Bambanci tsakanin canje-canjen "Ƙungiya Marasa Rinjaye"

.<ref name="Unnamed-20240416095643">{{Cite book|title=Race, ethnicity, gender, & class : the sociology of group conflict and change|author=Healey, Joseph F.|others=Stepnick, Andi; O'Brien, Eileen, 1972–|isbn=9781506346946|edition= Eighth |location=Thousand Oaks, California|oclc=1006532841|date=2018-03-02}}</ref> To address this ambiguity, [[Harris Mylonas]] has proposed the term "non-core group", instead of "minority group", to refer to any aggregation of individuals that is perceived as an unassimilated ethnic group (on a linguistic, religious, physical, or ideological basis) by the ruling political elite of a country"<ref name="Unnamed_2-20240416095643">{{cite book |last=Mylonas |first=Harris |title=The Politics of Nation-Building: Making Co-Nationals, Refugees, and Minorities |year=2012 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |location=New York |isbn=978-1107661998 |page=xx| url=http://www.cambridge.org/us/academic/subjects/politics-international-relations/comparative-politics/politics-nation-building-making-co-nationals-refugees-and-minorities}}</ref> and reserves the term 'minority' only for groups that have been granted minority rights by their state of residence.

Minority group membership is typically based on differences in observable characteristics or practices, such as: [[Ethnic group|ethnicity]] (ethnic minority), [[Race (human categorization)|race]] (racial minority), religion ([[Minority religion|religious minority]]), sexual orientation ([[sexual minority]]), or [[disability]].<ref name="Unnamed_3-20240416095643">{{Cite book|title=Essentials of sociology|first=George|last=Ritzer|isbn=9781483340173|location=Los Angeles|oclc=871004576|date=2014-01-15}}</ref> The framework of [[intersectionality]] can be used to recognize that an individual may simultaneously hold membership in multiple minority groups (e.g. both a racial and religious minority).<ref name="Unnamed_4-20240416095643">{{cite journal |last1=Hughes |first1=Melanie |title=Intersectionality, Quotas, and Minority Women's Political Representation Worldwide |journal=American Political Science Review |date=2011 |volume=3 |issue=105 |pages=604–620 |doi=10.1017/S0003055411000293|s2cid=2592368 }}</ref> Likewise, individuals may also be part of a minority group in regard to some characteristics, but part of a dominant group in regard to others.<ref name=":4">{{Citation|last1=Laurie|first1=Timothy|title=The Concept of Minority for the Study of Culture|url=https://www.academia.edu/31725889|journal=Continuum: Journal of Media & Cultural Studies|volume=31|issue=1|pages=3|year=2017|last2=Khan|first2=Rimi|doi=10.1080/10304312.2016.1264110|s2cid=152009904}}</ref>

The term "minority group" often occurs within the [[discourse]] of [[civil rights]] and [[collective rights]], as members of minority groups are prone to differential treatment in the countries and societies in which they live.<ref name="Unnamed_5-20240416095643">{{Cite journal|url=https://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals/louilr63&div=34&id=&page=|title=The Struggle for Civil Rights: The Need for, and Impediments to, Political Coalitions among and within Minority Groups|last=Johnson|first=Kevin|journal=Louisiana Law Review|volume=63|page=759|access-date=2018-08-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190215102813/https://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals%2Flouilr63&div=34&id=&page=|archive-date=2019-02-15|url-status=live}}</ref> Minority group members often face [[discrimination]] in multiple areas of social life, including housing, employment, healthcare, and education, among others.<ref name="Unnamed_6-20240416095643">{{Cite book|title=The economics of discrimination|last=Becker|first=Gary S.|date=1971|publisher=University of Chicago Press|isbn=9780226041049|edition= 2nd|location=Chicago|oclc=658199810}}</ref><ref name="Unnamed_7-20240416095643">{{Cite journal|last=Williams|first=David R.|date=1999|title=Race, Socioeconomic Status, and Health The Added Effects of Racism and Discrimination|journal=Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences|language=en|volume=896|issue=1|pages=173–188|doi=10.1111/j.1749-6632.1999.tb08114.x|pmid=10681897|bibcode=1999NYASA.896..173W|issn=0077-8923|hdl=2027.42/71908|s2cid=26852165|url=https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/71908/1/j.1749-6632.1999.tb08114.x.pdf|access-date=2019-09-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120126203618/http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/71908/1/j.1749-6632.1999.tb08114.x.pdf|archive-date=2012-01-26|url-status=live|hdl-access=free}}</ref> While discrimination may be committed by individuals, it may also occur through [[Structural inequality|structural inequalities]], in which rights and opportunities are not equally accessible to all.<ref name="Unnamed_8-20240416095643">{{Cite journal|author-link1=Mieke Verloo|last=Verloo|first=Mieke|date=2006|title=Multiple Inequalities, Intersectionality and the European Union|journal=European Journal of Women's Studies|language=en|volume=13|issue=3|pages=211–228|doi=10.1177/1350506806065753|s2cid=21752012|issn=1350-5068|url=http://www.ssoar.info/ssoar/handle/document/22512|access-date=2018-09-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190210152558/https://www.ssoar.info/ssoar/handle/document/22512|archive-date=2019-02-10|url-status=live|hdl=2066/46605|hdl-access=free}}</ref> Those in favour of [[minority rights]] often pursue laws designed to protect minority groups from discrimination and afford members of the minority group equal social status and legal protections as held by members of the dominant group.<ref name="Unnamed_9-20240416095643">{{Cite book|title=The minority rights revolution|last=Skrentny|first=John David|date=2002|publisher=Belknap Press of Harvard University Press|isbn=9780674043732|location=Cambridge, Mass.|oclc=431342257}}</ref>

