book White by Law

Laney's Book: "White by Law"

Laney examines how race is constructed socially and, in particular, legally in his 2006 book White by Law. The author illustrates how courts arrived at their conclusions about whiteness and non-whiteness in American society. Because the courts determined that petitioners from Mexico and Armenia were white but those from other places were not, he thinks that there were racial double standards in place. In addition, Laney notes that because of the colourblind white majority, the present rules on race have given rise to unsettling racial ideas that perpetuate injustice. Additionally, the author explores the new racial paradigm and clarifies how it has influenced the degree to which whites and non-whites differ from one another. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to show how racial ambiguity and racial double standards exists at work with diverse groups of people.

The Myth of the Model Minority

The myth of the model minority assumes that certain members of the society achieve a higher degree of social and economic success than the rest of the average population (Chou and Feagin 15). Because of their notable success in schools and their careers, many people view Asian-Americans as a "model minority" but what they never realize is that this group of people is constantly stressed by racism in America (Chou and Feagin 19). The type of racial discrimination and stereotyping experienced by Asian-Americans is also evident at work and other public arenas. For instance, racial ambiguity occurs at the workplaces because of the difficulties in defining one's race. As a result, people stereotype and insinuate certain things about their workmates. Moreover, there also exists different provisions for certain groups of people at the workplace than for others.

Racial Ambiguity and Double Standards at Work

In summary, racial ambiguity and racial double standards occur at the workplaces because of the notion that certain groups of people are immune to the challenges faced by other minority groups. Therefore, it is important to implement policy measures that can improve the lives of minority groups.

Works Cited

Chou, Rosalind S., and Joe R. Feagin. Myth of the model minority: Asian Americans facing racism. Routledge, 2015.

Lopez, Ian Haney. White by Law: The Legal Construction of Race. New York: New York University Press, 2006.