In the article "Income gap between black and white families grow", Stephen Ohlemacher describes the trend of the incomes of black workers rising at a slower rate than those of white workers. It is very startling to learn that "[i]ncomes among black men have actually declined in the past three decades, when adjusted for inflation. They were offset only by gains among black women" (Ohlemacher 1). Indeed, it is also true that "[i]n 2004, a typical black family had an income that was 58 percent of a typical white family's. In 1974, median black incomes were 63 percent those of whites" (Ohlemacher 1). These figures are staggering. It's amazing to think that black incomes are actually declining in the post- civil rights era. Part of the reason that this fact is so unknown is due to inflation. It is easy to see that income levels- both for black workers and white workers- are rising. If one does not take inflation into account, they will not know of the discrepancy. Because of inflation, it is hard to see that white workers' wages rise faster and to a greater degree than black workers' wages. This is a large problem and it is unfortunate that it is so often overlooked by so many.
Ohlemacher explains that the wage inconsistency is due to "...inadequate schools in black neighborhoods, workplace discrimination and too many black families with only one parent" (Ohlemacher 1). These causes, of course, are often overlooked and even when they are recognized they are not fixed. In her article "White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack", Peggy McIntosh discussed the difference in mindset between whites and blacks. According to McIntosh, whites can see that blacks are not privileged (for example, they understand workplace discrimination and inadequate educational opportunities extended to blacks). However, they cannot see their own privilege (McIntosh 1). Thus, although policymakers may see that blacks are disadvantaged, they will be unwilling to see themselves as overly advantaged. In trying to correct the problem of wage discrepancy, they will perhaps try and give blacks more privileges but, by not recognizing how white privilege hurts blacks, they will only be solving half of the problem. Because whites will not recognize their additional privileges, blacks will, in the long run, continue to be at a disadvantage.
Indeed, this income discrepancy affects blacks in ways not immediately obvious. Alice Walker describes this in her story "In Search of our Mother's Gardens". According to Walker, such things as creativity and artistic ability can be affected by poverty and oppression. She feels that the world lacks lots of beauty and art because it deprived potential artists of means in which to express themselves. Poor blacks (who, as Ohlemacher's article shows, are now and will continue to be more numerous than poor whites) inevitably lack free time. It is likely that in these families both parents have to work. When the workday ends, it is the matriarch who has to feed the family and clean the house. Thus, black women are especially affected by poverty. Because of this, they do not have the time or energy to be the creative artists that they could have been, if given that privilege. Many find one way of another of expressing themselves creatively (like through gardening or quilting) but many others are forever silenced (Walker 1). This is another way in which the ever-increasing (if veiled) poverty of blacks is detrimental to both the blacks themselves and to society as a whole.