Wealth Inequality And Racial Segregation

In his book “Being Black, Living in the Red”, Dalton Conley argues that asset accumulation is responsible for the wealth gap between blacks and whites. He claims that racial discrimination plays a small role in this disparity among post-Civil Rights generations. Instead, he asserts that factors such as parental net worth and education can determine black limitations. He also believes that a radical wealth based policy will address the disparity between the races. I agree with the author’s claims to a certain extent.

Along with racism’s effect on the economic status of communities, it also impacts African Americans in other aspects of the financial realm. As Peggy McIntosh explains in her essay, “White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Backpack,” she, as a white person, “can count on [her] skin color not to work against the appearance of financial reliability” (McIntosh). Thus, institutionalized racism still makes it more difficult for Blacks to become financially stable compared to whites. According the Pew Research Center, the net worth of a white person was 13 times greater than that of a Black person in 2013, even though slavery had been abolished nearby 150 years prior (Fry, Kochlar). Likewise, in 1970 about 4 percent of whites and 62 percent of Blacks

In this casebook the authors contribute their ideas on what might have lead to our separations of classes and inequality among our world. Henry Louis Gates Jr. states in his article that the research that he has obtained has concluded in the fact that former slaves in the 1920’s, when African Americans were allowed to own property, had obtained land from the Southern Homestead Act and led to having a successful descendents. On the other hand he states that if the poor African Americans were given land now that they were not given long ago the community would improve and they would work harder to achieve a better life. I agree that some of the people given land and ownership would try to improve their life with education and harder work but

One of the factors that contributed to this wealth gad was the federal housing policies. The policy permitted redlining and discrimination in finances, and homeowners insurance, and sales, this reflected the unequal rates of the house ownerships that we see today. During this period in the U.S. blacks, Mexicans, Chinese and Japanese immigrants were the most targeted when it came to employment and property ownership. Many African American lost their homes during the foreclosure during the 1930’s and 1940’s, they were victim of deception and fraud. In the south many African American were the victims of abusive agriculture which kept them always in

The article states “that income alone cannot explain, nor would it likely end, the segregation that has defined American cities and suburbs for generations” (Eligon and Gebeloff). Wealthy African American families are seen as still living in poverty stricken areas, even with their large income salaries (Eligon and Gebeloff). Essentially, there is a larger factor that is affecting where African Americans live. The many previous years of racism and ethnic discrimination are ultimately determining the location African Americans stay. When African Americans older generations could not buy an enjoyable house and pass down their riches, the newer generations have a difficult time putting themselves in a position to buy a house in a nice neighborhood (Eligon and Gebeloff). If an African American family is fortunate enough to live in a more upscale neighborhood, they are not always accepted by the members of the community (Eligon and Gebeloff). My aunt has recently moved into a suburban, mostly white neighborhood, and I have seen this taken place first hand. Within the first few months of their move in, my aunt and her family would receive questionable looks from neighbors as if they were not welcoming their newfound neighbor. While racism from neighbors is a large factor, there is another important element of racism that takes

In Thomas Shapiro’s “The Hidden Cost of Being African American”, Shapiro goes in depth on how wealth in America is disproportionately dispersed between different nationalities. Mainly between Caucasians and African Americans. Shapiro has helped paint the image of wealth inequality and has shown how this is even more staggering than the wage gap between African Americans and Caucasians. Some of the theories he indirectly uses in his book and that I will be exemplifying are generational wealth and support systems, education, and the idea of how poverty only begets more poverty.

America has a lengthy history on how it became the powerful country it is today, and although its history can be interrupted in many ways (depending who you ask) one thing that is for certain is that wealth has yet to be distributed equally amongst minorities. According to the article “Income inequality matter; Extreme gap in wealth makes society unstable.” Philip Meyer claims that the wealth gap between whites and minorities has existed since Ronald Reagans’ term of presidency (A9). Although Ronald Reagans’ term ended many years ago the mistakes that caused this imbalance of wealth (and its aftermath) while he was in office remains almost if not exactly the same as when the problem initially began (Meyer A9). The wealth gap continues to target minorities and is affecting our communities at an alarming rate, however, many attempts have been made to reduce its existence but the factors of income inequality, unemployment rates and discrimination before and after our recent 2007 recession prevents our country from eliminating such a toxic problem.

