Whiteness Privilege: African American Socioeconomic Gap

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Doane’s literature review
Mills’ philosophical construct
The vein of socioeconomic status
A sociological standpoint
Conclusion
References

Introduction

The notion that race is inextricably linked to privilege has been proven time and again throughout history. The race has some serious socioeconomic and other implications. Racial differences serve as one of the most prevalent factors for the systematic discrimination of individuals throughout the United States and within the United Kingdom. As a direct result of a focus on racial differences, conflicts have arisen and the notion of bringing an end to white dominance has been dealt with on an ongoing basis. Doane (2003) examined the notion that whiteness studies focus on race relations within the traditional sense and there is a dire need to refocus our discussion on the ramifications of race. Whiteness studies according to focuses on race, ethnicity, and sociological relations and aims at understanding race within a social and historical context.

Doane’s literature review

Doane conducted a comprehensive literature review in his examination of the privilege afforded to individuals by their race. His hypothesis dealt with the notion that race within the United States was a social construct that has transcended history and has existed as a direct result of diverse groups of individuals living near each other. This served as a means of establishing stratification. This stratification was based on race. There were privileges attached to being white and restrictions attached to being any other race. He chronicled the etiology of racism as one which began when virtually with the advent of America and can be traced back to when the population was such that there was some diversity but whites represented an overwhelming majority. As such, whites reaped the benefits which included wealth and power. In addition to this, they were afforded basic human rights which others were precluded from having. This served to make the notion of white supremacy a reality. As time went on, the need for inclusion of African Americans became a pressing need and as a direct result of the freedom fighter, African Americans were technically afforded equal rights by the passage of the 1866 Civil Rights Act. This act did serve to make the climate a bit better for African Americans, however, the great racial divide still exists today.

Mills’ philosophical construct

Mills (2003) examined the notion of white supremacy as a philosophical construct. In so doing he was able to present strong empirical proof by framing the discussion within the context of social and systematic change occurring within a historical context and transgressing all boundaries. Mills purports that to truly examine the concept of white supremacy one should view it as an independent entity and compare it to the global social system as it exists today. In his philosophical view, he focuses more on the current state of affairs instead of looking at it within its historical context. He is adamant about the fact that we should “challenge the everyday assumptions of normalcy, undermine the taken for granted and upend the conventional wisdom” (Mills, 2003, p1). One thing is clear from his discussion—he truly believed that history has served to proliferate a system wherein whites enjoy privilege and power and are supported in their quest to dominate over others. This according to Mills is the downfall of the system. What needs to be done is that racial harmony needs to be established and whites need to take an active role in ending racism instead of propagating a system of increased disparity.

The vein of socioeconomic status

Brown et. al., on the other hand, examined the whiteness in the vein of socioeconomic status as afforded by race. They establish a correlation between race and socioeconomic status and present a picture of a paradoxical situation. The paradox existing among African Americans deals with the great disparity evident within African American communities throughout the United States. On one end of the spectrum, we see an unprecedented number of indigent African Americans while simultaneously there is an increase in the number of African Americans who have climbed and continue to climb the socioeconomic ladder. For the first time, middle-class African Americans are bridging the economic gap between themselves and their white counterparts. To understand the dynamics of this paradox, one needs to take a closer look at the dynamics of socioeconomic status and race.

First and foremost, the contemporary African American middle class emerged with the advent of the Civil Rights movement (Walker & Wilson, 2002). This was a direct result of wide-scale social and political changes which in effect removed the lion’s share of the restrictions placed on African Americans and were strategically impacted to restrict social mobility and access to educational services and the like. In addition to the increased access to services and the ability to climb the ladder of success, the removal of restrictions served to assure that African Americans can live in the more “desirable” neighborhoods. This effectively and efficiently facilitated an unprecedented increase in the number of middle-class African Americans. As sweeping social and political changes placed fewer restrictions on social mobility, educational access, and residential patterns of African Americans, this expanded opportunity structure permitted more people of African descent to improve their socioeconomic status and enter the ranks of the middle class. According to the most recent U.S. census, the poverty threshold was $13,738 for a family of three and $17,603 for a family of four (U.S. Census Bureau, 2000). Anyone with income over the poverty threshold and below what is considered wealthy is considered to be within the middle class. Utilizing those guidelines to define class, a great many African Americans are defined as middle class. Sue and Sue (2003) remarked that the population of middle-class African Americans within the United States exceeded one-third of the entire population of African Americans.

