Ethnic studies is an academic discipline dedicated to the study of ethnic minorities. It evolved in the second half of the 20th century partly in response to charges that traditional disciplines such as anthropology, history, English, ethnology, Asian Studies, and orientalism were imbued with an inherently eurocentric perspective. Ethnic Studies tried to remedy this by trying to study minority cultures on their own terms, in their own language, acknowledging their own values. The definition of a minority group can vary, depending on specific context, but generally refers to either a sub-group that does not form either a majority or a plurality of the total population, or a group that, while not necessarily a numerical minority, is disadvantaged or otherwise has less... Anthropology (from the Greek word άνθρωπος, human) consists of the study of humankind (see genus Homo). ... ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Ethnology (greek ethnos: (non-greek, barbarian) people) is a genre of anthropological study, involving the systematic comparison of the folklore, beliefs and practices of different societies. ... This page meets Wikipedias criteria for speedy deletion. ... Orientalism is a British term referring to the study of Near and Far Eastern societies and cultures by Westerners. ... Eurocentrism is the practice, conscious or otherwise, of placing emphasis on European (and, generally, Western) concerns, culture and values at the expense of those of other cultures. ...

In the United States, the discipline of Ethnic Studies evolved out of the civil rights movement in the late 1960s and early 1970s, which saw growing self-awareness and radicalization of minority groups such as African-Americans, Asian Americans, Hispanic Americans (also known as Latinos), and Native Americans. Ethnic Studies departments were established on many campuses and grew to encompass African American Studies, Asian American Studies, Latino/a Studies (also known as Chicano Studies), and Native American Studies. Courses in Ethnic Studies tried to address the criticism that the role of Asian Americans, Blacks, Latinos and Native Americans in American history was undervalued and ignored because of Euro-centric bias. Ethnic Studies also often encompasses issues of gender, class, and sexuality. There are now hundreds of African American, Asian American, and Latino Studies departments in the US, approximately fifty Native American Studies departments, and a small number of comparative Ethnic Studies programs. [1] Civil Rights Movement in the United States, political, legal, and social struggle to gain full citizenship rights for African American and to achieve racial equality. ... Jump to: navigation, search African Americans, also known as Afro-Americans, Black Americans, or simply blacks are an ethnic group in the United States whose ancestors, usually in predominant part, were indigenous to Africa. ... An Asian American is a person of Asian ancestry or origin who was born in or is an immigrant to the United States. ... Hispanic, as used in the United States, is one of several terms used to categorize US citizens, permanent residents and temporary immigrants, whose background hail either from the Spanish-speaking countries of Latin America or relating to a Spanish-speaking culture. ... Jump to: navigation, search // Etimology Latino or Latin is a term common in many Latin languagues (Portuguese, Galician, Asturian, Spanish, Catalan, Occitan, French, Italian, Ladin, Romanian) used to refer to people whose cultural roots come from the Roman Empire, since Rome was located in Lacium, central Italy. ... Native Americans (also Indians, Aboriginal Peoples, American Indians, First Nations, Alaskan Natives, Amerindians, or Indigenous Peoples of America) are the indigenous inhabitants of The Americas prior to the European colonization, and their modern descendants. ... African American studies, or Black studies, is an interdisciplinary academic field devoted to the study of the history, culture, and politics of African Americans. ... // Introduction Asian American Studies is an academic discipline which studies the experience of people of Asian ancestory in America. ... // Introduction Latino/a Studies is an academic discipline which studies the experience of people of Hispanic ancestory in America. ... // Introduction Native American Studies is an academic discipline which studies the experience of people of Native American ancestory in America. ...

