minority group
minority group Since the 1930s this term has been applied to social groups that are oppressed or stigmatized on the basis of racial, ethnic, biological, or other characteristics. Louis Wirth, for example, defines a minority group as ‘a group of people who, because of their physical or cultural characteristics, are singled out from the others in the society in which they live for differential and unequal treatment and who therefore regard themselves as objects of collective discrimination’. However, seen in these terms, a minority group could in fact constitute a numerical majority in any society–for example Blacks in South Africa. It might be more useful, therefore, to distinguish between groups which are actually a minority in numbers and those which are marginal in terms of their access to power. The study of minorities has recently been linked to the study of deviance, exclusion, labelling, stigma, racism, the authoritarian personality, homophobia, and sexism (all of which are given separate entries in this dictionary). See also MARGINALIZATION.
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Minority , The term minority group and its opposite, majority group, have been widely used both among social scientists and the general public in recent decades… Ludwig Uhland , Mendelssohn, (Jakob Ludwig) [Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy] (b Hamburg, 1809; d Leipzig, 1847). Ger. composer, pianist, organist, and conductor. Grands… Owens & Minor, Inc. , Owens & Minor, Inc.
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BUSINESS, MINORITY. The term "minority business" refers to businesses owned by members of racial or ethnic minority groups. Throug… Peer Group , peer group A set of individuals who, sharing certain common characteristics such as age, ethnicity, or occupation, perceive themselves and are recogn… Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff , Rachmaninov, Sergei (Vasilyevich) (b Semyonovo, Starorussky, 1873; d Beverly Hills, Calif., 1943). Russ. composer, pianist, and conductor (Amer. cit.…
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minority group