HUMANS have been dividing themselves into groups since time immemorial. Race was first used to distinguish one human from another. Race is based on physical differences, or rather I should say prejudice. Physical differences are hardly a basis for proving the superiority of one man over another. Just because someone has a bigger head, it doesn’t make them better than someone with a small one.
Ridiculous as it may sound, the size of the skull was the earliest basis for race. The Caucasians (inhabitants of Europe, Middle East, North Africa and India) had the biggest skulls while the Ethiopians (sub-Saharan Africa) had the smallest and were the least capable. Clearly enough, the founder of this concept, Dr Morton, was European.
Today’s geneticists would agree that humans cannot be divided into groups on the basis of their biological make-up. There is such great genetic variation between individuals that it is impossible to divide the human race into groups based on physical characteristics. I think the whole idea of distinct races is a justification for the subjugation of one people by another.
Fairly recently, the great cultural diversity and large-scale migration has led to people dividing themselves on the basis of ethnic background. The word ethnicity came to be used in its present sense in the 19th Century. Earlier, it implied pagan. So we see the concept of ethnicity as a fairly new one.
An ethnic group is culturally distinctive. So, it would be right to say that Asians and Europeans are different ethnic groups, right? Do all Asians have the same culture? For an Asian, the answer would be ‘no’. For an outsider the answer would be ‘yes’. I don’t think I have a culture even closely similar to someone in Shanghai or Israel. In the US, the word Asian conjures up images of the countless wars against the Chinese, Japanese and the Vietnamese. So, Asian means Chinese-looking. In the UK, Asian reminds the Brits of their colonial past and tandoori chicken, not to mention the large Pakistani workers in the textile factories of Bradford.
Only recently have Pakistanis been identified as a distinct ethnic group, more as Muslims rather than as Sindhis and Punjabis. The people of each province in Pakistan tend to view themselves as separate nations — completely different from other groups.
Nationality tends to be based on perceived differences. Biologically and culturally-speaking, Indians and Pakistanis are quite similar. Pakistan was founded on the basis of religion. Should only Muslims be allowed to live in Pakistan? I don’t think so. Should all religions have freedom of practice in Pakistan? Even Wicca and Satan worship? No, definitely not!
Nations are based on locality. A certain homeland is a symbolic homeland of a group. The myths and historic events of the area are incorporated into the country’s history as national symbols. As humans develop intellectually, they devise new ways of dividing themselves into groups. They try to come with more fool-proof means to dominate other humans. Can Pakistan ever be independent of the USA? Or for that matter, can any other nation stand up to America, with the exception of a few.
Racially speaking, are we Caucasian and very similar to Europeans? I think the Europeans would think otherwise. I guess this is what led them to devise ways to separate the likes of us from them. Culture was an easy way to do this. Next, they wanted to restrict us to our areas and not come into theirs, and nationalism came about.
Race, ethnicity and nationality are nothing but social constructs. They have been used as tools for domination for longer than we can remember. It was a proud moment when rich Roman walked into the market place, with his army of slaves behind him. The slaves also included Greeks, who by no means were inferior to the Romans. Slavery was just a way of getting back at them.
If our concepts of identity are socially constructed, then what is our identity? Are we Caucasians? Are we part of the so-called Muslim ethnic group? Amazingly, the Westerners think all Muslims have the same culture. I don’t think we have a lot in common with a Chinese Muslim. My sociology teacher told us of a similar situation when he was studying at Brandeis University in the USA. The college was having a fashion show where all ethnic groups would be represented. He was asked to come wearing a Muslim dress that left him wondering what a Muslim dress was. He didn’t go to the show.
If there weren’t so many superficial divisions of humans such as race, all of us would be much happier. We first need to our common identity of being humans, that is yet to be accomplished, then move on to more complex ideas of stratification of a single kind.
