University of Cincinnati

Mid-Term Examination

Troy Eugene Abele

Sociology of Race: Honors (SOC 3704)

Dr. Earl Wright II

4 March 2019
 Question A-1

In order to understand the impact of Christianity on racism in America, it is important to

first take a look at how it shaped views on Africans dating back to the Middle Ages. During this

time, the Church held a great deal of power over European society, with its ideas and

proclamations often upheld as law. A deep devotion to religion caused many Europeans to view

non-Christians as problematic or in many cases, evil. Because of the lack of contact between

Europeans and Africans, there arose great uneasiness about the origin of these people, as well as

their black-tinted skin, often associated with evil. An explanation for this difference in skin tone

came with the idea of the “Curse of Ham.” According to Genesis 9:20-27, a curse was placed on

Canaan, son of Ham, because of Ham’s poor treatment of his father, Noah (Fredrickson 29).

People at the time misconstrued this story into the curse being placed on Ham, who was

considered to be the ancestor of all Africans. Before long, this “curse” that was believed to be on

the Africans was being used to explain the blackness of their skin as an outward mark destining

them to be slaves.

The idea of the conversion of foreigners to Christians also played a role in deciding

which groups were slaves, mainly by the Spanish in the 1500’s. In the “discovery” of North

America, explorers came into contact with many groups of Native Americans. Instead of being

demonized as the Africans were, these natives were viewed as being innocent, and being capable

of being converted to Christianity. The ability to be converted gave them additional worth over

the “cursed” Africans. As a result, the Spaniards did not “object to the importation of enslaved

Africans to do the work on the plantations and in the mines,” because the Africans were not able

to be converted (Fredrickson 37). Thus begins the categorization of Africans as less than human,

an idea that persisted long into the 20th century.

 By the 1830s in America, abolitionist groups were becoming more formally organized,

posing a threat to the whole slaveholding system. The “Curse of Ham” was losing its power as a

justification for the slavery of Africans. New ideas were needed to bolster this institutional

racism that could draw in large groups of people without making them feel as if they were going

against their religion. One theory was that blacks actually degenerated from the Adamites, or the

group of white people descended from the biblical figure Adam. Another justification was that

Jesus did not condemn slavery in biblical times, so it could not be considered a sin (Fredrickson

80). With these new ideas, people could support a racist system without having to feel guilt about

being sinners or going against the story of creation in Genesis. This is just another example of

Christianity, taken out of context, helping to legitimize racism to large masses of people.

In addition to using Christianity to defend racism from abolitionists, it was also used in

order to further suppress the slaves themselves. Many slaveholders provided their slaves with

copies of the Bible. However, the book the slaves received was called a “Slave Bible,” a heavily

edited version of the Bible where any instance of the idea of freedom, including the entire book

of Exodus, was removed. For example, the Roman Catholic Bible usually has 73 books, whereas

the Slave Bible was reduced down to segments from only 14 of the books (Katz). This process

gave rise to an idea known as religious fatalism, where African Americans focused on the idea of

redemption after death because of poor conditions they endured on Earth. Even after

emancipation, many had a lack of agency in fighting back against oppressors because they had

been force-fed the idea that they would be rewarded in Heaven as long as they continued to

suffer on Earth. This was noted by W.E.B Du Bois in his The Souls of Black Folk. He writes that

“the Negro, losing the joy of this world, eagerly seized upon the offered conceptions of the next;

the avenging Spirit of the Lord enjoining patience in this world” (Du Bois 120).
 Like in America, the racial hatred against Jews draws it roots from medieval Europe.

European Christians have always had some sort of distrust or resentment towards Jews, mainly

because of the core beliefs of their religions. Christians considered Jews to be somehow

connected to the crucifixion of Jesus because of their ancestors’ unwillingness to convert when

Jesus made his appearance among them (Fredrickson 18). At first, the harsh feelings towards

Jews were directed more or less at their religious identity, as opposed to their race or ethnicity.

Because of this fact, these early discriminatory ideals lack the necessary components to make

them true racial biases. They do, however, lay the groundwork for the transition from religious to

racial persecution.

The next few centuries can be accurately described with the frustration-aggression theory,

which involves one group being blamed for another’s lack of success, with the addition of

violence against said group. Jews constantly found themselves being blamed for many crises that

occurred in Europe, from the collapse of economies, to the loss of WW1, to even the Black

Plague. Christians used these issues as justification for their violence against Jews, often

massacring tens of thousands in the name of God. Around the 13th century, Jews were even

accused of associating and plotting with Satan himself. It was at this time where Jews began to

be looked down on not just for their religion, but because of the belief that people of their

ethnicity were evil, and were actively working against Christians. Christians in power sought

new situations to blame on Jews, much in the same way that American slaveholders actively

sought new Christian-aligning ideas with which to justify their institutionalized, racist practices.

The main difference is that in Germans did not seek to capture or restrict the movement of the

Jews, but to drive them out of their land, and make them another group’s problem.
 Christianity was used as a means for promoting anti-Semitism into the 20th century.

