The American Dream was presented to as a guarantee to all that believed in it, that, with hard work and perseverance, anyone can succeed in this land of milk and honey. In this world of the Cosby Show, black networks–even a black President–it is tempting to assume that the prospects of African-Americans are better than they ever was. Conservative pundits are quick to point to President Obama as proof that the conversation about racism in America is over, that Dr. King’s dream has come to fruition. The truth is more daunting. Current Census figures have suggested that the percentage of African-Americans living below the Federal Poverty Line is the greatest in thirty years, and that the disparity between the wealthy and the poor is greatest within the African-American community. With a rising rate of hiring discrimination and public displays of bigotry becoming more rampant, a proper conversation about the role of racism in modern policy planning is long overdue. However, until America accepts the fact that it has a problem, this wound can do nothing more than fester, at the suffering of millions as a cost.
According to the United States Census Bureau, and as reported on the website “Booker Rising”, the median black household income is $33,916. This is compared to a median for all-Americans of $50,233. The per capita income for African-Americans is $18,428, compared to an all-American per capita of $26,804. 24.5% of all African-Americans live below the poverty line, as compared to 12.5% of all Americans.
According to a joint report by CareerBuilder.com and Kelly Services–a leading temporary employment agency–3 in 10 African-American workers have experienced discrimination or unfair treatment based on race at work. 27% of those interviewed in this national survey stated that this discrimination happened every week, and 76% of those who have self-identified as being discriminated against reported that the discriminator was never held accountable. One in ten of those interviewed also indicated that they were directly called a racial slur at work.
In a 2001-2002 research project conducted by the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business, 50% of studied employers showed evidence of discriminating against black applicants based on perceived indicators such as name, education, experience, and even EEO status. The perceived educational and professional credentials for these “flagged” applicants were diminished to a greater degree of those of perceived white applicants, with only 9% more African-Americans with a higher quality resume receiving callbacks over African-Americans with lower quality resumes, as compared to 30% for white applicants.
While all of this may be shocking, this is actually a very old story.
For years, the Urban League, the NAACP, the ACLU, and celebrities such as Tavis Smiley and Dr. Cornel West have argued that there is a tangible disparity between the prosperity of the nation and the economic reality of the African-American community, and that popular media perceptions that modern day blacks are prosperous are misleading and blatantly false. While it is true that the average African-American family’s worth is twice what it was in 1960, the increase in wealth pales to the rate for the rest of America. It is easy to point to Oprah, the Williams sisters, Jay-Z, or the Obamas and say that the African-American community is healthy and vibrant, and it is; but, here’s food for thought: the per-capita GDP of the average African American is $22,062.67, which is roughly the same as in the Czech Republic, Greece, or Kuwait. In the wealthiest nation in the history of the world, this is unacceptable.
This topic makes many in white America itch–no one wants to be call a racist, no one wants to be called a bad person–and when facts like these are presented, the more conservative policy makers tend to assume a defensive posture. The price of this discomfort is more than eight million African-Americans living below the poverty line. That is four million children starving, desperately trying to find enough food to eat. That’s one and a half million seniors who must choose what is more important: their next meal or the medication they need to survive; and that is two and a half million adults under-employed–desperate to scratch out an existence in a land that would rather ignore them. This is the reality of the conversation America refuses to have.
It’s time for a heart-to-heart chat.