[[Louis Wirth]] defined a minority group as "a group of people who, because of their physical or cultural characteristics, are singled out from the others in the [[society]] in which they live for differential and unequal treatment, and who therefore regard themselves as objects of collective discrimination".<ref name=":3">{{cite book|title=The Science of Man in the World Crisis|last=Wirth|first=L.|publisher=Columbia University Press|year=1945|editor-last=Linton|editor-first=Ralph|location=New York|page=347|chapter=The Problem of Minority Groups}} The political scientist and law professor, Gad Barzilai, has offered a theoretical definition of non-ruling communities that conceptualizes groups that do not rule and are excluded from resources of political power. Barzilai, G. ''Communities and Law: Politics and Cultures of Legal Identities''. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.</ref> The definition includes both objective and subjective criteria: membership of a minority group is objectively [[Ascribed status|ascribed]] by society, based on an individual's physical or behavioral characteristics; it is also subjectively applied by its members, who may use their status as the basis of group identity or [[Social solidarity|solidarity]].<ref name="Unnamed_10-20240416095643">{{Cite book|url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/version/12323228|title=Minorities in the new world: six case studies|last1=Wagley|first1=Charles|last2=Harris|first2=Marvin|date=1958|publisher=New York: Columbia University Press|language=en}}</ref> Thus, minority group status is categorical: an individual who exhibits the physical or behavioral characteristics of a given minority group is accorded the status of that group and is subject to the same treatment as other members of that group.<ref name=":3" />

[[Joe Feagin]], states that a minority group has five characteristics: (1) suffering discrimination and subordination, (2) physical and/or cultural traits that set them apart, and which are disapproved by the dominant group, (3) a shared sense of collective identity and common burdens, (4) socially shared rules about who belongs and who does not determine minority status, and (5) tendency to marry within the group.<ref name="Unnamed_11-20240416095643">{{cite book|title=Racial and Ethnic Relations|author=Joe R. Feagin|publisher=Prentice-Hall|year=1984|isbn=978-0-13-750125-0|edition= 2nd|pages=10}}</ref>

There is a controversy with the use of the word minority, as it has a generic and an academic usage.<ref name="Unnamed_12-20240416095643">{{cite book|title=Cultural Diversity Glossary of Terms|publisher=Diversity Training University International Publications Division|year=2008|pages=4}}</ref> Common usage of the term indicates a statistical minority; however, academics refer to power differences among groups rather than differences in population size among groups.<ref name="Barzilai 20102">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1sHzZbXdjggC|title=Communities and Law: Politics and Cultures of Legal Identities|last=Barzilai|first=Gad|publisher=University of Michigan Press|year=2010|isbn=978-0472024001|access-date=2017-02-27|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170228091852/https://books.google.com/books?id=1sHzZbXdjggC|archive-date=2017-02-28|url-status=live}}</ref>

Some sociologists have criticized the concept of "minority/majority", arguing this language excludes or neglects changing or unstable cultural identities, as well as cultural affiliations across national boundaries.<ref name="Unnamed_13-20240416095643">{{Citation|last1=Laurie|first1=Timothy|title=The Concept of Minority for the Study of Culture|url=https://www.academia.edu/31725889|journal=Continuum: Journal of Media & Cultural Studies|volume=31|issue=1|pages=1–12|year=2017|last2=Khan|first2=Rimi|doi=10.1080/10304312.2016.1264110|s2cid=152009904}}</ref> As such, the term historically excluded groups (HEGs) is often similarly used to highlight the role of historical oppression and domination, and how this results in the under-representation of particular groups in various areas of social life.<ref name="Unnamed_14-20240416095643">{{Citation|last1=Konrad|first1=Alison M.|date=1999|work=Handbook of Gender & Work|pages=[https://archive.org/details/handbookofgender0000unse/page/429 429–452]|publisher=SAGE Publications, Inc.|doi=10.4135/9781452231365.n22|last2=Linnehan|first2=Frank|title=Handbook of Gender & Work Handbook of gender & work|isbn=9780761913559|url=https://archive.org/details/handbookofgender0000unse/page/429}}</ref>

The term national minority is often used to discuss minority groups in international and national politics.<ref name=":5">{{cite journal|author=Daniel Šmihula|year=2008|title=National Minorities in the Law of the EC/EU|url=http://ns.ier.ro/site/documente/rjea_pdf/RJEA_Vol8_No3_Sept2008.pdf|url-status=dead|journal=Romanian Journal of European Affairs|volume=8|pages=51–81|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110823110657/http://ns.ier.ro/site/documente/rjea_pdf/RJEA_Vol8_No3_Sept2008.pdf|archive-date=2011-08-23|number=3}}</ref> All countries contain some degree of racial, ethnic, or linguistic diversity.<ref name="Unnamed_15-20240416095643">{{Cite web|url=https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2013/07/18/the-most-and-least-culturally-diverse-countries-in-the-world/|title=The most (and least) culturally diverse countries in the world|website=Pew Research Center|language=en-US|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190811213739/https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2013/07/18/the-most-and-least-culturally-diverse-countries-in-the-world/|archive-date=2019-08-11|access-date=2019-11-01}}</ref> In addition, minorities may also be immigrant, indigenous or landless nomadic communities.<ref name="Unnamed_16-20240416095643">{{Cite book|title=The representation of minorities and indigenous peoples in parliament : a global overview|first=Oleh|last=Protsyk|date=2010|publisher=Inter-parliamentary Union|others=Inter-parliamentary Union.627|location=Geneva|oclc=754152959}}</ref> This often results in variations in language, culture, beliefs, practices, that set some groups apart from the dominant group. As these differences are usually perceived negatively, this results in loss of social and political power for members of minority groups.<ref name="Unnamed_17-20240416095643">{{Cite journal|last=Verkuyten|first=Maykel|date=2005|title=Ethnic Group Identification and Group Evaluation Among Minority and Majority Groups: Testing the Multiculturalism Hypothesis|journal=Journal of Personality and Social Psychology|language=en|volume=88|issue=1|pages=121–138|doi=10.1037/0022-3514.88.1.121|pmid=15631579|issn=1939-1315|citeseerx=10.1.1.595.7633}}</ref>

There is no legal definition of national minorities in international law, though protection of minority groups is outlined by the United Nations [[Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities]]. [[International criminal law]] can protect the rights of racial or ethnic minorities in several ways.<ref name="Unnamed_18-20240416095643">[[Lyal Sunga|Lyal S. Sunga]] (2004). ''International Criminal Law: Protection of Minority Rights, Beyond a One-Dimensional State: An Emerging Right to Autonomy?'' ed. Zelim Skurbaty. (2004) 255–275.</ref> The right to [[self-determination]] is a key issue. The Council of Europe regulates minority rights in the [[European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages]] and the [[Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities]].

