Assignment: Religious and Ethnic Groups Paper Instructions

Part I

Select at least 1 religious and 1 ethnic/racial group not your own from the list below.

• Religious groups (based on http://religions.pewforum.org/pdf/affiliations-all-traditions.pdf)

o Christianity

• Evangelical Protestant
• Mainline Protestant
• Historically Black Churches
• Roman Catholic
• Latter-Day Saints (Mormons)
• Jehovah's Witnesses
• Orthodox (Greek, Eastern)

o Judaism (Orthodox, Conservative, or Reform)
o Buddhism (Theravada or Mahayana)
o Islam (Sunni, Shia, Sufism)
o Hinduism

• Racial/ethnic groups (based on divisions in U.S. Census Bureau documents)

o Asian (Asian descent)
o Black (African descent)
o Hispanic and Latino (South or Central American descent)
o Pacific Islander (Polynesian descent)
o White (European descent)

Part II

Write a 750- to 1,400-word paper in which you consider the following regarding the religious group and racial/ethnic group you selected:

Religious group:

• How does your selected religious group differ from other religious groups (such as in their beliefs, worship practices, or values)?

• What has been the experience of your selected religious group with others that do not share its beliefs or practices?

• In what ways has the religious group you selected contributed to American culture?

• Provide specific examples of prejudice or discrimination your selected religious group has experienced.

• What were the sources of this prejudice or discrimination?

• Does what you've learned about this religious group help you understand it? In what ways?

Racial/ethnic group:

• How does your selected racial/ethnic group differ from other racial/ethnic groups (such as differences in ancestry, language, or culture)?

• What has been your selected group's experience with other groups?

• In what ways has the racial/ethnic group you selected contributed to American culture?

• Identify some specific examples of prejudice or discrimination that your selected group has experienced historically.

• What were the sources of this prejudice or discrimination?

• Does what you've learned about this racial/ethnic group help you understand it? How?

Include the following as part of your conclusion:

• How are the prejudice and discrimination experienced by your selected religious group and racial/ethnic group similar?

• How are they different?

• Can you draw any conclusions about discrimination from this comparison?

Provide citations for all the sources you use.