4 ms·

As a foreigner, I have to ask, is life very different for non-white working classes? Is it better, worse or equally suck in different ways?

nkurz 11y ago
It's dangerous to generalize, but as a white American originally from a poor rural part of the US with few minorities, I'd say that the regional and economic differences usually trump the racial differences. In most communities being white would be an advantage, but the rich/poor divide is often greater than the white/non-white divide. Prejudice certainly plays a role in the opportunities people have, but I think that may be more of a hindrance in more lucrative and prestigious positions than for general labor. I'd guess the difference is also larger for the unemployed than the employed.
- alphonsegaston 11y ago
  I'm from a similar background and this is unfortunately untrue. The average white household, for example, has something like 12 times the wealth as the average black household, a near historic high. What this means is that despite an appearance of greater equality in some circumstances, minority populations are still in a much more tenuous position. A white household is more likely to survey an inevitable crisis like losing a job or problems with health than their black counterpart. http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/12/12/racial-wealth-gaps-great-recession/ http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/12/12/racial-wealt...
  - mason240 11y ago
    You simply can't in good faith compare the averages of the two groups because the range is different. You are treating a range of people from destitute trailer park residents to Bill Gates as a homogeneous group.
    - goldbrick 11y ago
      Oh brother. Jay-Z and Floyd Mayweather are black, why don't you complain about them being counted?
VLM 11y ago
The crime stats are wildly different and in the rural poor white area my mom retired to (life is actually excellent there if you have retirement money) the crime blotter is exclusively alcohol and drug related or inspired or "powered by", whereas all manner of criminality goes on in the non-white areas. Aside from type of crime, there's also intense "blame the victim" in the poor white areas, because "sure he was wrong to hit you, but you've grown up with him for decades how can you pretend not to know he's the village's violent drunk, best avoided?" or "sure the guy who crashed into you was drunk and thats wrong, but you've lived here for decades how can you not know after dark the roads are only for drunks?" Whereas "most" non-white area crime is anonymous, someone just walked down the wrong street or parked in the wrong spot or walked into a gunfight they had nothing to do with. Generally speaking affirmative action means the non-whites have a chance for the future even if they don't deserve it leading to optimism, and also means that at least some of the whites who do deserve it won't get a future, leading to pessimism which also does wonders for race relations (sarcasm).

nkurz 11y ago

It's dangerous to generalize, but as a white American originally from a poor rural part of the US with few minorities, I'd say that the regional and economic differences usually trump the racial differences. In most communities being white would be an advantage, but the rich/poor divide is often greater than the white/non-white divide. Prejudice certainly plays a role in the opportunities people have, but I think that may be more of a hindrance in more lucrative and prestigious positions than for general labor. I'd guess the difference is also larger for the unemployed than the employed.

alphonsegaston 11y ago
I'm from a similar background and this is unfortunately untrue. The average white household, for example, has something like 12 times the wealth as the average black household, a near historic high. What this means is that despite an appearance of greater equality in some circumstances, minority populations are still in a much more tenuous position. A white household is more likely to survey an inevitable crisis like losing a job or problems with health than their black counterpart. http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/12/12/racial-wealth-gaps-great-recession/ http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/12/12/racial-wealt...
- mason240 11y ago
  You simply can't in good faith compare the averages of the two groups because the range is different. You are treating a range of people from destitute trailer park residents to Bill Gates as a homogeneous group.
  - goldbrick 11y ago
    Oh brother. Jay-Z and Floyd Mayweather are black, why don't you complain about them being counted?

VLM 11y ago

The crime stats are wildly different and in the rural poor white area my mom retired to (life is actually excellent there if you have retirement money) the crime blotter is exclusively alcohol and drug related or inspired or "powered by", whereas all manner of criminality goes on in the non-white areas. Aside from type of crime, there's also intense "blame the victim" in the poor white areas, because "sure he was wrong to hit you, but you've grown up with him for decades how can you pretend not to know he's the village's violent drunk, best avoided?" or "sure the guy who crashed into you was drunk and thats wrong, but you've lived here for decades how can you not know after dark the roads are only for drunks?" Whereas "most" non-white area crime is anonymous, someone just walked down the wrong street or parked in the wrong spot or walked into a gunfight they had nothing to do with. Generally speaking affirmative action means the non-whites have a chance for the future even if they don't deserve it leading to optimism, and also means that at least some of the whites who do deserve it won't get a future, leading to pessimism which also does wonders for race relations (sarcasm).