In some places, subordinate [[ethnic group]]s may constitute a numerical majority, such as Blacks in [[South Africa under apartheid]].<ref name="Unnamed_19-20240416095643">{{Cite journal|last1=du Toit|first1=Pierre|last2=Theron|first2=François|date=1988|title=Ethnic and minority groups, and constitutional change in South Africa|journal=Journal of Contemporary African Studies|language=en|volume=7|issue=1–2|pages=133–147|doi=10.1080/02589008808729481|issn=0258-9001}}</ref> In the [[United States]], for example, non-Hispanic Whites constitute the majority (63.4%) and all other racial and ethnic groups ([[Mexican Americans|Mexican]], [[African Americans]], [[Asian Americans]], [[Native Americans in the United States|American Indian]], and [[Native Hawaiians]]) are classified as "minorities".<ref name="Unnamed_20-20240416095643">{{Cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/US/PST045217|title=U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: United States|website=Census Bureau QuickFacts|language=en-US|access-date=2018-08-17|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180816204719/https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/US/PST045217|archive-date=2018-08-16|url-status=live}}</ref> If the non-Hispanic White population falls below 50% the group will only be the ''plurality'', not the majority.

Racial minorities, sometimes referred to synonymously as [[people of color]] or non-white people, are minority groups that are discriminated against on the basis of [[race (human categorization)|race]]. Though definitions vary cross-culturally, modern racism is primarily based on the [[Historical race concepts|European and American classifications of race]] that developed during the [[Age of Exploration]], as European countries sought to categorize the nations they colonized into [[scientific racism|pseudo-scientific]] [[phenotypical]] groups.<ref name=Foundations>{{cite web|url=https://nmaahc.si.edu/learn/talking-about-race/topics/historical-foundations-race|title=Historical Foundations of Race}}</ref> In the United States's system, [[Whiteness theory|whiteness]] is at the top of a hierarchy that automatically classifies [[mixed-race]] individuals as [[hypodescent|their subordinate race]].<ref name="Unnamed_21-20240416095643">{{cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/janicegassam/2022/02/22/the-evolution-of-whiteness-in-the-united-states/?sh=665fc1a87626|title=The Evolution Of Whiteness In The United States|website=[[Forbes]] }}</ref>

Sometimes, racist policies explicitly codified pseudo-scientific definitions of race: such as the United States' [[one-drop rule]] and [[blood quantum laws]], South Africa's [[apartheid]], and Nazi Germany [[Nuremberg race laws]]. Other times, race has been a matter of self-identification, with [[de facto]] racist policies implemented.<ref name="Unnamed_22-20240416095643">{{cite web|url=http://political-science.iresearchnet.com/race-ethnicity-and-politics/|title=Race, Ethnicity, and Politics|quote=In lieu of de jure segregation, various manifestations of de facto segregation persist to this day ... In contrast to de jure segregation, de facto segregation occurs as a result of social practices that, although not codified in law, have a similar outcome in terms of maintaining the separation of a minority group from the majority group.}}</ref> In addition to governmental policy, racism may persist as social prejudice and discrimination.

There are also social groups that are usually identified through [[ethnicity]].<ref name="Foundations"/> Like race, ethnicity is largely determined [[cultural heritage|hereditarily]]. However, it can also be influenced by factors such as [[adoption]], [[cultural assimilation]], [[religious conversion]], and [[language shift]]. As race and ethnicity often overlap,<ref name="Unnamed_23-20240416095643">{{cite web|url=https://www.livescience.com/difference-between-race-ethnicity.html|title=What's the difference between race and ethnicity?|website=[[Live Science]] |date=3 November 2022 }}</ref> many ethnic minorities are also racial minorities. However, this is not always the case, and some people are ethnic minorities while also being classified as white, such as some [[Jews]], [[Romani people|Roma]], and [[Sámi]]. In some cases, their ethnic identities have been seen as negating their whiteness, in both [[Intergroup relations|inter-]] and [[social group|intra-]]group identification.<ref name="Unnamed_24-20240416095643">{{cite web|url=https://jewishjournal.com/cover_story/295918/were-jews-were-not-white-we-define-ourselves/|title=We're Jews, We're Not White, We Define Ourselves |date=27 March 2019 }}</ref><ref name="Unnamed_25-20240416095643">{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2018/10/19/i-look-white-my-mother-is-native-american-my-identity-is-more-than-my-dna/|title=My mother is Native American, but I look white. My identity is more than my DNA.|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] }}</ref>

In some countries, such as the United Kingdom, there is a preference to categorise people by ethnicity instead of race.<ref name="gov uk">{{cite web |title=Writing about ethnicity |url=https://www.ethnicity-facts-figures.service.gov.uk/style-guide/writing-about-ethnicity |website=www.ethnicity-facts-figures.service.gov.uk |access-date=17 September 2023 |language=en |date=December 2021}}</ref> Ethnicity encompasses a mix of "long shared cultural experiences, religious practices, traditions, ancestry, language, dialect or national origins".<ref name="Unnamed_26-20240416095643">{{cite web |title=A guide to race and ethnicity terminology and language |url=https://www.lawsociety.org.uk/topics/ethnic-minority-lawyers/a-guide-to-race-and-ethnicity-terminology-and-language |website=www.lawsociety.org.uk |publisher=The Law Society |access-date=17 September 2023 |language=en}}</ref> The United Kingdom considers everyone but [[white British]] people to be an ethnic minority, including other white Europeans such as [[White Irish]] people (excluding in Northern Ireland).<ref name="gov uk" />

A national minority is a social group within a state that differs from the majority and/or dominant population in terms of ethnicity, language, culture, or religion, but also it also tends to have a close link with a specific territory from which the minority social group originates.<ref name="Unnamed_27-20240416095643">{{Cite web |last= |date= |title=United Nations Guide for Minorities |url=https://www.ohchr.org/en/minorities/united-nations-guide-minorities |website=www.ohchr.org/en/ohchr_homepage}}</ref>

Leading up to the [[Human Rights Act 1998]] in the UK, a rise in the awareness relating to how disabled people were being treated began. Many started to believe that they were being denied basic human rights. This act had a section that stated if authorities did not protect people with learning disabilities from others' actions, such as harm or neglect, then they could be prosecuted.<ref name="Unnamed_28-20240416095643">{{Cite book|last1=Clements|first1=Luke|url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt1t8964p|title=Disabled people and European human rights: A review of the implications of the 1998 Human Rights Act for disabled children and adults in the UK|last2=Read|first2=Janet|date=2003|publisher=Bristol University Press|doi=10.2307/j.ctt1t8964p |jstor=j.ctt1t8964p|s2cid=246084235 |edition=1}}</ref>

