Running Head: SUBORDINATE AND DOMINANT GROUPS

Subordinate and Dominant Groups Vanessa Charles Georgia State University

SUBORDINATE AND DOMINANT GROUPS

There are a variety of Social identity groups that describe my background. Subordinate groups are people who fit in a lower or inferior class. The three subordinate groups that I identify with consist of being an African American, women and a college student. Being under this group comes with a lot of responsibility. Dominant groups are people who hold authority and power over another group. The dominant groups that I identify with include being a heterosexual, a middle class American and a young adult.

Subordinate Groups
I was born to two parents from Haiti. I am also half Dominican making me African American with Haitian decent. I consider myself a minority aside from my parents who were not born in the United States. I have experienced many things that have shaped me into the women I am today. Growing up I felt that Caucasian Americans were the dominant race. There were instances during my adolescent years where I noticed my Caucasian classmates were favored more then myself. I have also experienced racial profiling by grade school teachers who blamed me for stealing classmates belongings. As an African American there were many experiences where I felt belittled because of my race. I felt like I had to work harder then Caucasians who were presented better opportunities. I believe Caucasian Americans are socially dominant to African Americans. This makes African Americans fit under the subordinate group. Although as an African American I have experiences social inequality, I have been involved in similar situations from just being a woman. Women are faced with many day-to-day challenges that most men do not have. This can arguably make men dominant. I am a woman, which makes me subordinate to a man. As an adolescent I never noticed the way men were dominant to women. I was taught equality is when all men and women are equal to one other. As I got older I noticed how women and men were treated different. When it came to situations such as opportunities that were presented to them. After graduating High school, I entered the workforce where I had first hand experience of men being treated better then myself. We live in a male dominated society where men are favored more in politics, the workforce, and business. It is shown that men make more money, get chosen for promotions, and are given more benefits then women. Differences in qualifications of men and women no longer provide a valid explanation for why men earn significantly more than women for equal work Denmark, German and Brodsky (2010). A lot of males that Ive worked with exhibit an alpha male mentality where they think they are always right about everything. The media portrays women as being emotionally unstable who cannot handle simple tasks. Men are shown to be strong, confident, and willing to handle any task thrown at them. Even though being a women comes with challenges, being a student can be just as challenging. The life of a student comes with many tasks that can affect a persons mental state, financial standing, and time. The last four years have been very difficult as far as being a fulltime working student. I categorize students as a subordinate group. who has to work hard under a dominant group called Higher education institutions. As a fulltime student I am forced to work a side job to afford everything that comes with being a college student. Since the first day of grade school, I was told that if I did not go to college I could not be successful. I took comments like that as motivation to push through school so that I can go to college, graduate, and become successful. Higher education holds a higher power over me as a student because I am spending

SUBORDINATE AND DOMINANT GROUPS thousands of dollars that I do not have. The life of a student can be rough but I also identify under being a heterosexual woman.

Dominate groups
A dominant group I identify with is being a Heterosexual woman. At a young age I was always taught that men and women belong together. My immigrant parents always taught me that homosexual lifestyle is wrong. In high school I saw many of my classmates get harassed, teased, and bullied because of their sexual orientation. Most people kept their sexual orientation secret from others due to the possible harassment caused by peers. In society, Homosexual men and women are identified as a subordinate group due to the negative responses they receive among their peers. Homosexuals receive a vast amount of discrimination because of their sexuality. As a dominant Heterosexual I am culturally accepted by others. I can get married to a man without being judged and mocked. There are many laws that keep homosexual couples from receiving the same benefits that heterosexual couples get. I do not agree with the treatment that Men and Women get because of their orientation. Though being sexually different, being a middle class American can be very beneficial. Being a middle class American comes with a lot of advantages. Growing up I was blessed to have two parents with fulltime jobs. My family wasnt rich but we were comfortable. My parents were able to provide for both sister and I. If my parents were ever going through problems with money, I never knew because they were very good at hiding it. I was able to live in a middle class community where I attended public school. I was able to attain my high school diploma and attend college. My parents were always able to spend quality time with both my sister and I. This helped influence us stay out of trouble. Living as a middle class American shaped me into the hard working person I am now. Low income Americans would fit under a subordinate group within middle class Americans. Most low income Americans work for minimum wage and still fit under the poverty line. A lot of low-income families are single parent households with the parent usually being the mother raising her children on her own. Children of one parent households usually have behavior problems because they do not have the second parent to discipline them. I grew up in a two-parent household making my childhood different then a low-income family. Living in a middle class neighborhood and being able to attend a safe public school are reasons why I am dominate to a low-income person. Students from middleclass to upper-middle-class communities continue to pull ahead of students from other backgrounds Demerath, P., Lynch, J., Milner, H., Peters, A., and Davidson, M. (2010). Being a middle class American comes with fortunate circumstances; though being a young adult has its own benefits. I identify as a young adult. There are many advantages that come with being a young adult. The first advantage is being looked at first in a job interview. I am new to the job world and employers are more likely to choose a young candidate then an older one. A second advantage I have is my health. I have the energy to stay busy as well as take care of everyday tasks. Older people usually get tired more a lot easy then younger adults do. The subordinate group that fits under my Dominate group is Elderly adults. Most retired people go through depression because they are away from their loved ones. Although a young adult, a young adult I have a lot to look forward to as far as my future occupation and other things I have planned.

SUBORDINATE AND DOMINANT GROUPS References Denmark, F. L., German, S. T., & Brodsky, J. B. (2013). The psychological dynamics of sex discrimination in the workplace. In M. A. Paludi (Ed.) , Psychology for business success, Vol 1Santa Barbara.

Demerath, P., Lynch, J., Milner, H., Peters, A., & Davidson, M. (2010). Decoding success: A middle-class logic of individual advancement in a U.S. suburb and high school. Teachers College Record, 112(12).