, but we still unconsciously discriminate against Africans-Americans. The author says how the media has a huge impact, because we are unconsciously picking up on stereotypes that we see on television. She provides data that shows that African-Americans are time and time again discriminated against; including in job interviews. Her argument is strong because she provides evidence to back up her claims. Perhaps what was most interesting about this argument is her idea of “slow” and “fast” thinking. She argues that “fast” thinking is when we unconsciously make judgments about African-Americans; most likely based off what we see in the media. She says that “slow” thinking is when people consciously think and make judgments about people of color. It also showed how based on people’s names (white sounding name), they be more likely to get a better deal on a car, or get a job interview. If the author were to rewrite this article, I think it would be interesting to see how other non-white groups are affected by discrimination. The article mainly focuses on African-Americans, so I think it would strengthen her argument about how most discrimination is unconscious because the media fostering stereotypes, since there are stereotypes about other racial groups, such as Latinos or Asians. I thought this article was very well written and explained her point very well, but I do think it would be helpful if she had more information on “fast” thinking and “slow” thinking; such as talking to people who have fell victim to “fast” thinking stereotyping. I think if people become more aware that the media can affect us without even knowing it; it would take a step in the right direction to ending discrimination. When the author talked about interviewers may not interview someone because of their non-white name; it actually reminded me of how in high school we would hear about how if you have a certain racial background (latino, African-American) to write it on your college applications because this could help you get into school. I know that the universities have good intentions trying to diversify schools, but I wonder if letting a person into school because of their racial background is actually helping to fight discrimination; or just creating another form.
"How systemic racism entangles all police officers — even black cops" by German Lopez The author’s most important argument is the assertion that racial bias can transcend one’s own race. Many would think that a black person would not be racist to someone of their own race, but this notion does not remain consistent when we look at the most recent cases of police brutality. Black cops have been present in many of these cases. The article shows that police departments focus their efforts on crime heavy neighborhoods, which tend to be mostly black. This creates an association in the minds of all cops, no matter their race, between black skin and crime. The article also offers an explanation for why these neighborhoods tend to be black, or of other minority races.
This explanation is what I would have liked to see more of. Cops aren’t going to change their biases by just trying really hard; they have to understand the people they are policing. If they understand, for instance, that black men have limited economic opportunity, then they will stop seeing these races as driven by evil, but driven by a need for survival. If it is clear to them that these deviants are pushed to crime by their economic reality, then understanding and compassion will take the place of judgement and spite. The author ends the article somewhat defeated, recommending all kinds of solutions, but concluding that police racism, like all racism, will end slowly. I think accounting for their inevitable associations by introducing cops to a more complete understanding will be the greatest aid in curtailing their prejudice. Maybe that’s a bit too hopeful; I guess I’ll end my blog post in the same position as the author.
“Jobseekers resort to ‘resumé whitening' to get a foot in the door, study shows” by Nicholas Keung
Nicholas Keung’s article describes a study that examines a popular trend among minorities whereby they “whiten” their resumes in order to make themselves more appealing to employers. “Whitening” resumes primarily consists of altering names to sound more white (i.e. Lamar J. Smith to L. James Smith) and removing experiences that are directly linked to their minority race (i.e. deleting “political action chair of Black Students Association”). The researchers created applications for African American and Asian applicants based on real candidate profiles. They whitened some of them and kept others honestly reflecting the applicant. Their findings suggest that it is a justified practice. Prior to whitening their applications, black job applicants received only a 10% callback rate, which shot up to 25.5% post-whitening. For Asian applicants, they received an 11.5% callback rate prior to whitening and then a 21% callback rate after whitening. The researchers also sent resumes into 2 equal opportunity companies. Applicants feel less of a need to whiten their resumes in these cases, but they found that even with “equal opportunity” employers, those with whitened resumes still had a higher chance of getting a callback. Given all of these results, it shows how resume whitening has become a legitimate practice by many minorities and it speaks to how job discrimination is still a very relevant issue.
Keung could strengthen his article by including research regarding white job applicants. By comparing the results of this research to the research about resume whitening for minorities, it could highlight the fact that minorities clearly suffer at the expense of their race, while whites generally do not have to worry about how their race directly affects their chances of getting a job. This could solidify the fact that white privilege is a very real and prominent advantage that is often unacknowledged. Furthermore, the research could also be improved by controlling for differences in educational and skills background. If the researchers found that minorities, despite having virtually the education and skills as white applicants, were not receiving the same or similar callback rate as whites, then this would be more telling to the nature of job discrimination, since it would be wholly based on differences assumed on race, not on background. Lastly, they could include information on laws that attempt to prevent job discrimination based on race. It would show how even though there are laws set forth by the government, racial discrimination is something that is embedded in our society and still manages to hinder the success of the minorities in our country.
Jobseekers resort to ‘resumé whitening' to get a foot in the door, study shows
The most important argument the author makes is that 'resume whitening' and in a broader sense job discrimination still exists. The article describes how college students such as ourselves takes steps to make their resumes, and themselves whiter in hopes of landing jobs. They do things like alter their names from Lamar J. Smith to L. James Smith, downplay minority group involvement like participating in black student organizations, or generalizing volunteer experience. The article then shows the effects that the resume whitening has and shows a sizable increase to employment opportunities when these kinds of steps are taken. the Article cites increases in interviews of about 15% and 10% for blacks and asians when they whitened their resumes showing that this is a tangible problem.
If the author was to rewrite this article I would try and increase the sample size of students interviewed, 59 students is not a lot of data to accurately depict how prevalent resume whitening is. To further on this, it may be pertinent to subdivide them to different parts of the country and see if there are differences between different parts of the U.S. such as the south compared to the north east, or the west coast and the mid-west. I believe it could show where certain parts of the country are more progressive compared to others.
Hi Majd, I agree that a larger sample size would have a more profound significance in a study such as this. However, as I recall from the article, the focus group of 59 students was only part one of the three-part study. The research included more data than what was gathered from those 59 students. Aside from this I agree that broadening the scope of the study to include and differentiate different regions (and also different industries) would have the potential to give the study a much wider impact. I believe that they would find that certain industries (jobs which require different levels of experience and education) may show different levels of unintentional discrimination.
I agree with you that using a larger sample size of students interviewed will be better for the researcher to prove this points. Because base on the article, the focus group of 59 students is not enough statistics to show how companies are being racism in some point. Also, there are still many racisms in some point of society. Maybe author can have another study about how companies feel about the whole hiring system. Are they really think to hire a more “white”person will help their companies to have a bigger success. Companies should focus more on how people are being qualify for their companies, not only base on their name is white enough. Everyone deserver an equal chance to get into a job or anything in the life. People have no right to judge anyone in anyway.
The major point that Johnson is making in this excerpt is two fold, placing a strong responsibility on the dominant, more privileged, group. He argues that people with privilege need to understand that while the may be well-intended people, simply by living in the society that grants them privilege means that it takes it from others. This goes hand in hand with the Sociological Imagination , with Johnson urging privileged people to first recognize that breaking out of the system we live in involves their participation and that it is not solely the job the unprivileged to fix it. The second point he argues, which is the main point of the book this excerpt is from, is that people with privilege need to be open and willing to talk about this issue with people who aren't. Conversations like this are very likely to be hard, touchy, and bit awkward but they are the types of conversations that need to be had for progress to move forward.
I think it would be interesting for Johnson to interview people on both sides of the privilege coin to see what their opinions on the matter are, but even more compelling would be for him to facilitate one of those conversations himself. He could ask friends, or partners, etc. (one who is privileged and one who isn't) to sit down and talk about the hard issues that plague today's society. By starting with people who trust each other to have each others best interest in mind we can get a conversation that is both real and informative. It can also give us a view into what it might be like in the future if everyone took part in breaking through the hierarchy we live in today.
I fully agree with your arguments about the article “We’re in Trouble”. It is clear that the author is arguing that those in a place of privilege must understand that them being in a place of power takes it away from someone else. This phenomenon happens whether or not someone is conscious of it happening. Another key point you mentioned is that for society to change, people with privilege need to have conversations about it even if it is an uncomfortable topic. Without talking about the awkward topics, our society will never grow away from the notion that white, christian, male, and abled men are the most powerful. I also like your idea of what to add to his argument. Having people who know and are comfortable with each other talk about these difficult topics would be a good place to start. It would be an easier, less awkward way for society to start getting the answers it needs to change.
The main point in this article I think is about how race and privilege are uncomfortable topics to discuss yet without discussing them there is no way to fix the problem. While at lunch with his female African American friend he notes that his whiteness and maleness and her being female and African American is like an "elephant" in the room. He also mentions how he did not do anything wrong or bad but they was just how it is and it's everywhere in schools, churches, neighborhoods, etc. Another important piece he mentions is that the "we" that's in trouble is all of us, not just one group can solve the problem it'll take all of us working together to fix it. The main part the author mentions is that people in a place of power and privilege have to realize that they're an active part in this problem and they need to do something about it like bringing up the uncomfortable "elephant" in the room topics.
I think the author could have added a bit more analysis to his article. A majority of the article was just his point of view and opinion on race and privilege. It would have been more interesting if he added the woman's (who he was working with) point of view on the topic. He argued that race and privilege was something white people have to address despite the elephant in the room but what if she disagreed or did not think the topic was an uncomfortable subject. Also he could have added conversation on what other races (besides female African Americans) think about race and privilege and who's responsibility it is to change it and how everyone should about change in a comfortable way for everyone.