With this intention, banks and real-estate agents will no longer be readily available in urban communities, but in suburban regions. The reasoning for this stem back to the overall goal of keeping African-Americans separate from whites. Now, however, without banks and real-estate agents, urban communities do not have the same privilege as someone from a suburban household. This is viewed through the concepts of social inequality and Eurocentrism because of the unwillingness of whites; there is an unequal distribution of prestige regarding African-American rights.

Economically speaking, not all men and women are created equal within America. After reading Doubly Divided, it is clear that white people have always maintained a wealthier status above non-white groups throughout this country’s history. Even in today’s society, many Native Americans, African Americans, Latinos, and Asian Americans have high poverty rates and low valued assets when compared to whites, clearly exhibiting a racial wealth gap. However, the Federal Government has greatly contributed to this wealth gap over the last 200 years through a process I call the “take and prevent method”. For example, large amounts of land were taken from Native Americans and given to white farmers under the Homestead Act of 1862. With a major asset gone, the government prevented any further wealth accumulation by forcing Native Americans onto reservations, using corrupted trust fund accounts, and assimilating them into white culture (through the 1887 Dawes Act). As an additional example, the discontinuation of the Freedman’s Bureau and an overturned civil rights act meant that African Americans had their land and rights to ownership taken away as well. And as a measure of prevention, governmental programs such as unemployment, Social Security, and

According to Forbes, “obtaining a bachelor’s isn’t enough for a black or Hispanic person to escape the racial wealth gap. The return on investment in college is much higher for whites than for blacks and Hispanics: A white family at the median sees a return of $55,869 from completing a four-year degree. A black family sees $4,846 and an Hispanic family $4,191...Additionally, black and Latino families earn a lower return on their incomes, meaning they are less able to turn each additional dollar of income into wealth. A white family will typically see a return of $19.51 for each dollar earned, while a black family will see only $4.80 in return and Latino families

Ben and I strongly affirm resolved: The United States federal government ought to pay reparations to African Americans.

Even though black people have descendants who suffered much more inequality issues than they have faced nowadays, they still have to deal with this historical problem in different ways. The wealth gap between whites and blacks is huge, “every extra dollar of income earned by whites generates $5.19 in new wealth over 25 years while another dollar of income for a black family adds a mere 69 cents to its bottom line (Starkman)”. These numbers show us that we still live in a segregated

The unemployment rate in the African American community is higher than any other group in American society. Institutionalized racism and unequal education opportunities have contributed to the unemployment rate. There are various reasons why the unemployment rate is greater in the African American communities. Consequently, Blacks are attaining higher education at a rate lower than other groups in society, and lack opportunities in the workforce. These are just two of the elements that cause the wealth gap between Blacks and Whites in America’s financial system. African men and women were brought to America for slavery. Once the slaves were freed, they had to find work and enter into the American workforce with little or no education. Therefore, countless Blacks were forced to take lower level jobs in American society. As a result, racism and inequality became institutionalized injustices that widen the wealth gap. Scores of Blacks were denied the opportunity to purchase properties and to attain assets and wealth. The majority of Whites do not know Black people’s reality and financial obstacles because White people do not face housing discrimination or scrutiny in the workplace. White people have benefited from the inequality that minorities face in the United States financial system. According to Hilary Shelton Deputy Director, Washington Bureau, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People “because of affirmative action, fairness is

What is racial inequality? Racial inequality is discrepancies in the opportunities and treatment of people based solely on their race. Racial inequality is a serious issue that is often discussed in the American criminal justice system. Although racial discrimination is present in the criminal justice system, some people use the words inequality, discrimination, racism, and profiling loosely and do not understand how truly complex it is to prove that there actually is racial inequality present in the criminal justice system. Daniel P Mears, Joshua C. Cochran, and Andrea M. Lindsey article Offending and Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Criminal Justice: A Conceptual Framework for Guiding Theory and Research and Informing Policy illustrates

The barriers that separate men have existed for centuries. Race, class, status, these are all ideas that have created a divide among humans. This divide creates competition and tension. Throughout the history of the legal system, justice has been used to validate slavery and other forms of racial inequality. Our system now has changed, but the basic concept has remained the same. According to one study, the judicial system was invented by whites to protect whites and keep people of color at bay (Constitutional Rights Foundation, 2017, p1). This idea of preserving a one superior racial system resulted in a bias still existent today.