Robert E. Park in the context of "Reconciliation (ethnic relations)"

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⭐ Core Definition: Robert E. Park

Robert Ezra Park (February 14, 1864 – February 7, 1944) was an American urban sociologist who is considered to be one of the most influential figures in early U.S. sociology. Park was a pioneer in the field of sociology, changing it from a passive philosophical discipline to an active discipline rooted in the study of human behavior. He made significant contributions to the study of urban communities, race relations and the development of empirically grounded research methods, most notably participant observation in the field of criminology. From 1905 to 1914, Park worked with Booker T. Washington at the Tuskegee Institute. After Tuskegee, he taught at the University of Chicago from 1914 to 1933, where he played a leading role in the development of the Chicago School of sociology.

Park is noted for his work in human ecology, race relations, human migration, cultural assimilation, social movements, and social disorganization He played a large role in defining sociology as a natural science and challenged the belief that sociology is a moral science. He saw sociology as "...a point of view and a method for investigating the processes by which individuals are inducted into and induced to cooperate in some sort of permanent corporate existence, society."

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👉 Robert E. Park in the context of Reconciliation (ethnic relations)

Race relations is a sociological concept that emerged in Chicago in connection with the work of sociologist Robert E. Park and the Chicago race riot of 1919. Race relations designates a paradigm or field in sociology and a legal concept in the United Kingdom. As a sociological field, race relations attempts to explain how racial groups relate to each other. These relations vary depending on historical, social, and cultural context. The term is used in a generic way to designate race related interactions, dynamics, and issues.

In the 1960s, the prevailing understanding of race relations was underdeveloped and was acknowledged by sociologists for its failure to predict the anti-racist struggles. It was critiqued for being explicitly used to give an explanation of violence connected to race. The use of paradigm was criticized for overlooking the power differential between races, implying that the source of violence is disharmony rather than racist power structures. Race relations are divided into positive and negative. Positive or good race relations promote equality, empathy, and inclusivity, while negative race relations generate tension, conflict, and social divisions.

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Robert E. Park in the context of Community areas in Chicago

The city of Chicago is divided into 77 community areas for statistical and planning purposes. Census data and other statistics are tied to the areas, which serve as the basis for a variety of urban planning initiatives on both the local and regional levels. The areas' boundaries do not generally change, allowing comparisons of statistics across time. The areas are distinct from but related to the more numerous neighborhoods of Chicago; an area often corresponds to a neighborhood or encompasses several neighborhoods, but the areas do not always correspond to popular conceptions of the neighborhoods due to a number of factors including historical evolution and choices made by the creators of the areas. As of 2020, Near North Side is the most populous of the areas with over 105,000 residents, while Burnside is the least populous with just over 2,500. Other geographical divisions of Chicago exist, such as the "sides" with origin in the 3 branches of the Chicago River, the 50 wards of the Chicago City Council which undergo redistricting based in population movements, and the parishes of the Roman Catholic Church.

The Social Science Research Committee at the University of Chicago defined the community areas in the 1920s based on neighborhoods or groups of related neighborhoods within the city. In this effort it was led by sociologists Robert E. Park and Ernest Burgess, who believed that physical contingencies created areas that would inevitably form a common identity. Except for the addition of two areas (O'Hare from land annexed by the city in 1956 and Edgewater's separation from Uptown in 1980) and peripheral expansions due to minor annexations, the areas' boundaries have never been revised to reflect change but instead have been kept stable. The areas have become a part of the culture of Chicago, contributing to its perception as a "city of neighborhoods" and breaking it down into smaller regions for easier analysis and local planning. Nevertheless, Park's and Burgess's ideas on the inevitability of physically related areas forming a common bond have been questioned, and the unchanging nature of the areas has at times been seen as analytically problematic with major subsequent changes in some of the areas' urban landscapes, such as the construction of expressways.

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LINKED FROM (PARENTS)
← Community areas in Chicago ← Community areas of Chicago ← Reconciliation (ethnic relations) ← Race relations
LINKS TO (CHILDREN)
Urban sociology → Sociology → Criminology → Booker T. Washington → Tuskegee Institute → University of Chicago → Chicago school (sociology) → Human ecology → Race relations → Human migration → Assimilation (sociology) → Social movements → Social disorganization theory →