Do Black Middle Class People Experience More Racism?
Short answer: No.
Long answer: Institutional racism is a large problem, particularly in urban or rural public schools. Black children in such schools usually come from families that are poor, so better options for education such as private schools or moving to a better area are not open to them. So they are not getting an education equal to the education their suburban counterparts are getting.
I think just this alone means that the black poor or working class experiences more racism than the black middle class. When you are not educated or you have been under-educated and that wipes out a lot of opportunity for you. The black middle class (even though we also experience racism) because of education we know how to 'get along' for the most part. By this I mean we can get and work at professional jobs, stuff like that. I have had jobs with black co-workers who for the first time worked in a professional setting and could not deal with it. Members of the black middle and 'upper' classes can always move to another suburb or find another job or business opportunity. I'm not saying it is easy to do those things, but the black middle class is not going to upset the social order by doing these things since they actually benefit from it.
The black middle-class is also running away from problems that affect the black working class. I myself am a part of this. I moved out of the city of Cleveland seven years ago because of the schools. I panicked because it was time for my oldest son to go to kindergarten and he got wait-listed for 3 private schools; time was running out. I couldn't even see putting my baby into a school system that treated black boys as either future criminals at worst or future basketball players at best. I was so very frightened, and we were so broke from my daughter already being in a private school, we just ran out of Cleveland and into a suburb. Seven years later I know I wouldn't do any different, for truth. I wish I could say I would. I wish I was not part of the problem.
I have also quit or walked away from 'good' jobs just 'cause I didn't like the job or company...because I knew I could always get another job. Until folks get to know my politics/DIY attitude/whatever I seem non-threatening to most people of any color. I speak and read standard English, I know how to dress nice for a job, I have good manners and good body language. Sometimes working-class black folks get the shaft just on simple things like that.
I have worked with black co-workers who for the first time had an office job or were in a situation of working with computers for the first time. They exhibited this apprehension with working with white people and/or technology. I even had a black boss once who got transferred from a store where she managed just black people to one with a mixed employee base...she bent over backwards to accommodate her white subordinates and treated them with deference while being very nasty to her black subordinates. On the black co-workers I've had who struggled with their first office job, they were very fearful or hesitant to make mistakes in front of white people, to the point where they would pretend to know stuff rather than just ask and really learn the job. Racist white folks quickly figured this out this and so provided inadequate training or would just let them mess up so they'd have have an excuse to fire them. I tried to alert them and help out, but a lot of the time they had psyched themselves out so much that they couldn't make it; they just wouldn't try.
One time I had this job where they gave snazzy holiday parties, and this one woman who was up for promotion didn't know how to eat in public. She stuck her elbows all out and licked all over her fingers. She smacked her food and stuff. She didn't get the promotion and blamed it on racism. If she were white some other white person probably would have schooled her on that beforehand or took her aside during the party and told her to watch her table manners, but since she was black all the white managers just looked at her like she was crazy. I tried to talk to her when we were in the bathroom but she thought I was after her promotion and told me not be a hater.
*shrug*
I'm tired of shrugging. What can I do? What can we do, as a people? What are your suggestions?
Long answer: Institutional racism is a large problem, particularly in urban or rural public schools. Black children in such schools usually come from families that are poor, so better options for education such as private schools or moving to a better area are not open to them. So they are not getting an education equal to the education their suburban counterparts are getting.
I think just this alone means that the black poor or working class experiences more racism than the black middle class. When you are not educated or you have been under-educated and that wipes out a lot of opportunity for you. The black middle class (even though we also experience racism) because of education we know how to 'get along' for the most part. By this I mean we can get and work at professional jobs, stuff like that. I have had jobs with black co-workers who for the first time worked in a professional setting and could not deal with it. Members of the black middle and 'upper' classes can always move to another suburb or find another job or business opportunity. I'm not saying it is easy to do those things, but the black middle class is not going to upset the social order by doing these things since they actually benefit from it.
The black middle-class is also running away from problems that affect the black working class. I myself am a part of this. I moved out of the city of Cleveland seven years ago because of the schools. I panicked because it was time for my oldest son to go to kindergarten and he got wait-listed for 3 private schools; time was running out. I couldn't even see putting my baby into a school system that treated black boys as either future criminals at worst or future basketball players at best. I was so very frightened, and we were so broke from my daughter already being in a private school, we just ran out of Cleveland and into a suburb. Seven years later I know I wouldn't do any different, for truth. I wish I could say I would. I wish I was not part of the problem.
