A comparative look at how discrimination is experienced by stigmatized
groups in the United States, Brazil, and Israel
Racism is a common occurrence for members of marginalized groups around
the world. Getting Respect illuminates their experiences by comparing
three countries with enduring group boundaries: the United States,
Brazil and Israel. The authors delve into what kinds of stigmatizing or
discriminatory incidents individuals encounter in each country, how they
respond to these occurrences, and what they view as the best
strategy--whether individually, collectively, through confrontation, or
through self-improvement--for dealing with such events.
This deeply collaborative and integrated study draws on more than four
hundred in-depth interviews with middle- and working-class men and women
residing in and around multiethnic cities--New York City, Rio de
Janeiro, and Tel Aviv--to compare the discriminatory experiences of
African Americans, black Brazilians, and Arab Palestinian citizens of
Israel, as well as Israeli Ethiopian Jews and Mizrahi (Sephardic) Jews.
Detailed analysis reveals significant differences in group behavior:
Arab Palestinians frequently remain silent due to resignation and
cynicism while black Brazilians see more stigmatization by class than by
race, and African Americans confront situations with less hesitation
than do Ethiopian Jews and Mizrahim, who tend to downplay their
exclusion. The authors account for these patterns by considering the
extent to which each group is actually a group, the sociohistorical
context of intergroup conflict, and the national ideologies and other
cultural repertoires that group members rely on.
Getting Respect is a rich and daring book that opens many new
perspectives into, and sets a new global agenda for, the comparative
analysis of race and ethnicity.