A sociological standpoint

Ford (1997) described the African American middle class as a very diverse population comprised of individuals who are very close to the poverty line (the working poor) to individuals in the upper-middle and elite social classes. Essentially, the range here is from the poor to the affluent. These individuals are variable in their level of employment and employment status, their lifestyles as well as their material possessions. Despite this diversity, however, they all share one common thread. They embody the qualities of a strong work ethic, and orientation to achievement, racial pride, and adherence to societal norms (Sue & Sue, 2003). One element that has become apparent to the middle-class African American is a strong desire for social mobility and an action plan to achieve that mobility.

From a sociological standpoint, middle-class African Americans are seriously underrepresented in academia and through professional literature. There remains the stereotypical image of the African American population as a very uniform entity with the lion’s share of its constituents being poor and ignorant (uneducated). These stereotypical images serve to mitigate the efforts of the contemporary Civil Rights Movement. It is prudent that when examining issues related to race, culture, and socioeconomic status one realizes the complexity of these issues and treats them with sensitivity.

The paradoxical situation as described by Brown et al. paints a picture that proves to be somewhat limited when compared to the body of research present. It illustrates a condition of African Americans wherein the middle class is ever-expanding. If one takes the time to examine this claim one can see that the number of African Americans within the middle class is increasing and the racial socioeconomic gap is indeed decreasing when one simply looks at class but when one looks at the stratification within the middle class a different picture emerges. One can see that the majority of African American middle-class individuals fall within the lower third of the middle class. As one goes up the social ladder, the disparity in incomes between African Americans and their white counterparts remains wide (U.S. Census Bureau, 2000). Brown et. al. asserts that there is a dramatic change in the disparity of income as it relates to race. They asserted that African American income is closer to that of their white counterparts and attributes this to the increase in education among African-Americans. When one examines the statistics are they are one can see that the facts are more complicated than they seem. According to the most recent census, approximately 83.6% of all whites possess a minimum of a High school diploma as compared to 72.3% of their African American counterparts. 54.1% of all whites have attended college but did not graduate while 42.5% of all African Americans did also. 26.1% of all whites obtained a bachelor’s degree while 14.3% of their African American counterparts did. Finally, 9.5% of all whites obtained an advanced degree while 4.8% of their African-American counterparts did (U.S. Census Bureau–Educational Attainment Census Brief, 2000).

In examining this picture more closely, we can see that the gap between educational levels among African Americans and whites is quite narrow when one examines educational levels less than a Bachelor’s degree. However, when one examines the education of a Bachelor’s degree or higher a different picture emerges. The percentage of whites with a Bachelor’s degree or higher is almost twice that of their African-American counterparts. Is the gap closing? Once again we are faced with a paradox. It is accurate to say that it is indeed closing but it is also accurate to say that it is not. The current status of the gap needs to be explained in light of what the most accurate measure has to say. The gap is closing for individuals who have a level of education up until some college. For college graduates, the gap is still large and proves to be consistent throughout the years.

Conclusion

Finally, when one examines the two paradoxes presented in this paper, it is clear to see that on the surface the picture appears to be clear. It appears the African American middle class is larger than ever, however, when one examines the stratification of the middle-class one can see that the socioeconomic gap has not been a bridge to the degree that is reported. There has been some change in the socioeconomic status of African Americans but the lion’s share occurred between the indigent population and the lower middle class. A family of three with an income of as little as $15,000 can be considered middle class utilizing the guidelines of the United States Census Bureau. This fact effectively and efficiently served to skew the picture and contributed to the findings that there is a great paradox about the socioeconomic status of African Americans. Another claim made by Brown et. al. was that African-Americans are bridging the educational gap. This claim is a very optimistic one but it is very premature. I do see African Americans bridging the educational gap but it will some time. The Civil Rights movement indeed served to increase the opportunities afforded to African Americans but many African Americans fail to take advantage of this. Unfortunately, the majority of those individuals are indigent. This poses an interesting possibility are those individuals poor because they did not take advantage of the increased opportunities or did they fail to take advantage of the new opportunities because they are poor? This is a question that will be debated for some time to come.

References

Conley, D. (1999). Being Black, living in the red: Race, wealth and social policy in America. Berkeley, University of California Press.
Ford, D. (1997). Counseling middle-class African Americans. In C. Lee (Ed.), Multicultural issues in counseling: New approaches to diversity (2nd ed., pp. 81-107). Alexandria, VA, American Counseling Association.
Sue, D., & Sue, D. (2003). Counseling the culturally different:. Theory and practice (4th ed.). New York, John Wiley.
U.S. Census Bureau. (2000). Poverty in the United States: 2000. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.
U.S. Census Bureau. “Educational Attainment Census Brief.” U.S. Census Bureau. 2000. Web.

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