Jobseekers resort to ‘resumé whitening' to get a foot in the door, study shows
Nicholas Keung’s article takes a look at the level of racism seen in business hiring practices. He reveals some statistics found in a study published in the Administrative Science Quarterly Journal. This focus group-based study showed that resumes with stereotypically black or Asian names and associations tended to not get advanced to interview stages as often as those with stereotypically white names and associations, even with the same qualifications otherwise. This leads to a “resume whitening,” a practice that these minority groups sometimes use to appear more “white” and thus engrained into white culture. The study in question had 1,600 resumes sent out with various combinations of these attributes – unwhitened and whitened names, and associations tied to minority culture and advancement versus more generic leadership roles. Keung writes that businesses claiming to value diversity must go “beyond the rhetoric” to actually give a fair chance to these minority groups. Were Keung to rewrite this article, it would be interesting to see how these companies would respond to this survey. Are some companies taking action to hide the name on a resume from the hiring manager? There could be several methods employed for a company to try to mitigate the effects of this type of resume discrimination. Interviews with employers involved in this large study might have some important insight into how this discrimination actually happens, and the sociologists who conducted the study could probably suggest ways for any human resources department to avoid the problem. Also, does this problem still appear for a company with hiring managers who are not white males? Would a black hiring manager be more likely to hire a person with a “black” resume? These types of questions would also provide some useful insight into how hiring happens in a given industry.
I think that Scott raises a good point about how the interviewing process works overall and if there is still a discrepancy when there's an ethnic group hiring another ethnic group. I think that asking companies and the human resources departments of various companies if they were selective in their hiring process I don't think that any of them would openly admit that they hired based on race or name. I think that asking these questions without asking the companies to reveal their name or location would be a good idea, as long as they're kept anonymous. However, this might turn readers away from believing in the evidence. I agree with asking questions to companies if they don't want to employ white males and see how many there actually are in comparison to other races.
The main argument of this paper was to show that the problems we have in our society are not just problems of one group, but it is connected to us all. The fact that one group gets the privileges of being the dominant group in society does not mean their privileges are not connected to the hardships subordinate groups receive in society. Johnson wants his readers to understand that the entire society is interconnected, the actions of one individual affects another individual in a positive or negative way, therefore we should not separate ourselves from the rest of society because every group is connected to another group. Johnson also argues that those who are in the dominant groups in society should be aware of their privileges and understand that their good fortunes are in the expense of someone else's bad fortunes. People who have the privileges should feel obligated to make the problem of privilege their problem and take initiative to understand how this privilege affects one and not the other and take action to raise awareness that this privilege is everyone's rights because us as individuals in a society are all somehow connected, so one should not have greater opportunity due to their race, skin color, physical abilities, or gender. Johnson argues these points because this issue of privilege is so prevalent in our society and most people are not aware that simple occurrences such as being able to pay with a credit card without being asked several times for identification is a privilege, but it is something that oppressed groups have to deal with. We as a society need to all be on the same page in regards to all the issues that is currently occurring in our society.
If the author were to rewrite this article they should provide the readers with a prediction as to how we can transform our society by being more aware of these privileges that some have and some do not. How can we as a society transform our thoughts, actions, and behaviors so that these issues that should be intuitive to us to resolve disappear from our society. I feel that these are important to address because most of the time we just simply talk about our issues but how can we realistically transform these ways of thinking from the grass root so that in the next generations to come, these issues are no longer prevalent.
How systemic racism entangles all police officers – even black cops
It seems that as an institution, the police force has shaped officers to be biased against black men, whether it is the police force’s intention or not. German Lopez argues that by having police officers canvas poor communities with higher black populations, in combination with having officers reach certain quotas on arrests, biases are being created towards black men. Even though black men are not any more likely to sell or use drugs than white men, nearly three black men are arrested for drug related crimes for every white man. By forcing cops to bring in a certain amount of revenue from tickets, cops are more likely to ticket for petty misdemeanors. Rich neighborhoods are not canvased as much, so even though the levels of minor infractions may be the same, cops are going to be heavily biased against black people. These external factors create a setting in which cops expect black people to be unlawful, and this helps to develop institutional racism. I think a big part of the story is untold here, and I think it would be interesting to read about the effects of the private prison industry on the high drug arrest rate among black men. While the police department does target black men for misdemeanors, that doesn’t completely explain away the heavy targeting of black men for drug crimes. There is a lot of money to be made by prisons for drug crimes, and so I think cops aren’t just inherently racist. There is a heavy economic incentive to target black people. Breaking into homes without warrants has become a major problem, and these breaches of constitutional rights are larger than just misdemeanor violations. I think it would be interesting to see statistics on the arrest rates of black women to white women as well. If it were a different ratio than the men, I think it could be interesting to explore the reasons why, whether the gender roles are different in black communities, or if police departments are just targeting black men.
I agree with you, I think it would be interesting to explore the gender roles in this situation because it seems that all the violence is targeted towards men. This reminds me of the documentary we watched in class in regards to violence and how society has made it natural for men to be aggressive because it portrays their masculinity. Media has taught us men are and should be violent otherwise they are not men so even if the population of violent women increases in neighborhoods it is not as glorified as men because women are supposed to be delicate and naive. I also think it is interesting that media only focuses on crime in lower class neighborhoods as if the rich have nothing to do with the reality of the poor. As a society, every individual contributes to the life of another individual whether it is to enhance or limit their life. Therefore, when we say "poor" or "rich" neighborhoods they are the consequence of one another. I think it would be interesting to see the crime rate in "rich" neighborhoods and analyze any correlation between the two neighborhoods.
Jobseekers resort to ‘resumé whitening' to get a foot in the door, study shows
ReplyDeleteThis article talks about job seekers does “resume whitening”, which is minimizing the signs of them being people of color in order to increase their chance in landing a job. For example, people would change their name from “Lei Zhang” to “Luke Zhang” on their resume to make them look more “white”. Although these changes seem insignificant, people do in fact get better chances of callbacks which suggests how serious racial discriminations are. And it also shows that racial minorities are doing something about being discriminated. They are toning down their proof of being “non-white” to show that they could fit in with the “white” work environment. This article suggests that racial discrimination does exist within the job seeking process where employers take race into consideration when selecting candidates for interviews.
If the author were to rewrite this article, I think it would be helpful for Keung to include quotes and interview excerpts of racial minorities of their view on being discriminated. Do they think that this is unfair or are they used to being discriminated and think this is no big deal? Also, the author should interview employers who discriminate applicants regarding their race. I would be interested to find out if employers would admit to being racist, and if they do, their reason behind their decisions. This would shed light on racial discrimination and enable the readers to further understand why racial discrimination exists. Lastly, I think the author should interview white people as well to see if they take white privilege granted and how they feel about racial minorities. This way, the article would include more perspectives of different groups of people and present a fuller picture on this issue of white privilege.
I like your analysis of the article. The example that you used, people changing their first name from something such as "Lei" to "Luke" to show more American in them really shows how the society is still struggling with this. I agreed with the changes that the author could make if Keung were to rewrite the article. For so many people, it's a struggle to not get a call back, to not get the same respect that they deserve because of their race, but including quotes from them would be great. Overtime, one would think that people would get used to being discriminated, but are they really used to the idea of not being treated equally? I also like your suggestion of interviewing white people because for many, they don't realize that they have white privilege. By interviewing the white people, we get a perspective on how they feel about people of color being discriminated.
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DeleteI agree with Jamie that many minorities would change their names, such as from "Lei" to "Luke," in order to increase their chances of getting the job. This does show the seriousness of racial discrimination; however, many people fail to realize it. I especially agree with Jamie's that the author should include quotes and interviews of the minorities. This could possibly be beneficial for the readers of this article because it would be great evidence in seeing how the minorities truly feel about the racial discrimination. I also agree that incorporating this would provide different sides of the story from different people in order to demonstrate the wide issue of their racial discrimination.
DeleteI agree with your idea to interview racially biased employers, but I think it would be difficult to actually get them to discuss this topic. A better way than straight out asking them would be to do extensive data collection on 1 particular employer, send in 100 resumes, of varying ethnicities, and qualifications and try and show if their discrimination through trends of calls backs. If you wanted to take it a step further you could extend this to several employers of different fields to see how racially discrimination permeates all different jobs and careers.
DeleteI agree with Jamie's view and believe that interviewing people including those who are being discriminated against, the privileged, and the employers would shed some light on how unjust our system is. I think that interviewing the people being discriminated against and seeing if they view this as a natural phenomenon (because of social construction of reality) would show how accustomed ethnic groups are to discrimination and how that's sort've a norm in our society these days. I don't think that employers would necessarily point out that they are discriminating against certain races since that would either bring down their reputation or breach contract. I agree with interviewing, "whites," to see if they feel more privileged or if they felt some kind've discrimination would be interesting since it would also point out whether there's a social norm that white people are getting treated better than other races.
DeleteWe’re in Trouble:
ReplyDeleteIn the article by Johnson, he did a great job at conveying the problem that we, the people in the society, as a whole is facing. The author first started off talking about the similarities that we all shared, such as being dependent on others when we’re young, however, once we get older, there are other people that depends on us. Not only that, but he also talked about how we want to feel accepted into the society, how we want the respect that we feel we deserve, but what sets us apart from others is based upon our skin color and our race. If we’re not white, we’re being looked at more differently, have a more difficult life than those that are white, and the reason being is that racism only lean turns the people of color. Johnson talked how white people can walk a lone at night without feel scared, but that same situation can’t apply to a any other people of color, and the problems that the people of color experiences aren’t the problems that the white people experiences because they have some privileges. He specified how this is a problem as a whole, and that the only way that we could fix it is if we take color out of the problem and looked at everyone equally. The author wants the readers to realize that we shouldn’t give certain groups of people a harder time based upon their skin color.