People belonging to religious minorities have a faith that is different from that held by the majority. Most countries of the world have religious minorities. It is now widely accepted in [[Western world|the West]] that people should have the freedom to choose their religion,{{source?|date=July 2023}} including the right to convert from one religion to another, or not to have any religion ([[atheism]] and/or [[agnosticism]]). However, in many countries, this freedom is constricted. In [[Egypt]], a new system of identity cards<ref name="Unnamed_29-20240416095643">See "The Situation of the Bahá'í Community of Egypt" and "Religion Today: Bahais' struggle for recognition reveals a less tolerant face of Egypt", [http://www.bahai.org/persecution/egypt/update Bahai.org] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061001140937/http://www.bahai.org/persecution/egypt/update |date=2006-10-01 }}, [http://dwb.sacbee.com/24hour/religion/story/3315375p-12212722c.html DWB.sacbee.com] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071014053747/http://dwb.sacbee.com/24hour/religion/story/3315375p-12212722c.html |date=2007-10-14 }}</ref> requires all citizens to state their religion—and the only choices are [[Islam]], [[Christianity]], or [[Judaism]] (See [[Egyptian identification card controversy]]). Another example is the case of decreasing population of [[minorities in Pakistan]], where they are being forcefully converted or killed.<ref name="Unnamed_30-20240416095643">{{Cite web|url=https://www.timesnownews.com/india/article/another-hindu-girl-abducted-forcibly-converted-to-islam-in-pakistans-sindh-family-stages-protest/494399|title=Another Hindu girl abducted, forcibly converted to Islam in Pakistan's Sindh; family stages protest|website=www.timesnownews.com|date=24 September 2019 |language=en|access-date=2019-09-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190925100901/https://www.timesnownews.com/india/article/another-hindu-girl-abducted-forcibly-converted-to-islam-in-pakistans-sindh-family-stages-protest/494399|archive-date=2019-09-25|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Unnamed_31-20240416095643">{{Cite web|url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/hindu-medical-student-found-dead-in-pakistan-hostel-brother-alleges-foul-play/story-GeJuS3xpHigO3IFhBFvvCJ.html|title=Hindu medical student found dead in Pakistan hostel, brother alleges foul play|date=2019-09-17|website=Hindustan Times|language=en|access-date=2019-09-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190925100903/https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/hindu-medical-student-found-dead-in-pakistan-hostel-brother-alleges-foul-play/story-GeJuS3xpHigO3IFhBFvvCJ.html|archive-date=2019-09-25|url-status=live}}</ref>

In most societies, numbers of men and women [[sex ratio|are roughly equal]]. Though women are not considered to be a minority,<ref name="Unnamed_32-20240416095643">{{cite web |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/minority |website=Merriam-Webster |access-date=6 February 2020|title=Definition of Minority}}</ref> the status of women, as a subordinate group, has led to many social scientists to refer to them as a disadvantaged group.<ref name="Unnamed_33-20240416095643">{{cite journal|last=Hacker|first=Helen Mayer|year=1951|title=Women as a Minority Group|journal=[[Social Forces]]|volume=30|issue=1|pages=60–69|doi=10.2307/2571742|jstor=2571742}}</ref> Though women's legal rights and status vary widely across countries, women often experience social inequalities, relative to men, in various societies.<ref name="Unnamed_34-20240416095643">{{Cite book|title=Multicultural jurisdictions : cultural differences and women's rights|author=Shachar, Ayelet|date=2001|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0511040801|location=Cambridge, UK|oclc=56216656}}</ref> Women are sometimes denied access to education and access to the same opportunities as men, especially in under-developed countries.<ref name="Unnamed_35-20240416095643">Women, U. N. (2018). Annual Report 2017–2018.</ref>

Some especially significant or powerful minorities receive comprehensive protection and political representation. For example, the former Yugoslav Republic of [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]] recognizes the three constitutive nations, none of which constitutes a numerical majority (see [[nations of Bosnia and Herzegovina]]). However, other minorities such as [[Romani people|Roma]]<ref name="Unnamed_36-20240416095643">{{Cite web|url=http://sior.ub.edu/jspui/cris/socialimpact/socialimpact00421|title=Political recognition of Roma People in Spain. [Social Impact]. WORKALÓ. The creation of new occupational patterns for cultural minorities: the Gypsy Case (2001–2004). Framework Programme 5 (FP5)|website=SIOR, Social Impact Open Repository|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170905191302/http://sior.ub.edu/jspui/cris/socialimpact/socialimpact00421|archive-date=2017-09-05|url-status=dead}}</ref> and [[Jews]], are officially labelled "foreign" and are excluded from many of these protections. For example, they may be excluded from political positions, including the presidency.<ref name="Unnamed_37-20240416095643">[http://www.coe.int/t/e/human_rights/minorities/2._framework_convention_(monitoring)/2._monitoring_mechanism/4._opinions_of_the_advisory_committee/1._country_specific_opinions/1._first_cycle/PDF_1st_OP_BiH.pdf Opinion of the Council of Europe's Advisory Committee on the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, in particular paragraphs 37–43] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070616100431/http://www.coe.int/t/e/human_rights/minorities/2._framework_convention_(monitoring)/2._monitoring_mechanism/4._opinions_of_the_advisory_committee/1._country_specific_opinions/1._first_cycle/PDF_1st_OP_BiH.pdf |date=2007-06-16 }}</ref>

There is debate over recognizing minority groups and their privileges. One view<ref name="Unnamed_38-20240416095643">For example, J.A. Lindgren-Alves, member of the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, speaking at the Committee's 67th Session (Summary Record of the 1724th Meeting, 23 August 2005, CERD/C/SR.1724)</ref> is that the application of special rights to minority groups may harm some countries, such as new states in Africa or Latin America not founded on the European [[nation-state]] model, since minority recognition may interfere with establishing a national identity. It may hamper the integration of the minority into mainstream society, perhaps leading to [[separatism]] or [[supremacist|supremacism]]. In [[Canada]], some{{who|date=January 2012}} feel that the failure of the dominant [[English language|English]]-speaking majority to integrate [[French Canadians]] has provoked [[Quebec separatism]].