While Ethnic Studies has always been opposed by some conservative elements, the rise of the conservative movement in the United States during the 1990s saw the discipline come increasingly under attack. Ethnic Studies was seen to reflect an excess of political correctness, whereby the "traditional values" of Western culture, symbolized by the United States, were being undermined by postmodern relativism. Ethnic Studies, it is argued by critics, promotes "racial separatism", "linguistic isolation" and "racial preference". [2] Political correctness is the alteration of language to redress real or alleged injustices and discrimination or to avoid offense. ... Jump to: navigation, search Postmodernism is a term applied to a wide-ranging set of developments in critical theory, philosophy, architecture, art, literature, and culture, which are generally characterized as either emerging from, in reaction to, or superseding modernism. ... Relativism is the view that the meaning and value of human beliefs and behaviors have no absolute reference. ...

In 2005, a professor of Ethnic Studies at University of Colorado at Boulder, Ward Churchill, came under severe fire for an essay he had written about the September 11, 2001 attacks in which he argued that U.S. foreign policy was partly to blame for the atrocity. Jump to: navigation, search 2005 (MMV) is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Jump to: navigation, search University of Colorado at Boulder The University of Colorado at Boulder (CU or CU–Boulder) is the flagship university of the University of Colorado system. ... Jump to: navigation, search Ward Churchill Ward LeRoy Churchill (born October 2, 1947) is an American writer, activist, and academic. ... Jump to: navigation, search The September 11, 2001 attacks were a series of suicide attacks against the United States conducted on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. ...

Conservative commentators used the Churchill affair to attack Ethnic Studies departments as enclaves of "anti-Americanism" which promote the idea of ethnic groups as "victims" in US society, and not places where serious scholarship is done. "The epistemological nadir of any university is found in the wacky world of ethnic and gender studies: black studies, Africana studies, Chicano studies, Latino studies, Puerto Rican studies, Middle Eastern studies, Native American studies, women's studies, gay and lesbian studies, et al.," wrote columnist Mark Goldblatt in the February 9 online edition of the conservative magazine The National Review. "The suggestion that 'studying' is involved in any of these subjects is laughable. they are quasi-religious advocacy groups whose curricula run the gamut from historical wish fulfillment (the ancient Egyptians were black; the U.S. Constitution was derived from the Iroquois Nation) to political axe grinding (the Israelis are committing genocide against the Palestinians; the U.S. is committing genocide against the people of Cuba)". [3] February 9 is the 40th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... National Review (NR) is a conservative political magazine founded by author William F. Buckley, Jr. ... Jump to: navigation, search Page I of the Constitution of the United States of America Page II of the United States Constitution Page III of the United States Constitution Page IV of the United States Constitution The Syng inkstand, with which the Constitution was signed The Constitution of the United... Jump to: navigation, search The Iroquois Confederacy (Haudenosaunee, also known as the League of Peace and Power) is a group of First Nations/Native Americans. ... Look up Genocide on Wiktionary, the free dictionary Genocide means mass murder of a particular ethnic group. ... Jump to: navigation, search ‹The template below has been proposed for deletion. ...

In face of such attacks, Ethnic Studies scholars are now faced with having to defend the field. "Now, all of a sudden, because of one individual professor we have to undergo this absurd process as a legitimate academic enterprise, and that is grossly unfair," said Carlos Munoz, professor emeritus at the University of California at Berkeley and one of the founders of the discipline. [4] The University of California, Berkeley (also known as Cal, UC Berkeley, UCB, or simply Berkeley) is a prestigious, public, coeducational university situated in the foothills of Berkeley, California to the east of San Francisco Bay, overlooking the Golden Gate and its bridge. ...

Defending the importance of Ethnic Studies for society, Orin Starn, a cultural anthropologist and specialist in Native American studies at Duke University, says: "The United States is a very diverse country, and an advocate would say we teach kids to understand multiculturalism and diversity, and these are tools that can be used in law, government, business and teaching, which are fields graduates go into. It promotes thinking about diversity, globalization, how we do business and how we work with nonprofits." [5] Jump to: navigation, search Duke Chapel Duke University is a prestigious, private university in Durham, North Carolina. ...

External links

• Index of ethnic studies resources
• Asian-Nation: Asian American Studies by C.N. Le, Ph.D.
• "Ethnic-studies divisions across U.S. working to defend their discipline" (Chicano.org, 24 February 2005)