If the author were to rewrite this article, I think he should interview people of colors. He talked about his African American friend, yet, the readers never got her own perspective of this problem that the society is facing. Johnson brought up the topics of the struggles that people of color faces in society, such as walking alone in the street at night, the safest place to park his/her car. It would also be great if he could interview white people and ask them questions, on what they think about this privileges that white groups are able to have while other groups aren’t able to experience because of their skin color. Do other people see the same issues that Johnson is pointing out? Johnson overall did a great job at conveying his message on white people having the privileges in this society more than other people but I think his article need more perceptions from other people on the situation.
I agree with Thu Quynh Nguyen's opinion that our skin color and our race set us apart. Although people nowadays keep emphasizing that racism is no long the issue in this society, we can't deny the truth that it still exist in today's world. Like Nguyen mentions in her post, white people have some privileges over other people of color. It's a good thing for white people to have the privileges. Indeed, majority white people take advantages of those privileges, and make the society a better place. While there are some people who abuse the privileges, and use it to discriminate people who have different skin colors. As you said, the only way to solve this problem is to ignore people's skin color, and appeal everyone to treat each other equally. In fact, I think our society is making a lot of progress on dealing racism problem every year, and I believe one day, racism issue definitely will get eliminated.
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DeleteI agree with Thu Quynh Nguyen that the author should include the perspective of his African American friend on the issue of white privilege. Does she feel the same way that Johnson describes minorities do about privilege? Or does she not feel that way because she is already in a job position with higher power? Perhaps the fact that she has a job as an executive in a large insurance company still doesn’t mean that she feels excluded from the non-privilege stereotypes that exists. Her situation does not separate her from others in her group, she’s not an individual, she’s part of a group. Therefore, the author’s friend might be considered as a deviant of African Americans because she has a job with a higher power position. Oftentimes, being labeled as deviant greatly depends on who is committing that deviant act itself. It would be interesting for Johnson to include this in his article because it could tell us a lot about the degree to which a person in a minority, non-dominant group is seen as existing as only part of a group and the degree to which a person in a dominant, privileged group is seen as an individual. And that in turn could help us see how much we actually buy into the idea of generating equality in society.
DeleteRacial Bias, Even When We Have Good Intention by Sendhil Mullainathan
ReplyDeleteFrom Mullainathan’s article, he brings out two opposite opinions about racism in nowadays’ society. One is arguing racism is a thing of the past, while the other is arguing skin color is a huge factor on how people are treated. Although Mullainathan doesn’t state his own opinion about racism apparently, he implies that discrimination on people’s skin colors still exist in this world. The article starts with a black criminal killed by police officer event in Ferguson, MO, claiming that “the death of African-Americans at the hands of the police” (Mullainathan P1). This is not the first time that we watch news that report white police officers kill black criminals. Some people even claim that things will be completely different if the criminals are white. The author’s argument clearly points out black people have fairly low income and life quality compare to white people, but it doesn’t give the rights to some white employers to discriminate black employees. Everyone should work together with equal human rights and respects.
If the author were to rewrite his article, he should add the explanations to the audiences’ stereotypes about African-Americans, which probably will be the main reason of discrimination. Especially the negative stereotypes about African Americans. For example, the author can mentions the crime events that caused by gangs, the underground economy (illegal drug and gun dealing). Those two factors will have a great impact on people’s point of views. What’s more, the author can talk about the discrimination in high school, universities or even junior high school, studying how students’ behaviors affect their views of race. For example, bully is what we always see on the news too, and I’m wondering if the bully has sort of relationship with racism. Although most bully events may simply cause by students’ emotional acts, but are there any potential effects to those students who bully other students? I think the article will be even more interesting if the author can discuss this point.
I agree with your argument that the article talks about two opposite opinions about racism is today's society. I also said that the author said how we have good intentions and try to not discriminate, but we still unconsciously discriminate against Africans-Americans. The media plays a huge role in this because if we hear something over and over it becomes ingrained in our minds. I think your point about how everyone should work together to end racism is interesting because this article addressing that we are racist and do not even notice, is the first step in ending discrimination all together. I had not thought about the author bringing up more about why we discriminate, such as media coverage on gangs and not positive things that African Americans contribute. I also thought it would be interesting to hear more about non-white groups of people are affected by discrimination.
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DeleteI agree with your attempt to include more personal experience of their racist socializations. Asking people some personal experiences also might reveal some things that the people did not know things about themselves. Everybody has prejudices, but it is very easy to claim that racism is gone today, especially if you are a minority. Just as we saw in the documentary True Colors in class, people are treated differently solely based off the color of their skin. The documentary was a wake up call for me, even though I knew racism still existed. I also agree that there needs to be more media that portrays people of color in a positive light. We should be talking about racism more so that we can fight against it. Racism shouldn't be the taboo topic it is today, but rather, an open issue that people can discuss. We should openly talk about our own prejudices, because admitting that we are biased is the first step in realizing that racism is still prevalent.
DeleteJobseekers Resort to ‘Resume Whitening’ to Get a Foot in the Door, Study Shows
ReplyDeleteIn Nicholas Keung’s article, he argues that a lot of minority have to change their name and resume status to improve their callback results from companies. In his study, he found that a lot of black job applicant as well as Asian applicants changed their African or Asian-sounding names on paper and experience to improve their chances of getting the job. He discovered that the chances of getting a job for these applicants drastically increased by 25.5 Percent for black applicants that changed their affiliation with their ethnicity and 21 percent for Asian applicants. The applicants typically changed their names, student involvement, and chair positions in various clubs to sound more, “white.” For instance, a black applicant with the name Lamar J. Smith initiated his L. James Smith instead and an Asian applicant with the application Lei Zhang changed his first name completely to Luke Zhang to seem more American or in tune with white culture. Interestingly, he found that the rate of callback went up for both typical employers like law firms, hospitals, etc, as well as firms that are pro diversity.
I found the research conducted by Keung interesting and I agree with how a lot of ethnic groups have to change their names and organization status to stay in tune with present day America. However, I think that Keung can improve his article by gathering more data nationwide instead of just within local newspaper ads. I think that this will help see if there is a big discrepancy nationwide between how American companies perceive who they hire or if this is just an outlier in the data. For example, if a lot of companies nationwide don’t have this problem where they favor, “whitened,” resumes then maybe Keung’s data doesn’t represent the majority of America and it’s just the city or state that he is in. Also, I think it can be improved with more data. For instance, in the third part of his research he used 1,600 fictitious resumes with various levels of whitened experience and/or name sent to job ads. I think that the data depends on how many applications are sent per job/company since this could discourage companies from looking at all of the application due to time constraint and/or practicality for the employer.
I agree with Jason’s suggestion that the author should have broadened his analysis by including data throughout the whole nation. The geographic location and population of his sample may not be an accurate representation of the nation as a whole. Perhaps there is more “resume-whitening” in some states than others. I also think it would be interesting to compare the United States to a different country such Canada or England. Do the minorities in these countries also participate in “resume-whitening”? I also think that in addition to using fictitious resumes, the author should have acquired data of real people and real resumes to see the real-life applications of this practice.
Delete"Jobseekers resort to ‘resumé whitening' to get a foot in the door, study shows"
ReplyDelete-Sonia Kang
The author’s most important argument in this article is that racial discrimination in the workplace still exists. She backs up this article by explaining what “resume whitening” is and why more ethnic applicants may feel obligated to do it. Resume whitening is when an ethnic person down plays specific things on their resume that highlight the fact that they are not white. An example used in the article is that the name Lamar J. Smith would become L. James Smith in order to seem more western/white. They do this to prove they can fit into the work place, even though they are a different race or ethnicity. Sonia Kang also backs up her argument by showing data that proves that the call back rate for a “whitened resume” is greater than one that is not. This is an important argument because it shows that discrimination still exists and people have to pretend to be something they aren’t in order to obtain certain opportunities they wouldn’t be able to get being 100% themselves.
If Sonia Kang where to rewrite this article I think she could have further talked about how white people do not have to worry about this. She could compare everything a white person has to do in order to get a call back in comparison to a more ethnic person. This would highlight the extra obstacles non-white applicants have to go through to obtain the same opportunity as a white individual. This would be an impactful and interesting addition to her article. She could have also focused on a few more races/ethnicities rather than just Black and Asian applicants. It is important to cover as many races as possible in order to prove that this is not just an issue for black and Asian people. However, I still think Sonia Kang’s article was very informative and this extra information would only add to its great argument.
I agree with your suggestion about the author expanding on how white people do not have the same worries.I think it would be beneficial to interview white applicants and see how they change their resume to make them more fitting for the job. In addition, asking whites for their opinion on resume whitening, that many minorities do, would provide an interesting perspective. I also agree with expanding minorities to more than blacks and asians. It would be interesting to see in which professions certain races prove to be more advantageous. This could illustrate the use of stereotypes in certain scenarios. Kang should also explore why white Americans seems to be the favored race amongst employers. This could show whether this issue is more deeply rooted in the institution or the individual who is hiring. Either way, this information could improve the article by providing more evidence and perspective.
DeleteI agree with Drew that the author should have included the situations of different races as well, and not just black people. The author did a good job analysing the unfairness of black people finding jobs compared to white people. but it doesn't tell the readers whether this problem happens to all non-white people or just black people in particular. I think the author can include different ethnicities on their unequal treatment when finding a job because of their skin color, for example Asian, Indians etc. By including more perspectives from different races, it could present a better picture to the readers of whether racial discrimination only happens to black people or actually happens worldwide to many other races.
