Do certain groups in America excel in certain fields? If so, why? (lawyer, racist)

[GalileoSmith]

Here's a good question for you. Let's say you had three thousand healthy newborn babies. One thousand of the babies were white, one thousand black, and one thousand Asian. They grew up in a hypothetical society were race went completely unnoticed, as though it didn't exist. Thirty years down the road would those babies, now adults, be equally sprinkled throughout that society in all fascets, including vocations, personal interests, etc.?

[miu]

Originally Posted by Clark Park

This is just a generalization, I suppose, but I was always intrigued by the fact that certain specific communities - minority groups, you might say, seem to excel or even dominate in specific fields, occupations, and/or industries.

First of all, let's get one thing clear: this is meant to be a respectful and non-prejudiced inquiry. PLEASE NO BIGOTED, POLITICAL, RACIST or STEREOTYPING RANTS.

Let's honestly discuss how the myriad communities of our land contributed in a positive way, and how they came to specialize in those areas.

A few examples:

• African Americans - professional sports, popular music, entertainment, religion, etc.
• Irish Americans - politics, law, literature, journalism, film and television, etc.
• Gays & Lesbians - fine arts, theater, literature, classical music, etc.
• Jews - business and finance, medicine, higher education, film production, etc.

These few examples represent a racial minority, an ethnic minority, a sexual minority, and a religious minority.

I would like to learn more about other groups, say German-Americans (engineering?), Italian-Americans (Culinary Arts, Opera, Architecture?), etc.

Also, why do you supposed these groups gravitated to these particular fields?

Are my assumptions way off base? Are these really just stereotypes?

I'm here to learn!

There are several different reasons for this social patterns. Culturally, Jewish people and Asians are raised from childhood to be disciplined and work hard at their academics. They also love listening to classical music and more formal arts and music formats. These people usually visit and support museums and symphonic orchestras. Consequently, their children grow up to be adults with a solid academic foundation and the self-discipline to excel in career fields such as medicine and engineering. And their children appreciate the more traditional arts and music.

I think that Irish Americans are culturally encouraged by example and by their families to be leaders, whether it's political or religious. Maybe it's because so many of them are Catholic and some going into priesthood (leading their flocks) and then they have JFK as someone they admire. And I suppose when they go out to their local pubs, many bonds are formed which can lead to future support.

Genetically, African Americans are more athletic in build. Their muscle tissue has more fast-twitch muscle fibers which is good for sprinting, basketball, boxing, etc.[LEFT]
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[M3 Mitch]

Surprised I am the first to remark on the group of Indian people who own a rather large % of US hotels, who all come from the same town or at least region of India. What's up with that anyway?

They would not be so prevalent in the biz if they were not good at it.

[calmdude]

Originally Posted by M3 Mitch

Surprised I am the first to remark on the group of Indian people who own a rather large % of US hotels, who all come from the same town or at least region of India. What's up with that anyway?

They would not be so prevalent in the biz if they were not good at it.

A lot of them are from the state of Gujarat and are known to be good businessmen. I have visited that region a few times and it is booming.

Asian Indians in India have lousy incomes. Asian Indians in the US have among the highest incomes and education - higher than whites. This educated group is different from the hotel group above as it includes Indians from all over India. All are well-educated doctors / engineers/ etc - not too many Apus from Simpsons. They invest a lot of time in their kids' education. The group is more educated and gets higher incomes than most ethnic groups - including whites. But again, this excelling is more because of the advantages the first generation has brought here. Time will tell if subsequent generations are able to keep this up. In a couple of generations, all immigrants probably lose that 'edge'.

[M3 Mitch]

Yeah, I have met quite a few very sharp individuals from India. Not sure if this is because I'm being exposed to the top few individuals from a very large and deep "bench" so to speak, or what, but it's noticable.

Thanks for remembering the state - Gujara.

I have stayed in quite a few Gujara (probably) Indian run hotels, and the hotels did seem to be well run, didn't have any problems with my room.

[calmdude]

Originally Posted by M3 Mitch

Yeah, I have met quite a few very sharp individuals from India. Not sure if this is because I'm being exposed to the top few individuals from a very large and deep "bench" so to speak, or what, but it's noticable.

Thanks for remembering the state - Gujara.

I have stayed in quite a few Gujara (probably) Indian run hotels, and the hotels did seem to be well run, didn't have any problems with my room.

Apologies - state is Gujarat (I needed to add the t). People from that state are called Gujaratis.

And yes, at work, especially if you are in medicine or engineering, you are looking at the top end of a deep pool. I am told that a lot of programmers who came in the mid/late 90s were of lower quality since companies were hiring like crazy then.

[stevo6]

Originally Posted by GalileoSmith

Here's a good question for you. Let's say you had three thousand healthy newborn babies. One thousand of the babies were white, one thousand black, and one thousand Asian. They grew up in a hypothetical society were race went completely unnoticed, as though it didn't exist. Thirty years down the road would those babies, now adults, be equally sprinkled throughout that society in all fascets, including vocations, personal interests, etc.?

That would be interesting. Of course the default answer would be "yes" but how would we really know ?

[stevo6]

There's a lot of myth-making associated with this subject- you can see some within this thread. I want to think that nationalistic or even racial tendencies are a result of some sort of anthropological circumstance. Example: the Swiss are very good at making very refined pieces of machinery, and are famous bankers. Both have something to do with being a small country with limited resources, isolated somewhat by mountains, and surrounded by other larger countries. Efficiency is a resultant national characteristic which leads to a culture of precision and quality. The geography has something to do with its neutrality also which is related to its banking industry, as is the precision idea. I'm not so sure all stereotypes have this kind of anthropology though, be it either mythical or real. Some of it would seem to have been started randomly- and then have become tradition, like the Armenian carpet dealers, or Syrian architectural model makers (in NYC).

[Joy74]

The group with the highest educational levels in the U.S. besides Asians are African immigrants, and their children. They also have high income rates. The negative stereotypes about Black people seem to crash and burn when it come to those directly from Africa, regardless of the region or country they hail from.

[DrummerBoy]

I'm reminded of the old joke:

"What's the diffeence between Heaven & Hell?"

In Heaven, the Italians are the cooks, the Germans are the mechanics, and the British are the police.

In Hell, the British are the cooks, the Italians are the mechanics, and the Germans are the police.