here’s a post that i’ve been planning on writing for a really long time, but couldn’t find the words to keep it interesting enough to capture the attention of an audience. i will attempt to use pictures and videos and other media related links to help jazz up an otherwise tedious and immoderately drudging topic. mind you, this article isn’t meant to incite change. far from it in fact; it’s almost the opposite as i am attempting to explain why struggling for racial and social equality is just an exercise in futility. all the statistics are taken from the income, poverty, and health insurance coverage in the united states: 2005 report released by the us census bureau in 2006.
in 2005, there were an approximate 293,834,000 us citizens. the break down of the four major ethnic categories are as follows: white: 66.48%, black: 12.44%, asian: 4.17%, hispanic: 14.24%.
12.58% of all american citizens that year lived below the poverty level. that’s approximately 36,950,000 individuals. now, let’s see how this group breaks down ethnically. the report shows the following percentages: white: 43.92%, black: 24.81%, asian: 3.79%, hispanic: 25.35%.
for a nation founded upon an ideal of every man being equal, you would expect that socioeconomic statuses to be spread out equally among all the races. however, such is not the case. clearly, through the statistics alone, we can see that there is a disproportionate number of minorities who fall under the poverty level. blacks and hispanics are almost twice as likely to be under the poverty level, relative to their percentage within the total american population. white people are disproportionately above the poverty level. it’s clear that there is a significant correlation between race and socioeconomic status. you can find an even more detailed table of income statistic based on race and gender here. the question that remains to be asked is why this inequality exists.
the answer can be found in marxist economic theory which states that those who control economic power in a nation control social power as well. if white men come and colonize a nation and set up a new economic system, it can be inferred that white men will control the economy. as immigrants of various races join this nation, they will be subjected to the economic system inherent to the nation. now, in order to maintain an economy, one must maintain a strong labor force. without a strong labor force to man the blue collar workings of industry, that industry crumbles. the problem is that the labor force is not paid very well since their jobs usually apply to activities which do not require extensive mastery or experience. they can be easily replaced. if too many people are qualified for high level jobs with big salaries, they will all be attempting for a much smaller niche which cannot support them all. this is why america, and indeed every economic entity requires people who are willing to work in the labor force or who are simply unable to ascend any higher. how does one ensure that he can continue to amass a large enough labor force to maintain his industry? one must actively manipulate society to create that work force. louis althusser, a french marxist and theorist, describes what he calls an isa (ideological state apparatus). it is a complement to the rsa (repressive state apparatus). in order to maintain order, societies utilize both to domesticate its citizens. the repressive state apparatus is basically the law and those who enforce it. it is the force used to keep order. if there is an uprising or riot calling for change, the rsa may be used to quell the incident. however, repressive state apparatuses are expensive to maintain and almost impossible to use in controlling an entire population. thus, an ideological state apparatus is employed in order to indoctrinate the citizens into becoming complacent and productive citizens. everyone can agree that it is fair to allot rewards to the best man, but what if the system that allows for training is imbalanced, or what if two men are equal in their qualifications. if a child is raised in a poor family and that poor family can only afford to send him to a poor school, where he receives a poor education, that child will inevitably receive a poor job. however, because there is no favoritism given beyond qualifications, this result is fair and acceptable. thus, schools act as part of the isa, preparing you for an economic role in society. if a church preaches that you must live in a certain way, work in a certain way, spend in a certain way, it is an isa. if your parents raise you a certain way that promotes specific career opportunities, they are an example of the isa. the ideological state apparatus is anything which may impart an idea effecting your choices and abilities relating to the economy of the society you belong to.
