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I observe that the article starts out talking about closing coal mines and the decline of manufacturing jobs. As a white person, it sounds to me like the white

by rotexo 9y ago

I observe that the article starts out talking about closing coal mines and the decline of manufacturing jobs. As a white person, it sounds to me like the white people interviewed for this article face declining economic prospects (understandably of concern), notice an increased abundance of people of color around them, and then feel angry about the people of color. Emotions are of course not rational things, but I don't really understand the leap there. After all, it seems like racial disparities between whites and people of color still exist, with whites on top (https://news.stanford.edu/2017/06/16/report-finds-significant-racial-ethnic-disparities/ https://news.stanford.edu/2017/06/16/report-finds-significan...). So the real wealth transfer seems to be from low-income whites to high-income whites. Bear in mind, I don't think that's a good thing at all. Indeed, it seems like the antipathy would be better directed at the wealthy, rather than people of color. Or the energy would be better spent lobbying for help transitioning economically away from dying industries like coal power. But somehow this nebulous notion of racial pride gets dragged into the conversation instead. I suppose that's just people being people, but it doesn't leave me too optimistic about our prospects for a more peaceful and sane future.

kej 9y ago
Your comment reminds me of this story told by Bill Moyers about LBJ: We were in Tennessee. During the motorcade, he spotted some ugly racial epithets scrawled on signs. Late that night in the hotel, when the local dignitaries had finished the last bottles of bourbon and branch water and departed, he started talking about those signs. “I’ll tell you what’s at the bottom of it,” he said. “If you can convince the lowest white man he’s better than the best colored man, he won’t notice you’re picking his pocket. Hell, give him somebody to look down on, and he’ll empty his pockets for you.” It makes sense today, too. If the wealthy can convince the poor that their hardships are caused by immigrants, then the newly poor won't consider how much of their previous wealth is being concentrated in a few hands.
- rotexo 9y ago
  YES to that LBJ quote. I seem to recall also reading a similar observation backed up quite thoroughly with statistics in Michelle Alexander’s The New Jim Crow.

by rotexo 9y ago

kej 9y ago

Your comment reminds me of this story told by Bill Moyers about LBJ: We were in Tennessee. During the motorcade, he spotted some ugly racial epithets scrawled on signs. Late that night in the hotel, when the local dignitaries had finished the last bottles of bourbon and branch water and departed, he started talking about those signs. “I’ll tell you what’s at the bottom of it,” he said. “If you can convince the lowest white man he’s better than the best colored man, he won’t notice you’re picking his pocket. Hell, give him somebody to look down on, and he’ll empty his pockets for you.” It makes sense today, too. If the wealthy can convince the poor that their hardships are caused by immigrants, then the newly poor won't consider how much of their previous wealth is being concentrated in a few hands.

rotexo 9y ago
YES to that LBJ quote. I seem to recall also reading a similar observation backed up quite thoroughly with statistics in Michelle Alexander’s The New Jim Crow.