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ReplyDelete“Racial Bias, Even When We Have Good Intentions” by Sendhil Mullainathan
ReplyDeleteIn this article, Mullainathan discusses how the issue of racism is brought back to the forefront after the occurrence of several deaths of African Americans in the hands of Ferguson police. The author looks to empirical research to answer a rising debate about race. The most challenging hurdles come from eliminating all other factors and being able to confirm that racial discrimination is the source of the problem. This includes relevant issues that society faces such as: the widening pay gap between white and black Americans. This issue can be traced back to either racism or the statistics that show African Americans to live in impoverished neighborhoods providing them with fewer resources. Social scientists have coordinated experiments that allow them to isolate the variable of race in each scenario. With this method, they were able to illustrate the outcome of an experiment as dictated by a person’s race. This was exemplified with resume whitening or whitening ethnic sounding names. Essentially, in various situations, it is made apparent that society shows racial bias towards white Americans. Some of these scenarios include whites getting better offers at car dealerships, whites getting more call backs than blacks for job offers (even with the same qualifications), and blacks getting less response in apartment rental ads. This issue extends to the criminal justice system. Yet, in other arenas such as universities, it is often found that bias towards minorities exists. Mullainathan states that this prejudice can often go subconsciously and relies on stereotypes and prior associations to make snap judgments. Even if people try to fight it and remain unbiased, it is an innate action. The author suggests that it is not easy to point out the bigot, as everyone in some way is guilty of discrimination. The author essentially reminds us that racial discrimination can appear from anywhere and not from the obvious suspects.
If the author were to rewrite the article, he should include more studies that illustrate discrimination as an uncontrolled factor amongst everyone. Mullainathan ends the article with a large statement claiming that everyone commits bigotry as our instincts rely on stereotypes to make fast judgments. Society created the concept of race, so discrimination based on skin color is a learned practice. The author needs to expand on why we came to develop these stereotypes in the first place. It would also be beneficial to see whether the impoverished positions blacks find themselves in can be linked to racial discrimination. This includes high involvement in crimes and gangs a well as the lack of opportunities made available to minorities. Mullainathan should also go into how this discrimination creates a cycle for subjugated races and negates them from bettering their situation. By shedding light and understanding on the truth behind these stereotypes, this could hopefully eliminate the beliefs that people associate with certain races.
DeleteI agree with your suggestion for the author to improve the article. I would be very interested in the author explaining the initial reason for stereotypes being developed. I agree that if people were given more of an insight into the original reasons for stereotypes being created that people have more chances in recognizing their own stereotypes towards others and putting an end to it. It would be impossible to put an end to stereotypes on a large scale, but if it begins bit by bit within each individual, there can be a difference made. Eventually, I believe that slowly (with enough individuals reached) we can learn to “unlearn” the practice of discrimination based on stereotypes. If it can be learned, we can work on learning to “unlearning” them for the sake of progress in society. Stereotypes are heavily dictated and rooted in the past, and it is definitely time to move past it and adapt to the present.
Jobseekers Resort to 'Resume Whitening' to Get a Foot in the Door, Study Shows
ReplyDeleteIn his article “Jobseekers Resort to 'Resume Whitening' to Get a Foot in the Door, Study Shows,” Nicholas Keung’s main argument is that many minorities do “resume whitening” which is when they attempt to hide any signs of race or ethnicity on their resume in order to receive improved callback rates. One of the examples used is when they change their original name “Lamar J. Smith” into “L. James Smith.” The result of doing this was an improvement in callback rates, since the changed name appears less of a minority on their resume. In a study led by Sonia Kang, it was shown that only 10 percent of black applicants who used their original names received callbacks, as opposed to 25.5 percent when they “whitened” their names on their resumes. This study supports the argument that as Sonia Kang states “Discrimination is still a reality,” which is prevalent in minority jobseekers.
If Keung were to rewrite this article, he should include primary research from the many minority jobseekers affected. The author has some statistical evidence regarding minorities being discriminated and affected with “resume whitening;” however, there are not enough evidence told by the minorities themselves. For instance, interviews and questionnaires of the minorities would support his arguments even further and help his credibility for the readers. Keung should also state whether the racial discrimination of minority jobseekers happen with white or non-white employers. In his article, he only mentions “pro-diversity employers.” If he also includes this, there would be sufficient evidence in determining whether the statistical evidence of lesser callback rate is related to the ethnicity of the employer.
I agree with Victor's idea of adding primary research to the authors article. Primary research is an excellent way to get meaningful and detailed information about the issue. This would also make the article more personal and give the reader very specific examples of resume whitening. I agree that the combination of statistical data and evidence told by discriminated minorities would strengthen his argument. I do believe the article was very interesting and taught me a lot, but adding primary research would make it even more informative.
Delete“Racial Bias, Even When We Have Good Intentions” by Sendhil Mullainathan
ReplyDeleteIn this article, the author talks about how we discriminate against African-Americans unconsciously and unintentionally. His main point was that even if we have good intentions and try to consciously avoid discrimination, it is not always possible because unconsciously we are processing stereotypes that we’ve seen on television or any other media and applying it to real life and situations. While there are some clear and possibly intentional biases and discrimination that people have against African-Americans such as choosing to pass on them based on their name, or not responding to them, there are also biases which may not be conscious or intentional. As the author pointed out, this is because there are “slow” and “fast” thinking. With slow thinking we consciously and deliberately focus our thinking, but with fast thinking we depend on schemas or things we recall which can include stereotypes we’ve seen or heard from the media. So while
I think if the author were to rewrite the article he could have included more examples on the counterexamples on how diversity is being sought out in certain contexts or institutions such as universities. He could also elaborate on why this could be another form of discrimination because seeking out minorities or people of color just for diversity might not be entirely beneficial for anyone and could result in tokenism. He could also include information on whether the businesses who looked at the same resumes but with stereotypical names were run by whites or African-Americans and whether the race of the business owners played into their decision on hiring which resume.
I agree with your opinion, I feel like the author could have made more of a statement towards the end concerning the racial and unbalance against African-Americans in the US society. I do really appreciate the fact that she used great empirical evidence to prove that racism in America was not something made up. She did point out that a lot of our racial opinions may not be conscious, I thought she could have done a better job of showing how our snap judgments of people may prove to be a racial bias. All in all, I thought it was a very interesting read that opened my eyes to the unfairness that people of color face in the United States.
DeleteIn the excerpt from Privilege, Power and Difference Allan G. Johnson, states that in order for equality to exist among all races and genders, humans must first recognize that certain people are more privileged than others. The society in which we live, has attached privilege to white heterosexual nondisabled males. People who are privileged often believe that they are not part of the problem, but privilege is always in relation to others and so one group will always benefit at the expense of another group. The privilege in our society has created in income, wealth, education, safety and health. When privileged people understand that they are part of the problem and that those who are underprivileged are not in a position to help themselves then people can work together to tackle this problem. The author recognizes the importance of involving dominant groups in the conversation, and that is the only way that minority groups will stop receiving the lower end of the bargain. Many people in dominant groups seem to shy away from the fact that they are part of the problem. They don’t seem to understand that their possessions and wealth have resulted in the deprivation and suffering of someone else.
ReplyDeleteThe author should mention how he plans on bringing dominant groups into the conversation. And how he plans on motivating privileged people to take action and feel obligated to make a difference. I think that the author should focus on educating people about how inequalities came to be and how society and therefore people are responsible for these inequalities.
Jobseekers resort to ‘resumé whitening' to get a foot in the door, study shows
ReplyDeleteThe author’s main argument is that employers are more likely to hire an applicant if they seem white compared to a minority. Additionally, applicants actively “whitened” their applications by changing their name to sound more white and removing minority leadership positions. When applicants “whiten” their application, they are more likely to be called back for the job than if they left their application as it was. The author also argued that though companies stated that they supported minority applications, they were in fact providing an “illusion of diversity that might end up making things worse for minority applicants”. Although companies may say they are interested in minority applications, companies fail to follow through with it, shifting the blame from employers to the employees.
If the author was to rewrite the article adding a section about if whitening applications had any effect on hiring if the hiring staff was a minority. In the article the author did not specify what race the hiring staff were. It would be interesting to see if hirers would think more deliberately over applicants of the same minority race or look over their applications more quickly. Additionally, it would be worth seeing if minorities develop the same biases that are associated with their own minority. It would also be interesting to see if minority applicants would discriminate against white applicants in order to favor applicants of the same race.
I agree with Bryant's points. These new additions to the article could possibly clear biases out on what recruiters want. This study would help understand both sides of the group and make accurate statements. What would also be interesting to add to Bryant suggestion is seeing what type of positions minorities dominate(if they do) compared to white employees. This could suggest more recruiters prefer minorities for this position, because they "fit in" and are knowledgeable. This can also lead to other questions as to why minorities are mostly in that field? Is it because white dominated field are accepting more white than minorities, which forces minorities to look at other fields?
DeleteExcerpt from "Privilege, Power and Difference" by Allan G. Johnson
ReplyDeleteIn the excerpt from “Privilege, Power and Difference” by Allan G. Johnson, Allan argues that privilege is everyone’s problem, not just to those who have it. It is easy for whites to think that privilege is only an issue for those of color but it’s impossible to have a problem of “difference” without including both parties. You can’t have one without the other, dark without light, happy without sad etc. So the privilege of one group comes at the expense of another group. Johnson argues that privilege within one group is directed related to the privilege that another group doesn’t have. This is important because that means inequality in wealth, safety, and health is created, making for a divide between groups of people everywhere and in all institutions. We have attached what it means to be privileged to the white, heterosexual, non-disabled male members within our society who are of middle and upper class. Johnson therefore argues that those who fall in that category must realize that they are part of the privilege problem if there is to be any positive change made towards that issue. This is important because without the inclusion of the dominant groups into a solution for the privilege problem, the minority groups have no chance of doing anything about it by themselves. If they could do it by themselves, then they would have done something by now. So including dominant groups into the conversation is the only means of solving the issue.