Others assert that minorities require specific protections to ensure that they are not marginalized: for example, [[bilingual education]] may be needed to allow linguistic minorities to fully integrate into the school system and compete equally in society. In this view, rights for minorities strengthen the nation-building project, as members of minorities see their interests well served, and willingly accept the legitimacy of the nation and their integration (not assimilation) within it.<ref name="Unnamed_39-20240416095643">See {{cite book |first=K. |last=Henrard |title=Devising an Adequate System of Minority Protection: Individual Human Rights, Minority Rights and the Right to Self-Determination |publisher=Martinus Nijhoff |year=2000 |pages=218–224 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QFF5nzuAze0C&pg=PA218 |isbn=978-9041113597 |access-date=2017-02-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170228001145/https://books.google.com/books?id=QFF5nzuAze0C&pg=PA218 |archive-date=2017-02-28 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In terms of sociology, economics, and politics, a demographic that takes up the smallest fraction of the population is not necessarily labelled the "minority" if it wields dominant power. In the academic context, the terms "minority" and "majority" are used in terms of hierarchical [[power structure]]s. For example, in South Africa, during [[Apartheid]], white Europeans held virtually all social, economic, and political power over black Africans. For this reason, black Africans are the "minority group", despite the fact that they outnumber white Europeans in South Africa. This is why academics more frequently use the term "minority group" to refer to a [[Categorization|category]] of people that experience relative disadvantage, as compared to members of a dominant social group.<ref>{{Cite book|titlename=Race, ethnicity, gender, & class : the sociology of group conflict and change|author=Healey, Joseph F.|others=Stepnick, Andi; O'Brien, Eileen, 1972–|isbn=9781506346946|edition= Eighth |location=Thousand Oaks, California|oclc=1006532841|date=2018"Unnamed-03-02}}<20240416095643"/ref> To address this ambiguity, [[Harris Mylonas]] has proposed the term "non-core group", instead of "minority group", to refer to any aggregation of individuals that is perceived as an unassimilated ethnic group (on a linguistic, religious, physical, or ideological basis) by the ruling political elite of a country"<ref>{{cite book |lastname=Mylonas |first=Harris |title=The Politics of Nation"Unnamed_2-Building: Making Co-Nationals, Refugees, and Minorities |year=2012 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |location=New York |isbn=978-1107661998 |page=xx| url=http:20240416095643"//www.cambridge.org/us/academic/subjects/politics-international-relations/comparative-politics/politics-nation-building-making-co-nationals-refugees-and-minorities}}</ref> and reserves the term 'minority' only for groups that have been granted minority rights by their state of residence.

Minority group membership is typically based on differences in observable characteristics or practices, such as: [[Ethnic group|ethnicity]] (ethnic minority), [[Race (human categorization)|race]] (racial minority), religion ([[Minority religion|religious minority]]), sexual orientation ([[sexual minority]]), or [[disability]].<ref>{{Cite book|titlename=Essentials of sociology|first=George|last=Ritzer|isbn=9781483340173|location=Los Angeles|oclc=871004576|date=2014"Unnamed_3-01-15}}<20240416095643"/ref> The framework of [[intersectionality]] can be used to recognize that an individual may simultaneously hold membership in multiple minority groups (e.g. both a racial and religious minority).<ref>{{cite journal |last1name=Hughes |first1=Melanie |title=Intersectionality, Quotas, and Minority Women's Political Representation Worldwide |journal=American Political Science Review |date=2011 |volume=3 |issue=105 |pages=604–620 |doi=10.1017"Unnamed_4-20240416095643"/S0003055411000293|s2cid=2592368 }}</ref> Likewise, individuals may also be part of a minority group in regard to some characteristics, but part of a dominant group in regard to others.<ref name=":4"/>

The term "minority group" often occurs within the [[discourse]] of [[civil rights]] and [[collective rights]], as members of minority groups are prone to differential treatment in the countries and societies in which they live.<ref>{{Cite journal|urlname=https://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals/louilr63&div=34&id=&page=|title=The Struggle for Civil Rights: The Need for, and Impediments to, Political Coalitions among and within Minority Groups|last=Johnson|first=Kevin|journal=Louisiana Law Review|volume=63|page=759|access"Unnamed_5-date=2018-08-14|archive-url=https:20240416095643"//web.archive.org/web/20190215102813/https://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals%2Flouilr63&div=34&id=&page=|archive-date=2019-02-15|url-status=live}}</ref> Minority group members often face [[discrimination]] in multiple areas of social life, including housing, employment, healthcare, and education, among others.<ref>{{Cite book|titlename=The economics of discrimination|last=Becker|first=Gary S.|date=1971|publisher=University of Chicago Press|isbn=9780226041049|edition= 2nd|location=Chicago|oclc=658199810}}<"Unnamed_6-20240416095643"/ref><ref>{{Cite journal|lastname=Williams|first=David R.|date=1999|title=Race, Socioeconomic Status, and Health The Added Effects of Racism and Discrimination|journal=Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences|language=en|volume=896|issue=1|pages=173–188|doi=10.1111/j.1749"Unnamed_7-6632.1999.tb08114.x|pmid=10681897|bibcode=1999NYASA.896..173W|issn=0077-8923|hdl=2027.4220240416095643"/71908|s2cid=26852165|url=https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/71908/1/j.1749-6632.1999.tb08114.x.pdf|access-date=2019-09-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120126203618/http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/71908/1/j.1749-6632.1999.tb08114.x.pdf|archive-date=2012-01-26|url-status=live|hdl-access=free}}</ref> While discrimination may be committed by individuals, it may also occur through [[Structural inequality|structural inequalities]], in which rights and opportunities are not equally accessible to all.<ref>{{Cite journal|author-link1name=Mieke Verloo|last=Verloo|first=Mieke|date=2006|title=Multiple Inequalities, Intersectionality and the European Union|journal=European Journal of Women's Studies|language=en|volume=13|issue=3|pages=211–228|doi=10.1177/1350506806065753|s2cid=21752012|issn=1350"Unnamed_8-5068|url=http:20240416095643"//www.ssoar.info/ssoar/handle/document/22512|access-date=2018-09-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190210152558/https://www.ssoar.info/ssoar/handle/document/22512|archive-date=2019-02-10|url-status=live|hdl=2066/46605|hdl-access=free}}</ref> Those in favour of [[minority rights]] often pursue laws designed to protect minority groups from discrimination and afford members of the minority group equal social status and legal protections as held by members of the dominant group.<ref>{{Cite book|titlename=The minority rights revolution|last=Skrentny|first=John David|date=2002|publisher=Belknap Press of Harvard University Press|isbn=9780674043732|location=Cambridge, Mass.|oclc=431342257}}<"Unnamed_9-20240416095643"/ref>