Many German Protestant churches labeled themselves as “storm troopers of Jesus Christ.” The

Nationalist Socialist Party saw an opportunity to further its racist ideals and united many German

Protestants into a national Church. This new Church was realigned with Nazi ideals, including

the official classification of Christians/Jews by race instead of religion. Many non-Aryan clergy

were forced out of their positions, and Church leaders that did not agree with Nazi ideals were

thrown into camps or imprisoned (Sigward). With these changes, Christianity took on a key role

in the 1930’s – 40’s in the racial persecution of Jews.

As opposed to Germany and America, the role of Christianity in racial persecution in

South Africa is not as openly discussed. The justification for apartheid rule comes more from

political reasons, such as defending South African ethnic groups against the “Red Scare” of

Communism (Fredrickson 133). However, in order to justify their institutional racism in all

sectors of society, white leaders needed the support of Christianity and its followers. The “Curse

of Ham” was simply too outdated and weak to justify racial oppression of this scale. Similarly to

early 19th century America, theologians quickly began scouring Scripture for any stories or

verses that could be twisted enough to offer “support” for the case of apartheid. The search found

a multitude of verses and stories that were combined to form an argument. The Reformed Church

of South Africa argued that according to the story of the Tower of Babel, the separation of

different cultural and linguistic groups was God’s will, and any attempt to integrate different

groups was seen as sinful. Support was also drawn from Acts 17:26, stating that each nation in

history has appointed times in history that it should exist and marked boundaries that it should

not cross. South African theologians believed that apartheid policies were pleasing to God

because they were rooted in Scripture (Giles). These two ideas fit in perfectly with the völkisch
ideology that had already sprung up in South Africa. This ideology’s main argument is that each

culture is unique and can only reach its full potential if kept isolated. In the case of South Africa,

though, isolation meant inequality at the expense of the black ethnic groups residing there.
 Question B-1

It is easy to recognize in today’s society that those that have economic control carry

political control, and vice versa. With money, one can influence governmental legislation,

support a candidate, or personally run for office. Likewise, groups that are in charge influence

policy that affect who can make money, as well as who has access to economic resources.

However awful one may view the current capitalist system, it is still a wise decision to seek to

advance oneself in the current system while advocating for change. W.E.B. Du Bois understands

all of these points as he communicates his ideas about capitalism.

In The Souls of Black Folk, Du Bois makes a broad comparison between the bustling city

of Atlanta, Georgia and the Greek mythological story of Atalanta. In the story, Atalanta loses a

footrace because her competitor places golden apples along the path. She gets so distracted by

the lure of the gold that she ultimately places its importance above winning the race. Du Bois

fears capitalism is having a very similar effect on African Americans. His worry is that African

Americans will put so much effort into gaining wealth that they will lose sight of the greater

goal, political and social change. He writes, “What if the Negro people be wooed from a strife of

righteousness, from a love of knowing, to regard dollars as the be-all and end-all of life?” (Du

Bois 50). Du Bois acknowledges that while accumulating wealth would benefit black families,

no formal change to the system would be made until it was forced; and the key to such a political

fight was the mass education of African Americans.

Du Bois also makes his opinion of capitalism known in his critique of another prominent

black leader of the period, Booker T. Washington. As opposed to investing in higher education

for African Americans in an attempt to bring social and political change, Washington proposes
that African Americans “concentrate all their energies on industrial education, the accumulation

of wealth, and the conciliation of the South” (Du Bois 30). His idea of alleviating black suffering

through immediate economic gain comes at a cost of political power, civil rights, and the higher

education of black youth.

Du Bois points out some of the fundamental flaws of Washington’s plan, mainly with its

dependence on capitalism. First, Washington’s plan involved investing black labor into the very

same capitalist system that kept African Americans in slavery for so many years. White leaders

and business owners knew that they could get away with overcharging blacks for the tools they

need to do their jobs, as well as for food and clothing. Often, African Americans would pay so

much for their supplies that the money they were earning was not enough to lift them out of their

current financial situations. Second, even if black workers were to attend industrial schools and

become well qualified to take jobs other than working in the fields, they could not defend their

rights with the competitive labor market of the time. This particular critique of capitalism Du

Bois brings up hinges on the theory of a split labor market. This theory states that when two or

more ethnic or racial groups compete for the same jobs, employers will tend to choose the group

that they can pay the least, as is seen in capitalism. The more dominant group will, in turn,

antagonize the lower-priced group in order to drive them away as competition. In this case, when

millions of slaves were freed, some attempted to seek jobs in predominantly white industries.

Afraid of competition, the white workers turned violent towards the freedmen. Du Bois sums up

the whole idea, writing, “the ignorant Southerner hates the Negro, the workingmen fear his

competition” (Du Bois 34).

Du Bois critique of capitalism can also be seen not only by describing the negative

effects of capitalism on African Americans, but the positive impacts of more socialist programs.
He focuses mainly on the Freedmen’s Bureau and the benefits it has given freed slaves directly

after the Civil War. Du Bois comments that the Freedmen’s Bureau is “one of the great

landmarks of political and social progress” in the history of civilization (Du Bois 14). Through

its lifetime, this organization, created by the government, helped to aid newly freed slaves

through the form of hospital care, finding work, providing land, food and clothing, and keeping

order. What Du Bois regards as its crowning achievement, though, is its establishment of free

primary schools for African Americans throughout the South. This type of rapid advancement in

the conditions of freed slaves would not have occurred on this scale if it were to rely solely on

the free reign of a capitalist system. African Americans did not possess the needed resources

themselves, and relying on charity would not have provided the organization needed to keep

such a system running.