If the author were to rewrite this article, he should include results from interviews with people in both groups, privileged and non-privileged. He could look into not just whites and blacks, but also other minorities such as Asians, Latinos, middle-eastern, etc. By dong this he could see if ALL minority groups feel the same way about privilege or do we just stereotype it to blacks? It would also be interesting to see how the issue of privilege takes place in countries outside the US. Is it based on skin color? Social class? Titles? For example, how might privilege exist in neutral countries such as Sweden, Finland, or Denmark? Are refugees into those countries now the non-privileged group? By conducting interviews on people who live in countries that are primarily that ethnicity and race, we can see the degree to which the existence of privilege can matter to the overall function of a society.
I agree with Sogol’s assessment of the author’s argument and agree with the overall idea that the author presents in his excerpt. Given that humans are social beings and our interactions and relationships shape institutions and individuals, it is important to consider that privilege can be viewed as a relationship that connects two groups rather than a characteristic that identifies one single group. Furthermore, I agree with Sogol’s idea to include interview results from groups identified as privileged and non-privileged. The idea of privilege goes beyond just racial and ethnic terms since it can also identify relationships where power affects relationships, such as wealth. Since this is a relationship, I agree with Sogol’s idea to see how the groups in question view and identify the existence of privilege and whether it puts groups at an advantage or disadvantage. By viewing privilege as an idea that affects relationships rather than single groups, society can work together in order to reduce privilege and discrimination toward specific groups and bring individuals on a more equitable level.
DeleteI agree with you in that the author should include more information about other minority groups because other minority groups also are faced with the problem surround white privilege. Being Asian American, when the topic of racism is brought up when thinking about American most of the time people think of White and Black people. In addition, white privilege and the idea of privilege is not just an American thing. I believe there are different forms of racism, sexism, privilege in other countries many Americans fall blind to see. Furthermore, I would have to agree with Johnson when he states that if the minority group could find a solution and change the problem surrounding privilege we would by now. However, this problem has to be fixed from both parties - both the privileged groups and the minority group in order to actually make a difference.
Delete“Jobseekers resort to ‘resumé whitening' to get a foot in the door, study shows”
ReplyDeleteNicholas Keung reported a two year study done by the University of Toronto that 40 percent of minorities seeking job “whiten” their resumes by using American names and downplaying their experience to fit western culture. For example, changing a black applicant name from “Lamar J. Smith” to “L. James Smith” or an Asian applicant name from “Lei Zhang” to “Luke Zhang.” The study also finds that 10 percent of black applicants who used their real profile got a call back, compared to an increase of 25.5 percent of black applicants who “whiten” their profile. These tactics used by minorities is a way of fighting back towards discrimination and signaling to recruiters that they are able to “fit in” with white employees and not create political tension. This article is raising awareness that discrimination is de facto in the workplace and that the workplace needs to do something about this issue.
An interesting study to add would be interviewing applicants who “whiten” their name compared to applicants who did not “whiten” their names and see how they were treated in the workplace. If applicants who are black or Asian feel mistreated it would suggest that recruiters chose them, because they looked like they "fit in"(as well as having the skills to do the job). On the other hand, if they do not feel mistreated it would suggest that the work environment is welcoming. What will also enhance this study is adding different ethnicities into this study. This could possibly support that not only Black and Chinese people are discriminated in the workplace. I know from experience I had to do multiple interviews to the same internship, compared to my white male friend who did one (even though I was more qualified, and yes he did get the job).
I agree with your view of the author's main argument. Based on the examples the author gave, resumes of minorities have the unspoken requirement of fitting western culture. If the applicant does not create a resume that reflects that they end up having a harder time than someone equally as qualified that does. I also agree with your idea of adding a section to see how applicants are treated in the workplace based on if they had whitened their resume. It would be interesting to see if the hiring staff would feel deceived by the "whitened" candidate or if they would realize their own unconscious bias.
DeleteIn the excerpt, "Racial Bias, Even When We Have Good Intentions" by Senhil Mullainathan, The topic of racial discrimination against African-Americans as discussed. Test after test shows that African-Americans are continually discriminated against concerning issues such as job interview likeliness, to car dealership pricing, even to eBay account showing events that are slanted against African-Americans in our country. She does a very good job in this article highlighting the mist treatment of people with colored skin. Also I really like the way that she shows an unbiased opinion by using purely empirical research. In this way, she is genuinely researching like a sociologist. This usage of sociological vernacular continually shows that this widespread discrimination is not necessarily a sign of widespread conscious prejudice. Instead she is showing how people make "fast thinking" judgments without consciously filtering their prejudice against skin color.
ReplyDeleteI think if the author work to redo this article, I would love to see some empirical evidence of how "slow thinking" thought processes filter prejudices. I feel like, she broadly announced that racism is less prevalent when people consciously think about it. She definitely goes into detail and shows the evidence needed to show how "fast thinking" judgments aren't as filtered. Another thing that could've been added to improve the articles legitimate see would be to show more counterexamples of where this discrimination against blacks isn't as common. She does list one talking about the universities, I just think another one would help the depth of the article.overall though, I thought the article was very well written and it showed the obvious unbalanced we have in society without using a Bias. I thought the use of the empirical data was very well done.
“Racial Bias, Even When We Have Good Intentions” by Sendhil Mullainathan
ReplyDeleteIn the article “Racial Bias, Even When We Have Good Intentions” by Sendhil Mullainathan, the author argues that the central challenge of isolating race from other factors has shown that internalized, unconscious racial bias still exists in society despite previous difficulties in isolating race from factors such as income and neighborhood statuses. Based on a previous study conducted by the author, resumes with “white” names received a 50% higher callback rate compared to resumes with stereotypically African-American names; despite having identical resumes except for the name, meaning the difference is due to the name. Furthermore, in other studies involving similar White and Black individuals, Black individuals were at a disadvantage in getting services or incentives that were more likely to be offered to White individuals. However, many of these discriminatory offenses even surprised individuals that prized the idea of being inclusive and cultivating diversity in their companies. This shows that much discrimination in society reflects “fast”, instinctual thought processes that individuals are socialized to believe through social media or other beings. As the author concludes, good intentions, or “slow” thought processes, to prevent being discriminatory can be overridden by instincts, which allows society to unconsciously continue discrimination in society.
If Mullainathan were to rewrite this article, I think it would be interesting to include statistics or anecdotal responses regarding hiring managers or other individuals that examined the statistically identical resumes or records depending on the study being conducted. This perspective would give more insight into whether the individual looking into the record is attempting to show little bias between candidates and whether they realize that the records presented are identical except for the name on the record. If the name noticeably makes a difference in the scrutinizer’s objective analysis of the document, it may show that discrimination in that individual may not actually be unconscious, but a conscious decision they try to mask through company ideals of diversity expansion. We would be given insight into the thinking and scrutinizing process to identify a consciously or unconsciously driven decision. Furthermore, it would be interesting to see systemic discrimination playing on other minority groups in addition to Black individuals. With Latinos, Asians, Biracial, and other minority groups, society dictates certain stereotypes to each group and I think it would be important to see how these stereotypes play on the success of people in all minority groups.
I agree that the author’s main point is that internalized, unconscious bias still exists among people. I also agree that it would be interesting to see the results of the individual hiring managers regarding their choice on why they chose to hire one person over another even though they have the same qualifications. By showing the reasons why they chose to choose someone just by their names it would be clear if they have a bias or not against a certain race even if it might be unintentional. To add to that, I think the author should give some kind of suggestion on how this should be fixed by perhaps appointing several different people to look over the resumes then come into a consensus to discuss their hiring choices. I also agree that it would be interesting to see this study performed on other minority groups to find out whether there is a similar bias against them.
DeleteJobseekers resort to ‘resumé whitening' to get a foot in the door, study shows
ReplyDeleteIn Nicholas Keung’s article, he argues that if people change their name to be more “white” will increase they chance to get callback when they send they resume to companies. In his study, he found that a lot of black and Asian applicants if using their own African or Asian names will get less chance to get callback from the companies to get the interviews. For example, one of the Asian change their name from “Lei Zhang” to “Luck Zhang” on their resume to make their become more “white”. Although this is not meant to be lie about their name to the companies, but still will get a bigger chance to have the companies’ callback to have interview with them. Other example of black applicant changes his name from “Lamar J. Smith” to “L. James Smith instead. Why people need to judge a person only by their name is not that “white”. People who qualify for their job required that make them will send their resume to the companies to hoping have a chance to work in that companies. But how come people being so racism because their name is not “white” enough. Don’t judge the book only by it cover. In fact, people in society are judging people by their resume name. People should have an equal chance to get a job, not only because their name is not white enough.
If the author were to rewrite this article, he can interview some white people from college and some white people in work. How they feel to being white in from the past that make them more convenience and how they think about companies are viewing they resume only by their name. They can do the survey about how other race people think about the whole society being racial discrimination just like in the past. All the people are saying they have no more racism in the society. But in fact, people are still being racism in some way. Also, they can do the study about how companies hire more people that name more “white” than the regular African and Asian name people. Companies should not only view resume by their name is not white enough. They should focus on how they job experience are and how they have passion about the job. Companies should give everyone a equal chance to interview all the qualify worker.
I agree with your points in that companies should hire applicants based on their qualifications. However, certain people are already overlooked because of their name. This is bad for both the applicant and companies, as they are potentially passing on really good employees. The way it is now, applicants have to make changes to their resumes, and yes it isn’t lying to companies but they should not have to do so in the first place. I also agree the interviews would be a good idea. It would be very informative to get the perspectives of applicants and how their feel about this discrimination.
DeleteI disagree in that I feel interviews with white people in college and work wouldn’t necessarily contribute to the article’s point. They could say “I don’t see it” or perhaps “Yeah I know way more qualified people than me.” However, this doesn’t add information on how other applicants view this discrimination. Also, I somewhat disagree in there isn’t really a significant amount of people who say racial discrimination no longer exists. It can be seen everywhere and is a clear issue to most people, which is why this article is saying how it hurts all parties.
