Discrimination in an Unequal World

Edited by Miguel Angel Centeno and Katherine S. Newman

Finds that education is the new means by which the world creates social hierarchies
Includes new analyses of the effect of race in South Africa and Brazil, gender in Japan, and caste in India

Discrimination in an Unequal World

Edited by Miguel Angel Centeno and Katherine S. Newman

Description

Is globalization making our world more equal, or less? Proponents of globalization argue that it is helping and that in a competitive world, no one can afford to discriminate except on the basis of skills. Opponents counter that globalization does nothing but provide a meritocratic patina on a consistently unequal distribution of opportunity. Yet, despite the often deafening volume of the debate, there is surprisingly little empirical work available on the extent to which the process of globalization over the past quarter century has had any effect on discrimination. Tackling this challenge, Discrimination in an Unequal World explores the relationship between discrimination and unequal outcomes in the appropriate geographical and historical context. Noting how each society tends to see its particular version of discrimination as universal and obvious, the editors expand their set of cases to include a broad variety of social relations and practices. However, since methods differ and are often designed for particular national circumstances, they set the much more ambitious and practical goal of establishing a base with which different forms of discrimination across the world can be compared. Derived from a broad array of methods, the book draws many important lessons on the new means by which the world creates social hierarchies, the democratization of inequality, and the disappearance of traditional categories.

Discrimination in an Unequal World

Edited by Miguel Angel Centeno and Katherine S. Newman

Preface
Part I: Studying Global Discrimination
1. Discrimination in an Unequal World, Miguel Angel Centeno
2. Reflections on Globalization, Discrimination, and Affirmative Action, Thomas Weisskopf
3. Measuring Discrimination, Devah Pager
Part II: Case Studies
4. Racial and Class Discrimination in Assessments of Desert in Post-Apartheid Cape Town, Jeremy Seekings
5. Race and Trust in a Segmented Society, Justine Burns
6. Race and Opportunity in the Transition from School to Higher Education in South Africa, Michael Cosser
7. Class, Race, and Social Mobility in Brazil, Carlos Antonio Costa Ribeiro
8. Trends of Sex Discrimination in Japan, 1965-2000: The Gender Gap in Wage and the 'Marriage Bar', Kunihiro Kimura
9. Male-Female Wage Differentials in Japan, Koyo Miyoshi
10. Roadblocks at the High End: The Role of Caste in Post-University Employment, Katherine Newman and Ashwini Deshpande
11. The Language of Globalization: Meritocracy, Productivity and the Persistence of Caste-Based Stereotypes among Indian Employers, Katherine S. Newman and Surinder S. Jodhka
12. Caste is not Past: The Persistence of Discrimination in India's Formal Labor Market, Paul Attewell and Sukhadeo Thorat
13. The Price of Globalization: Wage Penalties and Caste Inequality in Liberal India, Paul Attewell and S. Madheswaran

Discrimination in an Unequal World

Edited by Miguel Angel Centeno and Katherine S. Newman

Author Information

Miguel Angel Centeno is Professor of Sociology and International Affairs at Princeton University.

Katherine S. Newman is the James Knapp Dean of the Krieger School of the Arts and Sciences at Johns Hopkins University

Contributors:

Paul Attewell, Professor of Sociology, Graduate Center, CUNY
Justine Burns, Associate Professor, School of Economics, University of Cape Town, South Africa
Michael Cosser, Chief Research Specialist in the Education, Science and Skills Development research programme, Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC), South Africa
Carlos A. Costa Ribeiro, Professor of Sociology and Director of Graduate Studies, Instituto Universitário de Pesquisas do Rio de Janeiro (IUPERJ); Professor of Sociology at Universidade Estadual do Rio de Janeiro (UERJ)
Ashwini Deshpande, Professor of Economics, Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi, India
Surinder S. Jodhka, Professor of Sociology, Centre for the Study of Social System, School of Social Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University, India
Kunihiro Kimura, Professor of Behavioral Science and Member, Center for the Study of Social Stratification and Inequality (CSSI), Tohoku University, Japan
S.Madheswaran, Professor, Centre for Economic Studies and Policy, Institute for Social and Economic Change, India
Koyo Miyoshi, Researcher, Global Center of Excellence Program, Graduate School of Economics, Keio University
Devah Pager, Associate Professor of Sociology and Faculty Associate of Office of Population Research, Princeton University
Jeremy Seekings, Professor of Political Studies and Sociology, University of Cape Town
Thomas E. Weisskopf, Professor of Economics, University of Michigan

Discrimination in an Unequal World

Edited by Miguel Angel Centeno and Katherine S. Newman

Reviews and Awards

"A major entry in the study of contemporary social inequality. These essays provide a critical base for establishing what is general about discrimination and what is contextually or culturally dependent. From the politics of affirmative action and immigration, to gender barriers, to complex color hierarchies and rationales for exclusion, Discrimination in an Unequal World maps the current logic, patterns, and dynamics of bias in an increasingly economically interconnected global system. I highly recommend this volume to scholars of ethnicity, race, gender and class inequality."--Lawrence D. Bobo, W.E.B. Du Bois Professor of the Social Sciences, Harvard University

"Sharp inequalities are basic features of global integration. While some can be seen in global statistics, more require detailed analysis of specific places, local markets, and economic niches. This impressive book brings a troubling but important reality into clear focus, and addresses the challenge of comparable measurement together with the complexities of case studies."--Craig Calhoun, President, Social Science Research Council