“Beyond Guns and God”: How the white working class views race in the U.S.
Posted September 21st, 2012 by James DeWolf PerryCategory: Living consequences
The non-partisan Public Religion Research Institute has just released a survey of white, working-class Americans which presents a fairly complicated, nuanced picture of this demographic, which comprises one-third (36%) of all Americans.
The survey, and the institute’s report, Beyond Guns and God: Understanding the Complexities of the White Working Class in America, refute a variety of stereotypes held by both the left and right of the white working class, which the researchers defined as white, non-Hispanic Americans without four-year college degrees and holding non-salaried jobs. The survey shows, for instance, that white, working-class Americans do not tend to align with the Tea Party, are not generally motivated by social issues like abortion or same-sex marriage, do not vote always against their economic interests, and do not support unrestricted free-market capitalism.
One area where the survey does seem to confirm stereotypes of the white working class, however, is on the subject of race.
“Reverse discrimination”
According to the survey results, fully 60% of white working-class Americans believe that discrimination against whites is as big a problem as discrimination against blacks and other minorities. By contrast, only 39% of white, college-educated Americans believe this to be true.
Views on this subject differ significantly within the white working class, however: those in the South are more likely (69%) to believe this than those in the Northeast (55%), and those who are Republican are twice as likely (66%) to believe this as Democrats (33%). There is a modest age gap within the white working class, as well, with seniors more likely (51%) to believe this than Millennials (40%).
Paying too much attention to minorities
Meanwhile, 49% of white working-class Americans say they believe that the government has paid too much attention to blacks and other minorities in recent decades. This compares with only 32% of white college-educated Americans.
Here, again, there are significant differences within the white working class: 58% in the South believe this, while only 40% in the West do; 57% of Republicans believe this, while Democrats are less than half as likely to do so (26%).
What does this say about the white working class?
For anyone who believes that discrimination against white Americans, for instance, is simply not as serious a problem as discrimination against black Americans and other racial minorities, it is naturally disturbing that white, working-class Americans are so likely to be convinced that this is true.
These statistics have profound implications for efforts to build public will for racial justice in this country, including efforts to promote such basic steps as reducing the overt racial prejudice researchers easily find today in education, employment, housing, health care, and so many other aspect of life. It is also difficult to interpret these survey results as anything other than a powerful indictment of the mass media consumed by many Americans, and of political, social, and, in many cases, religious message being sent which reinforce powerful myths about the history and legacy of race in this society.
However, I think that one important message from the figures cited above is that the white working class in the United States simply does not differ markedly from the rest of the white population in terms of attitudes towards race.
The truth is that when it comes to the beliefs of white Americans on issues like government paying too much attention to minorities, there really isn’t all that much difference between the working class (49%) and those with college educations (32%). Similarly, the figures on belief in reverse discrimination on the part of white, working-class seniors (51%) and young Millennials (40%) belies the idea that there is a sea change taking place between generations, at least within the working class.
In other words, white Americans of all classes and educational backgrounds are still far too likely to accept the pervasive myths which have long dominated our national discourse about race: myths about the role of slavery in the founding and early success of the United States; myths about the role of racial discrimination in shaping opportunities for black Americans through the generations; and myths about the continuing presence of racial prejudice and systemic racism in our society today.
In this, our country seems to be far less divided than the pundits would have us believe.
September 21st, 2012 at 1:46 pm
I am a 39-year-old public ivy-educated white male who worked blue-collar jobs for several years out of college and can vouch that reverse discrimination does indeed exist in the workplace. I am definitely a victim of it. Many times I saw slack minorities complain to the HR departments if they did not get a job they applied for, even though their work ethics were substandard and they were not educated, and the HR department would give in. I was also denied admission to UVA when a senior in high school 21 years ago but an African-American male with a juvenile detention record, who only received a general diploma while I had an advanced one, got accepted, and when I had the audacity to express disbelief, I was chastised. A white male definitely has to overcome the most in the workplace and in college admissions, and is more likely to be fired, laid off, or denied a promotion because of the tendency for employers to be scared of litigation or racist labels. To this end, I hope that history will one day celebrate my kind, the unfortunate white males who happened to be born at a time when things were reversing and are punished for the sins of our ancestors even though we lived righteous lives. Now I am a teacher in an urban school system, and I have to work much harder than a black or female teacher because I am much more prone to complaints, accusations, or disrespect. On the first day of school, when students don't even know me, they will talk over me no matter how often I ask for quiet, yet as soon as an African-American staff member or female staff member asks for quiet, they immediately become silent. This is definitely racism and me having to pay for what my people did.