[[Louis Wirth]] defined a minority group as "a group of people who, because of their physical or cultural characteristics, are singled out from the others in the [[society]] in which they live for differential and unequal treatment, and who therefore regard themselves as objects of collective discrimination".<ref name=":3"/> The definition includes both objective and subjective criteria: membership of a minority group is objectively [[Ascribed status|ascribed]] by society, based on an individual's physical or behavioral characteristics; it is also subjectively applied by its members, who may use their status as the basis of group identity or [[Social solidarity|solidarity]].<ref>{{Cite book|urlname=https:"Unnamed_10-20240416095643"//trove.nla.gov.au/version/12323228|title=Minorities in the new world: six case studies|last1=Wagley|first1=Charles|last2=Harris|first2=Marvin|date=1958|publisher=New York: Columbia University Press|language=en}}</ref> Thus, minority group status is categorical: an individual who exhibits the physical or behavioral characteristics of a given minority group is accorded the status of that group and is subject to the same treatment as other members of that group.<ref name=":3" />

[[Joe Feagin]], states that a minority group has five characteristics: (1) suffering discrimination and subordination, (2) physical and/or cultural traits that set them apart, and which are disapproved by the dominant group, (3) a shared sense of collective identity and common burdens, (4) socially shared rules about who belongs and who does not determine minority status, and (5) tendency to marry within the group.<ref>{{cite book|titlename=Racial and Ethnic Relations|author=Joe R. Feagin|publisher=Prentice"Unnamed_11-Hall|year=1984|isbn=978-0-13-750125-0|edition= 2nd|pages=10}}<20240416095643"/ref>

There is a controversy with the use of the word minority, as it has a generic and an academic usage.<ref>{{cite book|titlename=Cultural Diversity Glossary of Terms|publisher=Diversity Training University International Publications Division|year=2008|pages=4}}<"Unnamed_12-20240416095643"/ref> Common usage of the term indicates a statistical minority; however, academics refer to power differences among groups rather than differences in population size among groups.<ref name="Barzilai 20102"/>

Some sociologists have criticized the concept of "minority/majority", arguing this language excludes or neglects changing or unstable cultural identities, as well as cultural affiliations across national boundaries.<ref>{{Citation|last1=Laurie|first1=Timothy|title=The Concept of Minority for the Study of Culture|urlname=https:"Unnamed_13-20240416095643"//www.academia.edu/31725889|journal=Continuum: Journal of Media & Cultural Studies|volume=31|issue=1|pages=1–12|year=2017|last2=Khan|first2=Rimi|doi=10.1080/10304312.2016.1264110|s2cid=152009904}}</ref> As such, the term historically excluded groups (HEGs) is often similarly used to highlight the role of historical oppression and domination, and how this results in the under-representation of particular groups in various areas of social life.<ref>{{Citation|last1=Konrad|first1=Alison M.|datename=1999|work=Handbook of Gender & Work|pages=[https:"Unnamed_14-20240416095643"//archive.org/details/handbookofgender0000unse/page/429 429–452]|publisher=SAGE Publications, Inc.|doi=10.4135/9781452231365.n22|last2=Linnehan|first2=Frank|title=Handbook of Gender & Work Handbook of gender & work|isbn=9780761913559|url=https://archive.org/details/handbookofgender0000unse/page/429}}</ref>

The term national minority is often used to discuss minority groups in international and national politics.<ref name=":5"/> All countries contain some degree of racial, ethnic, or linguistic diversity.<ref>{{Cite web|urlname=https://www.pewresearch.org/fact"Unnamed_15-tank20240416095643"/2013/07/18/the-most-and-least-culturally-diverse-countries-in-the-world/|title=The most (and least) culturally diverse countries in the world|website=Pew Research Center|language=en-US|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190811213739/https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2013/07/18/the-most-and-least-culturally-diverse-countries-in-the-world/|archive-date=2019-08-11|access-date=2019-11-01}}</ref> In addition, minorities may also be immigrant, indigenous or landless nomadic communities.<ref>{{Cite book|titlename=The representation of minorities and indigenous peoples in parliament : a global overview|first=Oleh|last=Protsyk|date=2010|publisher=Inter"Unnamed_16-parliamentary Union|others=Inter-parliamentary Union.627|location=Geneva|oclc=754152959}}<20240416095643"/ref> This often results in variations in language, culture, beliefs, practices, that set some groups apart from the dominant group. As these differences are usually perceived negatively, this results in loss of social and political power for members of minority groups.<ref>{{Cite journal|lastname=Verkuyten|first=Maykel|date=2005|title=Ethnic Group Identification and Group Evaluation Among Minority and Majority Groups: Testing the Multiculturalism Hypothesis|journal=Journal of Personality and Social Psychology|language=en|volume=88|issue=1|pages=121–138|doi=10.1037/0022"Unnamed_17-3514.88.1.121|pmid=15631579|issn=1939-1315|citeseerx=10.1.1.595.7633}}<20240416095643"/ref>

There is no legal definition of national minorities in international law, though protection of minority groups is outlined by the United Nations [[Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities]]. [[International criminal law]] can protect the rights of racial or ethnic minorities in several ways.<ref>[[Lyal Sunga|Lyal S. Sunga]] (2004). ''International Criminal Law: Protection of Minority Rights, Beyond a Onename="Unnamed_18-Dimensional State: An Emerging Right to Autonomy?'' ed. Zelim Skurbaty. (2004) 255–275.<20240416095643"/ref> The right to [[self-determination]] is a key issue. The Council of Europe regulates minority rights in the [[European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages]] and the [[Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities]].

In some places, subordinate [[ethnic group]]s may constitute a numerical majority, such as Blacks in [[South Africa under apartheid]].<ref>{{Cite journal|last1name=du Toit|first1=Pierre|last2=Theron|first2=François|date=1988|title=Ethnic and minority groups, and constitutional change in South Africa|journal=Journal of Contemporary African Studies|language=en|volume=7|issue=1–2|pages=133–147|doi=10.1080/02589008808729481|issn=0258"Unnamed_19-9001}}<20240416095643"/ref> In the [[United States]], for example, non-Hispanic Whites constitute the majority (63.4%) and all other racial and ethnic groups ([[Mexican Americans|Mexican]], [[African Americans]], [[Asian Americans]], [[Native Americans in the United States|American Indian]], and [[Native Hawaiians]]) are classified as "minorities".<ref>{{Cite web|urlname=https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/US/PST045217|title=U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: United States|website=Census Bureau QuickFacts|language=en"Unnamed_20-US|access-date=2018-08-17|archive-url=https:20240416095643"//web.archive.org/web/20180816204719/https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/US/PST045217|archive-date=2018-08-16|url-status=live}}</ref> If the non-Hispanic White population falls below 50% the group will only be the ''plurality'', not the majority.