I have also quit or walked away from 'good' jobs just 'cause I didn't like the job or company...because I knew I could always get another job. Until folks get to know my politics/DIY attitude/whatever I seem non-threatening to most people of any color. I speak and read standard English, I know how to dress nice for a job, I have good manners and good body language. Sometimes working-class black folks get the shaft just on simple things like that.
I have worked with black co-workers who for the first time had an office job or were in a situation of working with computers for the first time. They exhibited this apprehension with working with white people and/or technology. I even had a black boss once who got transferred from a store where she managed just black people to one with a mixed employee base...she bent over backwards to accommodate her white subordinates and treated them with deference while being very nasty to her black subordinates. On the black co-workers I've had who struggled with their first office job, they were very fearful or hesitant to make mistakes in front of white people, to the point where they would pretend to know stuff rather than just ask and really learn the job. Racist white folks quickly figured this out this and so provided inadequate training or would just let them mess up so they'd have have an excuse to fire them. I tried to alert them and help out, but a lot of the time they had psyched themselves out so much that they couldn't make it; they just wouldn't try.
One time I had this job where they gave snazzy holiday parties, and this one woman who was up for promotion didn't know how to eat in public. She stuck her elbows all out and licked all over her fingers. She smacked her food and stuff. She didn't get the promotion and blamed it on racism. If she were white some other white person probably would have schooled her on that beforehand or took her aside during the party and told her to watch her table manners, but since she was black all the white managers just looked at her like she was crazy. I tried to talk to her when we were in the bathroom but she thought I was after her promotion and told me not be a hater.
*shrug*
I'm tired of shrugging. What can I do? What can we do, as a people? What are your suggestions?
Labels: class issues, racism
posted by Trula at
12:19 AM
5 Comments:
Now see I always thought it was just the opposite.
I've always thought that middle class blacks experience more racism for 2 reasons.
A. They are more aware of it as it occurs. Middle class blacks tend to have more education and therefore I think they are more in tune with the subtlties of racism than other black people.
B. They are around more whites. So they tend to get more of the always interesting, seemingly astonished comments like...
"Wow, you speak so well!"
or...
"How do you say fa-shiz-el (enter your fave ghetto word)like Snoop Dogg?"
and our classic....
"Ohhh, you are Cosby black, not like the others."
So even though you get along better and have more opportunities available to you, you still find yourself in these uncomfortable situations in combination to the obvious stuff.
My cousin and I have noticed that if you go to a suburban store and if you are in an aisle white people will not say "excuse me" to get past you. They will wait and stare. As if you have to check yourself and move for being in their way in the first place. My cousin is notorious for the in-aisle stare down, passive aggressive, intentionally b.s. maneuver untill someone either says excuse me or stomps off highly upset. You would be surprised how many people would prefer to frown and walk off than to simply say "Excuse me. Cute baby!" and walk by. You know we don't bite.
I really wish black people would stick together better. At least publicly. We really need to rebuild trust in each other.
Light against dark people. Poor vs non-poor. Those of us in the know need to reinvest, take note, and act when society does things to further oppress our people. What you are doing now is a wonderful way to start fixing things. You are not just shrugging your shoulders.
Thank you Nix for your comments! you make some very good points I had not considered.
and I appreciate that you feel what I am trying to do with this blog. We definitely need to help each other and build up our culture from within.
I'm about a year late but I think its pretty simple. First, I'm in camp that all racism is wrong. Its difficult to rank but here's my view: Would you rather have middle class problems or problems related to poverty?
As member of middle class, I 'm perceptive to and attuned to possible racism. ".i.e. that lady walked across the street when she saw me." I am also aware that unless I own a business, most of my bosses will be people who do not look like me; people who actively aim not to live or raise their children near people who look like me.
Now, if I were poorer and black, my problems would be more institutional. I would have no good schooling nearby, I would be at greater risks of being abused by the state and police entities, I would not have access to good grocery stores or public spaces. My life would definitely be worse.
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