Racial Bias, Even When We Have Good Intentions
ReplyDeleteIn Mullainathan’s article, he argues that we are all essentially racially biased even when we don’t think we are. Issues such as police brutality have generated opposing opinions -- with some people calling the events isolated and disregarding racism while others point to racism as the key problem. Researchers have done studies to further analyze the effects of race and have come up with some fascinating conclusions. Examples include how many employers are more likely to hire minorities who have “whitened” their resumes, doctors being less likely to recommend helpful treatments to black patients, and more offers on auctions on eBay if a white hand was used in the picture showcasing the product than a black hand. Many people are shocked when they learn about these findings due to the fact that most racial biasness comes from our fast-thinking processes, which escape our awareness. Even when people actively try to avoid this “fast-thinking” discrimination, the stereotypes that society has instilled in our minds will always influence our decision-making.
If the author were to rewrite this article, I think he should include more examples of racial bias toward other minority groups. He does a great job of providing examples of racial bias toward African-Americans and explains how this is due to associations we make due to racial stereotypes. I think it would be more effective to include other racial groups to get a broader sense of how all minority groups are affected by this “unconscious” racial bias. Also, I think it would have been interesting to include interviews of people who have taken part in this “fast-thinking” discrimination, such as the human resource managers that were mentioned. If people become more aware that they are being discriminatory, would this have a positive effect and allow people to try to actively avoid being racially biased?
I agree that there should be more exploration into other minority groups as well. Racism is an issue for all groups of people and an expansion on this could give more meaning and depth into the meanings behind the unconscious biases. It would certainly be interesting to see the managers reactions to these studies. If the people became aware it would be interesting to see if they did have a slight change in this manner. Also, if they started to actively avoid being racially biased, how would that effect their decision making and businesses or whatever they were choosing between people for.
DeleteIn “Jobseekers resort to ‘resume’ ‘whitening’ to get a foot in the door, study shows”, Keung gives many statistics on trends found in job applicants and their results. He states that there is still an issue of discrimination in employers whether they’re aware of it or not. Statistics show that applicants who choose to “whiten” their resumes have a higher chance of being called for an interview than those who don’t. Additionally, minorities seeking jobs are more likely to whiten their resumes when they think it’ll help; when they apply for jobs where an employer is publicly known for being pro-diversity, they are far less likely to whiten their resume. Additionally, participation in groups that imply a certain ethnic background are often removed in the process of whitening resumes. These are things that would normally look good in a resume, yet they are removed to increase chances of hire.
ReplyDeleteWhile Keung has good content, I would personally make a chart or graph for certain statistics. The significance behind these statistics are often lost when presented in this manner as they become simple numbers when they are so casually and repeatedly used. Also, it seems as though Keung is very focused on “proving” that employers are biased and doesn’t try to see any other viewpoints. Perhaps there is an other reason for the increased rate of calls that has been overlooked. Or at the very least, his point would be made more strongly if it could somehow be realized or even explained by such an employer. As it is, the article seems very one sided and despite having some very solid statistics, doesn’t make such a strong impression in trying to get its point across.
I completely agree with your suggestion that the author should include more data to support his argument. In the article, Keung discusses the fact that those who "whiten" their name have a higher chance of receiving an interview than those who do not. However, he does not provide any statistic data to support his argument. I think it would be interesting if he were to do so as it would show whether or not the data is statistically significant. Keung should include other views and statistical evidence in order to further strengthen his argument.
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ReplyDeleteIn "Racial Bias, Even When We Have Good Intentions", the author, Sendhil Mullainathan, argues that isolating the effects of race from other factors shows that racial bias still exists in society even though racism is thought to be a thing of the past. For example, in a study conducted by the author, thousands of resumes were sent to employers to study which received callbacks given that stereotypical African-American and White names were used. It was found that people with "White" names received roughly 50% more callbacks for an interview. In other similar studies, it was found that African-Americans were at a disadvantage in getting low-wage jobs, responses, services, and convictions. The author concludes that the urge to call out a bigot is powerful and satisfying because it lets themselves off the hook. We should be looking inwards versus outwards and examine how, despite best intentions, we discriminate in big and small ways.
ReplyDeleteIf Mullainathan were to rewrite this article, he should include actual quotes from the hiring managers in his study. The way in which the hiring managers respond to this finding would be insightful as to how they viewed their own racial tendencies. Furthermore, it would provide them with a look into whether it truly was based on race or if there were some factors not accounted for in the resume study. Either way, it would primarily reflect on their unconscious discrimination towards the individuals. It would also be interesting to see these same studies done with other groups of ethnicity to see if they have the same effects or whether there is a different discrepancy in the data.
I think it would be great to read responses from the employers. I wonder if any of the hiring staff would try to dispute their bias. Since the only thing changed between the resumes was their names, the position would be indefensible, but the responses would still be interesting. It would reinforce the idea that these people have good intentions; they truly believe they would never be racist. It could really help the article's point, and maybe make people more open to acknowledging other forms of racism.
DeleteJobseekers Resort To ‘Resumé Whitening’ To Get A Foot In The Door, Study Shows by Nicholas Keung
ReplyDeleteThe author’s main argument is that many people of color practice something called “resume whitening” and face racial discrimination in the professional world. According to the article, “resume whitening” is when people try to hide and avoid telltale signs of race or ethnicity from their job applications in order to receive a higher chance of landing a job. Due to workplace racial discrimination, studies have shown that by “whitening” applicants’ resumes and cover letters, applicants have a higher percentage of receiving callbacks from employers. An example of “resume whitening” is changing an applicants name from their African, Mexican, or Asian sounding name to be more white or Americanized. Keung states that the chances of an applicant receiving a callback is 50% more likely if an Asian person uses a whitened name and remove their Asian experience on their resume. In addition, some applicants even go to the extent of not involving their involvement in cultural clubs or organizations to avoid being identified with a specific race or ethnicity.
If Nicholas Keung were to rewrite this article, the issues or topics I would suggest them add is to include information from employers on the reasoning behind why they are more likely to callback applicants with more whitened names and experience/background and the perspective of people of color on their thoughts and opinions about this issues. By including information from the employers reasoning, it may put into perspective why they tend to callback people with whitened resumes. While I believe that it is wrong for employers to do this, I think readers would like to get a better understanding as to the reasoning behind employers’ decision-making and thought process. Furthermore, there is not a lot of information from the viewpoint of the minorities groups. I think it would be very interesting to learn more about how this practice came to be because from my understanding “resume whitening” is ultimately lying on your job application. While I understand that by whitening one’s resume my lead to a callback, once employers find out applicants lied on their resume I believe it is just as bad on the applicants part. Overall, more insight from both parties would definitely help understand their practice and the ethics behind employers hiring process.
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DeleteJessica, I agree with you that the authors should definitely include more information on the perspective of the employers, as this article is rather one-sided. Even though this tendency toward white encouragement and minority suppression in the job market is wrong, there might be other indications on these resumes that gave the employers reason to choose the whiten ones over the unwhitened ones. For instance, the skills and experience background may be more applicable to the job position or the way the resume was formatted may be more appealing to the employers. Understanding both sides would shed more light on the issue of job discrimination. However, I don't wholly agree with your point that there need to be more of the minorities' perspectives incorporated. I think the authors presented the reasoning behind resume whitening just fine and included appropriate quotes from those who actually participated in resume whitening that gave enough insight into their thought processes behind the practice.
DeleteHow systemic racism entangles all police officers — even black cops
ReplyDeleteIn an article written by German Lopez, the bias of the law towards minorities are explored. Lopez explains the notion of systemic racism that is widely spread in America. In our country, there is cultural and systemic biases towards minorities. The article discusses the narrow perspective of the country that leads to the law working against people of color, especially in the way that cops typically treat those among minority groups, even those who are within the same group. In general, a lot of work that police do is based off of race. With the way that cops are trained to patrol poor neighborhoods and are often exposed to crime through their patrol of the poor neighborhoods, they become accustomed to taking action against people of color. An explanation of this is that high-crime areas are often filled with more minority residents. With police encouraged to arrest and ticket as many people as possible while working, it becomes routine for them to arrest the disproportionate number people of color they come across in their job. Lopez also discusses the cycle of people fearful and uncomfortable around police, which can be viewed as “suspicious” behavior, as well as the way that racism develops on an “implicit level” where people’s subconscious lead while they are unaware. Eventually, due to all these factors, police officers begin to unconsciously connect race and crime together. If the author were to rewrite the article, it would be interesting for them to support their article with more real-life examples and stories. I enjoyed reading the article, but I definitely would appreciate more references towards cases and instances to help illustrate their statements. For example, I think it would also be interesting if the author had interviewed different police officers, people of different backgrounds, and people of different ethnicities to include as many perspectives as possible in the article. The more perspectives there are, the more insight people are given into the thought processes of different people. In this way, the presence of racism within our society can be further deconstructed and analyzed. Just as the article states that “awareness can force tops to consider and control their own biases,” the presence of different perspectives with the topic of race, can force those who come across the article to consider their own racial biases.
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DeleteAbby, while I agree the article lacks interviews and stories, I don't think it would necessarily make the article stronger by pulling anecdotes from other ethnic groups. While the micro-level analysis could certainly help to provide unique insight on the issue, the article is focused on how black men are targeted by cops. I think that anecdotes from other groups would most likely water down this story, and a broader focus on all races, while invaluable in understanding how society works, might detract from this article, considering the specific subject matter. I think that this article is strongest by maintaining focus on the groups discussed in the article, but I think follow up studies would definitely be useful, if not directly connected to this article. If interviews were to be conducted, I would be most interested in hearing from black men and cops, those most directly involved in the issue, and from other groups afterwards.