Racial minorities, sometimes referred to synonymously as [[people of color]] or non-white people, are minority groups that are discriminated against on the basis of [[race (human categorization)|race]]. Though definitions vary cross-culturally, modern racism is primarily based on the [[Historical race concepts|European and American classifications of race]] that developed during the [[Age of Exploration]], as European countries sought to categorize the nations they colonized into [[scientific racism|pseudo-scientific]] [[phenotypical]] groups.<ref name=Foundations/> In the United States's system, [[Whiteness theory|whiteness]] is at the top of a hierarchy that automatically classifies [[mixed-race]] individuals as [[hypodescent|their subordinate race]].<ref>{{cite web|urlname=https://www.forbes.com/sites/janicegassam/2022/02/22/the"Unnamed_21-evolution-of-whiteness-in-the-united-states/?sh=665fc1a87626|title=The Evolution Of Whiteness In The United States|website=[[Forbes]] }}<20240416095643"/ref>

Sometimes, racist policies explicitly codified pseudo-scientific definitions of race: such as the United States' [[one-drop rule]] and [[blood quantum laws]], South Africa's [[apartheid]], and Nazi Germany [[Nuremberg race laws]]. Other times, race has been a matter of self-identification, with [[de facto]] racist policies implemented.<ref>{{cite web|urlname=http://political"Unnamed_22-science.iresearchnet.com/race-ethnicity-and-politics/|title=Race, Ethnicity, and Politics|quote=In lieu of de jure segregation, various manifestations of de facto segregation persist to this day ... In contrast to de jure segregation, de facto segregation occurs as a result of social practices that, although not codified in law, have a similar outcome in terms of maintaining the separation of a minority group from the majority group.}}<20240416095643"/ref> In addition to governmental policy, racism may persist as social prejudice and discrimination.

There are also social groups that are usually identified through [[ethnicity]].<ref name="Foundations"/> Like race, ethnicity is largely determined [[cultural heritage|hereditarily]]. However, it can also be influenced by factors such as [[adoption]], [[cultural assimilation]], [[religious conversion]], and [[language shift]]. As race and ethnicity often overlap,<ref>{{cite web|urlname=https://www.livescience.com/difference"Unnamed_23-between-race-ethnicity.html|title=What's the difference between race and ethnicity?|website=[[Live Science]] |date=3 November 2022 }}<20240416095643"/ref> many ethnic minorities are also racial minorities. However, this is not always the case, and some people are ethnic minorities while also being classified as white, such as some [[Jews]], [[Romani people|Roma]], and [[Sámi]]. In some cases, their ethnic identities have been seen as negating their whiteness, in both [[Intergroup relations|inter-]] and [[social group|intra-]]group identification.<ref>{{cite web|urlname=https://jewishjournal.com/cover_story/295918/were"Unnamed_24-jews-were-not-white-we-define-ourselves20240416095643"/|title=We're Jews, We're Not White, We Define Ourselves |date=27 March 2019 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|urlname=https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2018/10/19/i"Unnamed_25-look-white-my-mother-is-native-american-my-identity-is-more-than-my-dna20240416095643"/|title=My mother is Native American, but I look white. My identity is more than my DNA.|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] }}</ref>

In some countries, such as the United Kingdom, there is a preference to categorise people by ethnicity instead of race.<ref name="gov uk"/> Ethnicity encompasses a mix of "long shared cultural experiences, religious practices, traditions, ancestry, language, dialect or national origins".<ref>{{cite web |titlename=A guide to race and ethnicity terminology and language |url=https://www.lawsociety.org.uk/topics/ethnic"Unnamed_26-minority-lawyers/a-guide-to-race-and-ethnicity-terminology-and-language |website=www.lawsociety.org.uk |publisher=The Law Society |access-date=17 September 2023 |language=en}}<20240416095643"/ref> The United Kingdom considers everyone but [[white British]] people to be an ethnic minority, including other white Europeans such as [[White Irish]] people (excluding in Northern Ireland).<ref name="gov uk" />

A national minority is a social group within a state that differs from the majority and/or dominant population in terms of ethnicity, language, culture, or religion, but also it also tends to have a close link with a specific territory from which the minority social group originates.<ref>{{Cite web |lastname= |date= |title=United Nations Guide for Minorities |url=https://www.ohchr.org/en/minorities/united"Unnamed_27-nations-guide-minorities |website=www.ohchr.org/en/ohchr_homepage}}<20240416095643"/ref>

Leading up to the [[Human Rights Act 1998]] in the UK, a rise in the awareness relating to how disabled people were being treated began. Many started to believe that they were being denied basic human rights. This act had a section that stated if authorities did not protect people with learning disabilities from others' actions, such as harm or neglect, then they could be prosecuted.<ref>{{Cite book|last1name=Clements|first1=Luke|url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt1t8964p|title=Disabled people and European human rights: A review of the implications of the 1998 Human Rights Act for disabled children and adults in the UK|last2=Read|first2=Janet|date=2003|publisher=Bristol University Press|doi=10.2307/j.ctt1t8964p |jstor=j.ctt1t8964p|s2cid=246084235 |edition=1}}<"Unnamed_28-20240416095643"/ref>