so, because white men were the first in america to establish industries and control the economy, it is natural that they would hold a great portion of the higher paying jobs. when an immigrant arrives without the communication skills required to work in a service industry, they are made to work in the labor force, practicing the universally held ability to provide manual labor. history has even shown that before racist sentiments went out of fashion in the modern world, race was commonly used as a convenient excuse for labor designation. american slavery is the most notable example as plantation owners who required cheap manual labor subjugated black slaves on the principle that blacks were an inferior race, unfit for equal human rights. such ideology helped create the backbone of the budding american economy. by the time slavery was abolished, it was already too late. black people were brought to a new world, dominated by another race and given nothing to compete with. reconstruction failed to make the necessary social changes, and white people maintained their dominant jobs. the only difference now was that they needed to pay a small wage to their black workers. the black race was still relegated to menial physical labor. so why are minorities disproportionately poor? it’s because they need to be in order to fulfill the labor force requirements. it’s because rich white men do not want to give up their cushy jobs to facilitate a more balanced society. when society gives aid to the underprivileged, we cry foul and point out the inequality of that aid. it is because every black or hispanic man who gets into an ivy league school is one less white man who could have. are you willing to be the parent that allows that? are you willing to relegate your child to a menial life for the sake of social equality? of course not. who would? what many people do not realize is that in order to help the less fortunate, those who have fortune must make sacrifices. the problem with the nation is that too many people want change without sacrifice. you may be a liberal white male, partaking in noble social causes on your daddy’s watch, but at the end of the day, when you get your ivy league diploma, you will chase the big figure salaries, and when you get them, that’s one poor undereducated person you just took a job from. the mere fact that you went to an ivy league means you filled a spot an underprivileged person might have had. the mere fact that your mommy and daddy can afford to send you to college means they have jobs that underprivileged people could have had.
until now i have neglected a major statistical anomaly, which is the fairly balanced and equal treatment of asian americans and their economic standing. you might have noticed that asians were the only class whose poverty percentage closely matched their population percentage. if you checked the income table, you will have seen that they also have the highest average income of all the races. even big businesses are starting to take notice. why do asians not suffer from this failings of minority status? it is not because asians have an unusually strong work ethic or are smarter than other races. the answer is that the modern asian immigrant comes from moderately developed nations and only the best of them can really afford to migrate to america. this means that those who arrive are already considerably educated and moderately wealthy. consider that african americans are mostly descended from slaves who were involuntarily dragged across the atlantic to america. they had nothing to begin with and once released from bondage, were given nothing to start over with. simply put, they were left to fend for themselves as white men controlled the economy and society within which they struggled. it has taken them decade upon decade to slowly build up to where they are now, a status still far from being equal. asians who immigrated to america, like myself and my parents, did so after a great deal of planning and consideration, as well as a great deal of saving to help them get started after the move. my dad was a professor and my mom was a pediatrician, both of them earning a decent wage and both of them highly educated. they were highly motivated and extremely hardworking people. they could not retain their professions after moving to america, and worked menial jobs for many years while getting new educations. it was a very difficult endeavor, and very admirable to behold, but their previous education and saved money helped make the transition easier. a great many hispanic citizens come from destitute nations and have little money or education, but they can make the journey simply because of geographic convenience. traveling from central america and mexico into the united states can be accomplished a lot easier than from asia, so a great many of them can make the trip without much resources. once in america, they’re willing to take on menial labor because the income is still greater than that which they would have earned in their native countries.
i’m not saying that poor minorities are forced to remain poor, that they cannot climb the socital ladder and become wealthy individuals, but it would be completely ignorant not to recognize that for the poor, it is a much more difficult goal to achieve than for a rich white man, and that difference in difficulty is all it takes to keep entire social classes down. if you want to change things, you cannot just fight the inequality outright against a majority unwilling to abdicate their high-earning jobs for you. any change that happens must be subtle and fair. the best way is to work harder and better than white folk. teach your children to work harder and better. education is the only thing that will pick you out of the rut. the sad truth is that you and your children must sacrifice fun for hard work. you must overlook the decadent media portrayal of american life and realize what priorities are most important in attaining better jobs and better pay. unfortunately, a great many parents do not do this well enough and their children end up trying to fit in socially before they can economically, not realizing the cost of living like an american. the media (another powerful isa) has a great part in how the youth of america is brought up and without parental supervision, it will inevitably corrupt the work ethic that the underprivileged must cultivate in order to succeed beyond the prior generations. that, however, is an article for another day.