DeleteIn the excerpt from Privilege, Power and Difference, “We’re in Trouble”, Allan Johnson asserts that privilege is not only a problem for those who do not have it--but for society as a whole. According to Johnson, we currently live in a society which attaches privilege to those who are White and heterosexual. Johnson begins his argument with the example of how he would be treated in comparison to an African American woman. If they were to both go out shopping, Johnson would benefit from the privilege of the cultural assumption that since he is White, he is a serious customer who wouldn’t steal. On the other hand, the African American woman would not have such privilege no matter how she may act in society. Her being black in a racist white society is all it takes for her to be discriminated against. Johnson argues, that the problem of privilege is not restricted to only those who do not have it. In order to solve the problem of privilege, those who have privilege must be able to see it as a problem and be willing to take action against it as well.
ReplyDeleteIf Johnson were to add something to this excerpt, I think it would be interesting for him to interview those with privilege. As Johnson’s main argument was that privilege is not only the problem of those who do not have it, I think it would be interesting to see how the more privileged of society view this issue. Whether or not they believe that privilege exists and what we could do in order to end it. Johnson could also explore how they feel their privilege has benefited them in society, whether they feel as though it is a problem or even how they believe we can end the issue of privilege in society. It would also be interesting to see how privilege takes place in other societies.
Jobseekers Resort to ‘Resume Whitening’ to Get a Foot in the Door, Study Shows
DeleteNicholas Keung illustrates the process of "resume whitening," a process in which names on resumes are altered to appear more Caucasian. Often, non-white people have names that are not typically "American," and they adopt Anglicized names to fool the employers. Unfortunately, this process has been proved to work, as altered names get more callbacks and interviews than unaltered names. For example, Lei will become Luke and Jose will become Joe. The success of this twisted process illustrates both systemic and internalized racism. Employers are constantly choosing white people over people of color to hire. People are also changing other positions that may connect them to their ethnicities. A woman who was involved in many black organizations felt almost ashamed to put them all on her resume, and she changed her resume accordingly. People are being taught to hide their native cultures instead of embracing them because of the success the follows whitened resumes.
I noticed Nicholas Keung has a very Caucasian name, "Nicholas." I wonder if this article is perpetuating resume whitewashing because Nicholas Keung sounds like a name that has been whitened. If the author were to rewrite this, I would like to hear about his personal experiences if he has any. I would also like to hear about people who might be affected by this article. If people did not know about resume whitening before this article, will they start resume whitening in an attempt to become employed? Or will they be outraged enough to not erase their identities to cater to the racial needs of the employer? While it would be difficult to resist the temptation to Anglify your name, I believe it is important to discourage the process of resume whitening. It only encourages employers to choose white people to work for them.
As Biftu stated, the author, Allan G. Johnson, recognizes that in order for his African American friend to experience the same rights that he does, society must realize that a certain group of people are more privileged than others. This privilege divides people and creates inequality in all aspects of life. It hinders people from achieving the milestones that their equal counterparts are able to reach. Because minorities do not have access to the services and benefits that privileged people have they alone are not able to change the system. It is up to the privileged class to recognize this problem and be part of the solution. They must motivate themselves to take action and undo the unjust labeling that this society has created. In this society it is beneficial to be a white heterosexual male, only because society assigned this particular category of people a higher value. We have the power to undo this type of labeling.
DeleteI agree that it would be interesting if the author had interviewed people who are privileged and asked them whether or not they recognize that they are privileged and if they think that racism is their problem as well. The author should also include how he thinks people (who are privileged) should go about solving racism in this country. Are most people unaware that their privileged results suffering and deprivation of someone else?
I agree with your idea to interview people who hold privilege. It reminds me of the documentary in class about WASPs, and how so many of them were incredibly privileged. We should also emphasize that those with privilege are not to blame. Systemic racism is to blame, but those with privilege can help those without privilege. Acknowledging privilege is the first step in becoming an ally. There is certain connotation surrounding the word "privilege." We need to remove that connotation, because denying privilege is denying discrimination. It is also difficult to let other people know that they do have privilege without being rude, but it is necessary.
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ReplyDelete"Racial Bias, Even When We Have Good Intentions" by Sendhil Mullainathan
ReplyDeleteThe author of this article talks about how we have good intentions and try to not discriminate, but we still unconsciously discriminate against Africans-Americans. The author says how the media has a huge impact, because we are unconsciously picking up on stereotypes that we see on television. She provides data that shows that African-Americans are time and time again discriminated against; including in job interviews. Her argument is strong because she provides evidence to back up her claims. Perhaps what was most interesting about this argument is her idea of “slow” and “fast” thinking. She argues that “fast” thinking is when we unconsciously make judgments about African-Americans; most likely based off what we see in the media. She says that “slow” thinking is when people consciously think and make judgments about people of color. It also showed how based on people’s names (white sounding name), they be more likely to get a better deal on a car, or get a job interview.
If the author were to rewrite this article, I think it would be interesting to see how other non-white groups are affected by discrimination. The article mainly focuses on African-Americans, so I think it would strengthen her argument about how most discrimination is unconscious because the media fostering stereotypes, since there are stereotypes about other racial groups, such as Latinos or Asians. I thought this article was very well written and explained her point very well, but I do think it would be helpful if she had more information on “fast” thinking and “slow” thinking; such as talking to people who have fell victim to “fast” thinking stereotyping. I think if people become more aware that the media can affect us without even knowing it; it would take a step in the right direction to ending discrimination. When the author talked about interviewers may not interview someone because of their non-white name; it actually reminded me of how in high school we would hear about how if you have a certain racial background (latino, African-American) to write it on your college applications because this could help you get into school. I know that the universities have good intentions trying to diversify schools, but I wonder if letting a person into school because of their racial background is actually helping to fight discrimination; or just creating another form.
"How systemic racism entangles all police officers — even black cops" by German Lopez
ReplyDeleteThe author’s most important argument is the assertion that racial bias can transcend one’s own race. Many would think that a black person would not be racist to someone of their own race, but this notion does not remain consistent when we look at the most recent cases of police brutality. Black cops have been present in many of these cases. The article shows that police departments focus their efforts on crime heavy neighborhoods, which tend to be mostly black. This creates an association in the minds of all cops, no matter their race, between black skin and crime. The article also offers an explanation for why these neighborhoods tend to be black, or of other minority races.
This explanation is what I would have liked to see more of. Cops aren’t going to change their biases by just trying really hard; they have to understand the people they are policing. If they understand, for instance, that black men have limited economic opportunity, then they will stop seeing these races as driven by evil, but driven by a need for survival. If it is clear to them that these deviants are pushed to crime by their economic reality, then understanding and compassion will take the place of judgement and spite. The author ends the article somewhat defeated, recommending all kinds of solutions, but concluding that police racism, like all racism, will end slowly. I think accounting for their inevitable associations by introducing cops to a more complete understanding will be the greatest aid in curtailing their prejudice. Maybe that’s a bit too hopeful; I guess I’ll end my blog post in the same position as the author.
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ReplyDelete“Jobseekers resort to ‘resumé whitening' to get a foot in the door, study shows” by Nicholas Keung
ReplyDeleteNicholas Keung’s article describes a study that examines a popular trend among minorities whereby they “whiten” their resumes in order to make themselves more appealing to employers. “Whitening” resumes primarily consists of altering names to sound more white (i.e. Lamar J. Smith to L. James Smith) and removing experiences that are directly linked to their minority race (i.e. deleting “political action chair of Black Students Association”). The researchers created applications for African American and Asian applicants based on real candidate profiles. They whitened some of them and kept others honestly reflecting the applicant. Their findings suggest that it is a justified practice. Prior to whitening their applications, black job applicants received only a 10% callback rate, which shot up to 25.5% post-whitening. For Asian applicants, they received an 11.5% callback rate prior to whitening and then a 21% callback rate after whitening. The researchers also sent resumes into 2 equal opportunity companies. Applicants feel less of a need to whiten their resumes in these cases, but they found that even with “equal opportunity” employers, those with whitened resumes still had a higher chance of getting a callback. Given all of these results, it shows how resume whitening has become a legitimate practice by many minorities and it speaks to how job discrimination is still a very relevant issue.
Keung could strengthen his article by including research regarding white job applicants. By comparing the results of this research to the research about resume whitening for minorities, it could highlight the fact that minorities clearly suffer at the expense of their race, while whites generally do not have to worry about how their race directly affects their chances of getting a job. This could solidify the fact that white privilege is a very real and prominent advantage that is often unacknowledged. Furthermore, the research could also be improved by controlling for differences in educational and skills background. If the researchers found that minorities, despite having virtually the education and skills as white applicants, were not receiving the same or similar callback rate as whites, then this would be more telling to the nature of job discrimination, since it would be wholly based on differences assumed on race, not on background. Lastly, they could include information on laws that attempt to prevent job discrimination based on race. It would show how even though there are laws set forth by the government, racial discrimination is something that is embedded in our society and still manages to hinder the success of the minorities in our country.
Jobseekers resort to ‘resumé whitening' to get a foot in the door, study shows
ReplyDeleteThe most important argument the author makes is that 'resume whitening' and in a broader sense job discrimination still exists. The article describes how college students such as ourselves takes steps to make their resumes, and themselves whiter in hopes of landing jobs. They do things like alter their names from Lamar J. Smith to L. James Smith, downplay minority group involvement like participating in black student organizations, or generalizing volunteer experience. The article then shows the effects that the resume whitening has and shows a sizable increase to employment opportunities when these kinds of steps are taken. the Article cites increases in interviews of about 15% and 10% for blacks and asians when they whitened their resumes showing that this is a tangible problem.