People belonging to religious minorities have a faith that is different from that held by the majority. Most countries of the world have religious minorities. It is now widely accepted in [[Western world|the West]] that people should have the freedom to choose their religion,{{source?|date=July 2023}} including the right to convert from one religion to another, or not to have any religion ([[atheism]] and/or [[agnosticism]]). However, in many countries, this freedom is constricted. In [[Egypt]], a new system of identity cards<ref>See name="The Situation of the Bahá'í Community of EgyptUnnamed_29-20240416095643" and "Religion Today: Bahais' struggle for recognition reveals a less tolerant face of Egypt", [http://www.bahai.org/persecution/egypt/update Bahai.org] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061001140937/http://www.bahai.org/persecution/egypt/update |date=2006-10-01 }}, [http://dwb.sacbee.com/24hour/religion/story/3315375p-12212722c.html DWB.sacbee.com] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071014053747/http://dwb.sacbee.com/24hour/religion/story/3315375p-12212722c.html |date=2007-10-14 }}</ref> requires all citizens to state their religion—and the only choices are [[Islam]], [[Christianity]], or [[Judaism]] (See [[Egyptian identification card controversy]]). Another example is the case of decreasing population of [[minorities in Pakistan]], where they are being forcefully converted or killed.<ref>{{Cite web|urlname=https://www.timesnownews.com/india/article/another"Unnamed_30-hindu-girl-abducted-forcibly-converted-to-islam-in-pakistans-sindh-family-stages-protest20240416095643"/494399|title=Another Hindu girl abducted, forcibly converted to Islam in Pakistan's Sindh; family stages protest|website=www.timesnownews.com|date=24 September 2019 |language=en|access-date=2019-09-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190925100901/https://www.timesnownews.com/india/article/another-hindu-girl-abducted-forcibly-converted-to-islam-in-pakistans-sindh-family-stages-protest/494399|archive-date=2019-09-25|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|urlname=https://www.hindustantimes.com/india"Unnamed_31-news20240416095643"/hindu-medical-student-found-dead-in-pakistan-hostel-brother-alleges-foul-play/story-GeJuS3xpHigO3IFhBFvvCJ.html|title=Hindu medical student found dead in Pakistan hostel, brother alleges foul play|date=2019-09-17|website=Hindustan Times|language=en|access-date=2019-09-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190925100903/https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/hindu-medical-student-found-dead-in-pakistan-hostel-brother-alleges-foul-play/story-GeJuS3xpHigO3IFhBFvvCJ.html|archive-date=2019-09-25|url-status=live}}</ref>

In most societies, numbers of men and women [[sex ratio|are roughly equal]]. Though women are not considered to be a minority,<ref>{{cite web |urlname=https://www.merriam"Unnamed_32-webster.com20240416095643"/dictionary/minority |website=Merriam-Webster |access-date=6 February 2020|title=Definition of Minority}}</ref> the status of women, as a subordinate group, has led to many social scientists to refer to them as a disadvantaged group.<ref>{{cite journal|lastname=Hacker|first=Helen Mayer|year=1951|title=Women as a Minority Group|journal=[[Social Forces]]|volume=30|issue=1|pages=60–69|doi=10.2307"Unnamed_33-20240416095643"/2571742|jstor=2571742}}</ref> Though women's legal rights and status vary widely across countries, women often experience social inequalities, relative to men, in various societies.<ref>{{Cite book|titlename=Multicultural jurisdictions : cultural differences and women's rights|author=Shachar, Ayelet|date=2001|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978"Unnamed_34-0511040801|location=Cambridge, UK|oclc=56216656}}<20240416095643"/ref> Women are sometimes denied access to education and access to the same opportunities as men, especially in under-developed countries.<ref>Women, U. N. (2018). Annual Report 2017–2018.<name="Unnamed_35-20240416095643"/ref>

Some especially significant or powerful minorities receive comprehensive protection and political representation. For example, the former Yugoslav Republic of [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]] recognizes the three constitutive nations, none of which constitutes a numerical majority (see [[nations of Bosnia and Herzegovina]]). However, other minorities such as [[Romani people|Roma]]<ref>{{Cite web|urlname=http://sior.ub.edu/jspui/cris/socialimpact/socialimpact00421|title=Political recognition of Roma People in Spain. [Social Impact]. WORKALÓ. The creation of new occupational patterns for cultural minorities: the Gypsy Case (2001–2004). Framework Programme 5 (FP5)|website=SIOR, Social Impact Open Repository|archive"Unnamed_36-url=https:20240416095643"//web.archive.org/web/20170905191302/http://sior.ub.edu/jspui/cris/socialimpact/socialimpact00421|archive-date=2017-09-05|url-status=dead}}</ref> and [[Jews]], are officially labelled "foreign" and are excluded from many of these protections. For example, they may be excluded from political positions, including the presidency.<ref>[http://www.coe.int/t/e/human_rights/minorities/2._framework_convention_(monitoring)/2._monitoring_mechanism/4._opinions_of_the_advisory_committee/1._country_specific_opinions/1._first_cycle/PDF_1st_OP_BiH.pdf Opinion of the Council of Europe's Advisory Committee on the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, in particular paragraphs 37–43] {{webarchive|urlname=https://web.archive.org/web/20070616100431/http://www.coe.int/t/e/human_rights/minorities/2._framework_convention_(monitoring)/2._monitoring_mechanism/4._opinions_of_the_advisory_committee/1._country_specific_opinions/1._first_cycle/PDF_1st_OP_BiH.pdf |date=2007"Unnamed_37-06-16 }}<20240416095643"/ref>

There is debate over recognizing minority groups and their privileges. One view<ref>For example, J.A. Lindgrenname="Unnamed_38-Alves, member of the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, speaking at the Committee's 67th Session (Summary Record of the 1724th Meeting, 23 August 2005, CERD/C/SR.1724)<20240416095643"/ref> is that the application of special rights to minority groups may harm some countries, such as new states in Africa or Latin America not founded on the European [[nation-state]] model, since minority recognition may interfere with establishing a national identity. It may hamper the integration of the minority into mainstream society, perhaps leading to [[separatism]] or [[supremacist|supremacism]]. In [[Canada]], some{{who|date=January 2012}} feel that the failure of the dominant [[English language|English]]-speaking majority to integrate [[French Canadians]] has provoked [[Quebec separatism]].

Others assert that minorities require specific protections to ensure that they are not marginalized: for example, [[bilingual education]] may be needed to allow linguistic minorities to fully integrate into the school system and compete equally in society. In this view, rights for minorities strengthen the nation-building project, as members of minorities see their interests well served, and willingly accept the legitimacy of the nation and their integration (not assimilation) within it.<ref>See {{cite book |firstname=K. |last=Henrard |title=Devising an Adequate System of Minority Protection: Individual Human Rights, Minority Rights and the Right to Self"Unnamed_39-Determination |publisher=Martinus Nijhoff |year=2000 |pages=218–224 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QFF5nzuAze0C&pg=PA218 |isbn=978-9041113597 |access-date=2017-02-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170228001145/https://books.google.com/books?id=QFF5nzuAze0C&pg=PA218 |archive-date=2017-02-28 |url-status=live }}<20240416095643"/ref>