 Question C-2

It is important to note that one’s race is not merely a physical indicator of a certain group

one belongs to, with defined characteristics, but rather a social construct that constantly redefines

itself with regard to actions of individuals within that race. Many early societies had no concept

of “race” whatsoever, and any distinction between groups of people was made on the basis of

place of residence or political involvement (Fredrickson 17). However, as time went on,

distinctions began to be made that helped to shape the white identity into what it is today.

The beginning of the formulation of race as a distinguishing concept came with the rise

of scientific racism in the 18th century. With the Enlightenment came a more secular way of

thinking, along with the desire to learn more about the natural world and how we fit into it. Early

attempts at classification by figures such as Carl Linnaeus resulted in the recording of proposed

differences between Asians, Africans, Europeans, and American Indians. For example, he wrote

that Europeans were “governed by laws” whereas Africans were “governed by caprice”

(Fredrickson 56). Looking back, the transition between this scientific racism and classification

by skin color was could no be unexpected, as skin color was as easy identifier for the general

region a person descended on. As people began to internalize the ideas that scientific racism

neatly presented, preconceived notions about groups of people began to map themselves onto

perceived differences in skin color.

The division between races was helped along by the distinction between those who were

free, and those that were deemed as slaves. The Naturalization Act of 1790 granted, and limited,

citizenship in the U.S. to all free whites. As such, terms such as “white,” and “free” became

almost interchangeable (Fredrickson 54). Because one had to be white to free, anybody that had
free citizenship was considered white. This generalization held up well enough, that is, until

world events brought large numbers of immigrants from different parts of Europe. Ethnicities

such as the Irish, Jews, or Slavic groups received the benefits of “whiteness” because they were

free, but were considered part of white sub-groups that still faced some discrimination by the

Anglo-Saxons that took a dominant position in the hierarchy (Gerber 440). By the turn of the

century, the problem most of these sub-groups had was making it into the country in the first

place. The Immigration Act of 1882 sought to exclude these “undesirable” sub-groups without

excluding certain regions of Europe as a whole. This was usually enforced by inspectors that

picked out people at the border that looked poor, ugly, had the capacity for criminality, or any

other quality that would render them unable to contribute to the U.S. economy (Kelker).

In the early 1900s there came a shift in political that worked in favor of these sub-groups.

In order to counter the large number of black votes the Republican Party was gaining, the

Democratic sought to unite the Anglo-Saxons and the less desirable white sub-groups into one,

singular “white identity.” By focusing on the similarities between these groups as opposed to

their differences, the Democrats made the sub-groups feel included and proud to promote an

identity that brought them closer to the top of the hierarchy. Consequently, the African

Americans were being painted as the ultimate enemy of this new “white identity,” furthering the

division between these two groups by skin color alone.

The story of the process by which “whites” became “whites” can be summed up by the

theory of social distance. This theory involves two groups that regard each other with some form

of “otherness.” The larger the social distance between two groups, the less understanding that

exists between them. In the case of the “white identity,” when forces in the scientific and

political worlds categorized and ranked different groups of people, it create a divide in
civilizations that originally did not see “race” as a concept. Social distance existed between the

Anglo-Saxons, white sub-groups, and African Americans. As the gap between the Anglo-Saxons

and white sub-groups was not as large, it was a lot easier for these groups to coexist without

widespread conflict. Democratic took advantage of this small gap, seeking to close this small

gap, creating a singular “white identity” that exists today.

 Works Cited

Du Bois, W.E.B. The Souls of Black Folk. Dover, 2015.

Fredrickson, George M. Racism: A Short History. Princeton University Press, 2015.

Giles, Kevin. “Justifying Injustice with the Bible: Apartheid.” CBE International, 20 Apr. 2016,

www.cbeinternational.org/blogs/justifying-injustice-bible-apartheid.

Gerber, David A. “Caucasians Are Made and Not Born: How European Immigrants Became White

People.” Reviews in American History, vol. 27, no. 3, 1999, pp. 437–443. JSTOR,

www.jstor.org/stable/30031083.

Katz, Brigit. “Heavily Abridged 'Slave Bible' Removed Passages That Might Encourage

Uprisings.” Smithsonian.com, Smithsonian Institution, 4 Jan. 2019,

www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/heavily-abridged-slave-bible-removed-passages-might-

encourage-uprisings-180970989/.

Kelkar, Kamala. “How a Shifting Definition of 'White' Helped Shape U.S. Immigration

Policy.” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service, 16 Sept. 2017, www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/white-

u-s-immigration-policy.

Sigward, Daniel. Holocaust and Human Behavior. Facing History and Ourselves, 2017, c.

https://www.facinghistory.org/holocaust-and-human-behavior/chapter-5/protestant-churches-

and-nazi-state.