If the author was to rewrite this article I would try and increase the sample size of students interviewed, 59 students is not a lot of data to accurately depict how prevalent resume whitening is. To further on this, it may be pertinent to subdivide them to different parts of the country and see if there are differences between different parts of the U.S. such as the south compared to the north east, or the west coast and the mid-west. I believe it could show where certain parts of the country are more progressive compared to others.
Hi Majd,
DeleteI agree that a larger sample size would have a more profound significance in a study such as this. However, as I recall from the article, the focus group of 59 students was only part one of the three-part study. The research included more data than what was gathered from those 59 students. Aside from this I agree that broadening the scope of the study to include and differentiate different regions (and also different industries) would have the potential to give the study a much wider impact. I believe that they would find that certain industries (jobs which require different levels of experience and education) may show different levels of unintentional discrimination.
I agree with you that using a larger sample size of students interviewed will be better for the researcher to prove this points. Because base on the article, the focus group of 59 students is not enough statistics to show how companies are being racism in some point. Also, there are still many racisms in some point of society. Maybe author can have another study about how companies feel about the whole hiring system. Are they really think to hire a more “white”person will help their companies to have a bigger success. Companies should focus more on how people are being qualify for their companies, not only base on their name is white enough. Everyone deserver an equal chance to get into a job or anything in the life. People have no right to judge anyone in anyway.
DeleteWe're in Trouble
ReplyDeleteThe major point that Johnson is making in this excerpt is two fold, placing a strong responsibility on the dominant, more privileged, group. He argues that people with privilege need to understand that while the may be well-intended people, simply by living in the society that grants them privilege means that it takes it from others. This goes hand in hand with the Sociological Imagination , with Johnson urging privileged people to first recognize that breaking out of the system we live in involves their participation and that it is not solely the job the unprivileged to fix it. The second point he argues, which is the main point of the book this excerpt is from, is that people with privilege need to be open and willing to talk about this issue with people who aren't. Conversations like this are very likely to be hard, touchy, and bit awkward but they are the types of conversations that need to be had for progress to move forward.
I think it would be interesting for Johnson to interview people on both sides of the privilege coin to see what their opinions on the matter are, but even more compelling would be for him to facilitate one of those conversations himself. He could ask friends, or partners, etc. (one who is privileged and one who isn't) to sit down and talk about the hard issues that plague today's society. By starting with people who trust each other to have each others best interest in mind we can get a conversation that is both real and informative. It can also give us a view into what it might be like in the future if everyone took part in breaking through the hierarchy we live in today.
I fully agree with your arguments about the article “We’re in Trouble”. It is clear that the author is arguing that those in a place of privilege must understand that them being in a place of power takes it away from someone else. This phenomenon happens whether or not someone is conscious of it happening. Another key point you mentioned is that for society to change, people with privilege need to have conversations about it even if it is an uncomfortable topic. Without talking about the awkward topics, our society will never grow away from the notion that white, christian, male, and abled men are the most powerful. I also like your idea of what to add to his argument. Having people who know and are comfortable with each other talk about these difficult topics would be a good place to start. It would be an easier, less awkward way for society to start getting the answers it needs to change.
Delete"We're in Trouble"
ReplyDeleteThe main point in this article I think is about how race and privilege are uncomfortable topics to discuss yet without discussing them there is no way to fix the problem. While at lunch with his female African American friend he notes that his whiteness and maleness and her being female and African American is like an "elephant" in the room. He also mentions how he did not do anything wrong or bad but they was just how it is and it's everywhere in schools, churches, neighborhoods, etc. Another important piece he mentions is that the "we" that's in trouble is all of us, not just one group can solve the problem it'll take all of us working together to fix it. The main part the author mentions is that people in a place of power and privilege have to realize that they're an active part in this problem and they need to do something about it like bringing up the uncomfortable "elephant" in the room topics.
I think the author could have added a bit more analysis to his article. A majority of the article was just his point of view and opinion on race and privilege. It would have been more interesting if he added the woman's (who he was working with) point of view on the topic. He argued that race and privilege was something white people have to address despite the elephant in the room but what if she disagreed or did not think the topic was an uncomfortable subject. Also he could have added conversation on what other races (besides female African Americans) think about race and privilege and who's responsibility it is to change it and how everyone should about change in a comfortable way for everyone.
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ReplyDeleteJobseekers resort to ‘resumé whitening' to get a foot in the door, study shows
ReplyDeleteNicholas Keung’s article takes a look at the level of racism seen in business hiring practices. He reveals some statistics found in a study published in the Administrative Science Quarterly Journal. This focus group-based study showed that resumes with stereotypically black or Asian names and associations tended to not get advanced to interview stages as often as those with stereotypically white names and associations, even with the same qualifications otherwise. This leads to a “resume whitening,” a practice that these minority groups sometimes use to appear more “white” and thus engrained into white culture. The study in question had 1,600 resumes sent out with various combinations of these attributes – unwhitened and whitened names, and associations tied to minority culture and advancement versus more generic leadership roles. Keung writes that businesses claiming to value diversity must go “beyond the rhetoric” to actually give a fair chance to these minority groups.
Were Keung to rewrite this article, it would be interesting to see how these companies would respond to this survey. Are some companies taking action to hide the name on a resume from the hiring manager? There could be several methods employed for a company to try to mitigate the effects of this type of resume discrimination. Interviews with employers involved in this large study might have some important insight into how this discrimination actually happens, and the sociologists who conducted the study could probably suggest ways for any human resources department to avoid the problem. Also, does this problem still appear for a company with hiring managers who are not white males? Would a black hiring manager be more likely to hire a person with a “black” resume? These types of questions would also provide some useful insight into how hiring happens in a given industry.
I think that Scott raises a good point about how the interviewing process works overall and if there is still a discrepancy when there's an ethnic group hiring another ethnic group. I think that asking companies and the human resources departments of various companies if they were selective in their hiring process I don't think that any of them would openly admit that they hired based on race or name. I think that asking these questions without asking the companies to reveal their name or location would be a good idea, as long as they're kept anonymous. However, this might turn readers away from believing in the evidence. I agree with asking questions to companies if they don't want to employ white males and see how many there actually are in comparison to other races.
DeleteExcerpt from Privilege, Power and Difference
ReplyDeleteThe main argument of this paper was to show that the problems we have in our society are not just problems of one group, but it is connected to us all. The fact that one group gets the privileges of being the dominant group in society does not mean their privileges are not connected to the hardships subordinate groups receive in society. Johnson wants his readers to understand that the entire society is interconnected, the actions of one individual affects another individual in a positive or negative way, therefore we should not separate ourselves from the rest of society because every group is connected to another group. Johnson also argues that those who are in the dominant groups in society should be aware of their privileges and understand that their good fortunes are in the expense of someone else's bad fortunes. People who have the privileges should feel obligated to make the problem of privilege their problem and take initiative to understand how this privilege affects one and not the other and take action to raise awareness that this privilege is everyone's rights because us as individuals in a society are all somehow connected, so one should not have greater opportunity due to their race, skin color, physical abilities, or gender. Johnson argues these points because this issue of privilege is so prevalent in our society and most people are not aware that simple occurrences such as being able to pay with a credit card without being asked several times for identification is a privilege, but it is something that oppressed groups have to deal with. We as a society need to all be on the same page in regards to all the issues that is currently occurring in our society.
If the author were to rewrite this article they should provide the readers with a prediction as to how we can transform our society by being more aware of these privileges that some have and some do not. How can we as a society transform our thoughts, actions, and behaviors so that these issues that should be intuitive to us to resolve disappear from our society. I feel that these are important to address because most of the time we just simply talk about our issues but how can we realistically transform these ways of thinking from the grass root so that in the next generations to come, these issues are no longer prevalent.
How systemic racism entangles all police officers – even black cops
ReplyDeleteIt seems that as an institution, the police force has shaped officers to be biased against black men, whether it is the police force’s intention or not. German Lopez argues that by having police officers canvas poor communities with higher black populations, in combination with having officers reach certain quotas on arrests, biases are being created towards black men. Even though black men are not any more likely to sell or use drugs than white men, nearly three black men are arrested for drug related crimes for every white man. By forcing cops to bring in a certain amount of revenue from tickets, cops are more likely to ticket for petty misdemeanors. Rich neighborhoods are not canvased as much, so even though the levels of minor infractions may be the same, cops are going to be heavily biased against black people. These external factors create a setting in which cops expect black people to be unlawful, and this helps to develop institutional racism.
I think a big part of the story is untold here, and I think it would be interesting to read about the effects of the private prison industry on the high drug arrest rate among black men. While the police department does target black men for misdemeanors, that doesn’t completely explain away the heavy targeting of black men for drug crimes. There is a lot of money to be made by prisons for drug crimes, and so I think cops aren’t just inherently racist. There is a heavy economic incentive to target black people. Breaking into homes without warrants has become a major problem, and these breaches of constitutional rights are larger than just misdemeanor violations. I think it would be interesting to see statistics on the arrest rates of black women to white women as well. If it were a different ratio than the men, I think it could be interesting to explore the reasons why, whether the gender roles are different in black communities, or if police departments are just targeting black men.
I agree with you, I think it would be interesting to explore the gender roles in this situation because it seems that all the violence is targeted towards men. This reminds me of the documentary we watched in class in regards to violence and how society has made it natural for men to be aggressive because it portrays their masculinity. Media has taught us men are and should be violent otherwise they are not men so even if the population of violent women increases in neighborhoods it is not as glorified as men because women are supposed to be delicate and naive. I also think it is interesting that media only focuses on crime in lower class neighborhoods as if the rich have nothing to do with the reality of the poor. As a society, every individual contributes to the life of another individual whether it is to enhance or limit their life. Therefore, when we say "poor" or "rich" neighborhoods they are the consequence of one another. I think it would be interesting to see the crime rate in "rich" neighborhoods and analyze any correlation between the two neighborhoods.
ReplyDelete