Communication Issues of Interracial Friendships

¶ … communication issues of interracial friendships and interracial romantic friendships? How best can those issues be resolved?

Orbe & Harris (2008) note that barriers in interracial friendships or romantic relationships are frequently absent from same-race friendships. These barriers usually include stereotypes that are held prior to the beginning of the relationship. Laudone (2006) states that to "unlearn stereotypes and racial ignorance" is a crucial step towards developing interracial intimacy (p. 1). Therefore, acknowledging and working through stereotyping and prejudice are keys to making interracial friendships and romances work. Negative stereotypes can "make interracial communication impossible, which would most definitely preclude any possibility of any positive interracial interactions and relationships" (Orbe & Harris 2008, p. 137).

Just as stereotypes hamper the development of successful, long lasting interracial friendships, mistrust "by one or both partners" is also a serious problem (Orbe & Harris 2008, p. 138). The mistrust that exists between two partners or friends of different races may be due to "long-standing mistrust and suspicion between racial/ethnic groups" as well as "false perceptions of each other that ultimately create barriers to effective, improved interracial communication," (Orbe & Harris 2008, p. 138).

The attitudes and behaviors of peers and family groups also plays a strong role in interracial friendships or interracial romance. Family, peer group, community, and other social groups are all "important social forces in shaping and influencing an individual's choice of who to date," (Laudone 2006, p. 3). In addition to determining who a person might choose to cultivate a friendship or romance with, family and peer group norms also play a role in shaping an interracial relationship that has already been formed. Peer or family pressures can foster -- or prevent -- the breaking apart of an interracial friendship or romance, for example.

Overarching sociological factors that impact interracial friendships and interracial romances include the oppression of a minority culture by a dominant culture and the institutionalization of racism. Types of contact that foster negative or zero interracial contact include mere peripheral contact such as only riding the bus or attending school with those of different race (Orbe & Harris 2008). Institutionalized racism reflects the pattern of paternalism: the dynamic of a dominant culture that systematically subordinates the "other." Cultural pluralism might sound constructive but can also denote a minimum of social interaction between people of different ethnic heritages. (Orbe & Harris 2008). Finally, even within an interracial friendship or marriage, assimilation or amalgamation can be detrimental to long-term relationship health. Assimilation or amalgamation mean that the person from the subordinate culture negates the root identity in favor of the dominant culture (Orbe & Harris 2008).

According to a recent MIT study, "People who are involved in community organizations and activities and who socialize with their co-workers are much more likely to have friends of another race than those who do not," ("MIT study: Workplace, community engagement key to interracial friendship" 2007). Moreover, income and social class impact the decision and ability to cultivate interracial friendships or romance. "People of higher incomes and those with more education were more likely to have more friends overall and to be civic "joiners"...these two factors, in turn, made it more likely that their social circles include people of other racial backgrounds" ("MIT study: Workplace, community engagement key to interracial friendship" 2007). Finally, common sense communications can clear up problems that arise in interracial relationships. The solution to communication breakdowns and barriers is to frankly, openly, and honestly discuss prejudices, fears, stereotypes, and other issues that could be swept under the rug.

2) Define popular culture. How can cultural group portrayals in popular culture forms influence intercultural communication?

Popular culture is difficult to define, but always reflects a system of prevailing social norms. Manifest in popular media such as television, music, sports, and film, popular culture infers both a collective aesthetic and a collection of values and beliefs. Popular culture differs from what was once referred to as "high" culture ("Popular Culture" 2000). High culture distinguished and continues to distinguish itself from popular culture by subordinating the latter. However, a tremendous shift in academia has led to the critique of both "high" and "low" culture and a subsequent merging of the two ("Popular Culture" 2000).

Also known as "mass" culture, popular culture can be considered crude even as it shapes politics and policy ("Popular Culture" 2000). According to Chito Childs & Laudone (2004), popular culture is uniquely responsible for the shaping of values, beliefs and norms surrounding interracial friendships, interracial relationships, and race relations in general. Films that depict interracial couples "tend to reinforce the existing racial hierarchy, rendering interracial relationships problematic," (Chito Childs & Laudone 2004, p. 1). Popular culture is part mirror for social realities and part shaper of those realities.

One exception to the generally negative impact of popular culture on race relations is the breaking down of racial barriers depicted in hip-hop music videos as well as in the popular sports arena (Chito Childs 2009). Interracial friendships and relationships are depicted as being more normative among younger generations in particular (Chito Childs 2009). In an investigation of interracial interactions in South African schools, Dolby (2001) also points out that African-American popular culture icons like Oprah Winfrey, Michael Jordan, and Tupac Shakur have impacted racial identities and relationships. Popular culture affects personal identity formation, and identity construction in turn impacts the development and maintenance of friendships and romantic relationships.