2008-02-29
Racial Divide in Detroit?
This article asserts a black-white "racial divide" in the Detroit area, based on discrepancy between black and white average levels of education, income, wealth, and incarceration. But for black and white people who make the same life choices, there is no discrepancy.
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• Some employers still "steer" minority applicants into the worst jobs; real estate agents send them to less desirable neighborhoods and mortgage lenders accept fewer applications than those from similar whites.
• Minorities receive longer sentences than whites for the same crimes.
What do these two points have to do with those "same life choices"?
"It's not new to me, (but) it's something suburbanites want to ignore and say we alone are responsible for the deplorable plight of the city, which is not true."
You and I agree on some points, Paul, but we disagree on a lot. You see no racial discrimination behind these disparities. I acknowledge that all of the disparities aren't due to racism, and are about life choices.
Regardless, this is the reality, and it has to be fixed. I have serious problems with a city like Detroit closing public schools instead of repairing them when there is so much unemployment and poverty. If your people can't get work, the answer is education.
How can there be so much unemployment when there is so much work to do?
I agree that there exists some anti-black racism. But if it manifests only as whites "steering" blacks, this seems like a very easy obstacle for a people who have overcome so much more. And indeed, blacks who assert themselves seem to have no trouble, including all of our mutual friends, living where they hell they want and having very affluent jobs.
Andrew buys houses all the times, and says he never has a problem.
Why do we still have this conversation?
There are certainly examples of Black folks who do well. Obviously, Blacks can overcome whatever adversity that lies in front of us.
That we have come this far in spite of America's racism is quite an accomplishment.
But Andrew isn't overcoming any black-specific obstacles. If anti-black white racism in housing merely amounts to "steering" by some realtors, then it is no great accomplishment to overcome such a minor impediment. Same for merely not having babies outside of marriage, or choosing not to commit street crimes and to behave respectfully and productively in school.
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