I was reading W.E.B Du Bois’ excerpt from The Philadelphia Negro with a degree of awe. He wrote this article in 1899. That’s almost 70 years before the civil rights movement yet it read almost as if it could have been written in 1964. This article was written post reconstruction without extensive hindsight knowledge of how freemen will be treated differently from Jews or Italians yet he successfully foreshadows problems that will haunt blacks for years to come. The change that Du Bois seeks wont come within Du Bois’ lifetime yet he points out the inequalities and tries to change through print that which most people see as common place and will continue to do so for a long time to come. Du Bois was way ahead of his time. At this period in our nation’s history the Irish were still not considered white. As for blacks, reconstruction had just come to a close and aspirations for a full integration into society were still high.
Reconstruction had succeeded in creating education for blacks along with more job opportunities. There were even blacks elected to public office during this particular time. One would hope and assume that the integration would be going well and progress onward. Du Bois had the foresight to point out that even though Jews and Italians lived in slums just like blacks and were considered outsiders, blacks were not in the same category. Du Bois indeed knew that even though integration was supposed to be progressing it had, in fact, stopped and began to regress. He sites that “[with]…Negroes the segregation is more conspicuous [than that of Italians or Jews].” Blacks would not enjoy the same “luxuries” as some outsiders like Jews, Italians or Irish. Du Bois also had a lot of foresight to be able to point out that “no mater how well trained a Negro may be, or how fitted for work of any kind he cannot in the ordinary course of competition hope to be much more than a menial servant.” I am very surprised that at this time Du Bois was already able to make a statement like that. It is not ambiguous in any way. He does not think it is possible for a black to escape the shackles of servitude even with the freedoms that were bestowed upon all people with the 13th,14th and 15th amendments. To me this strikes me as radical thinking when I think about the fact that reconstruction had done so much for newly freeded slaves and their children’s expectations.
As for the act of getting work itself Du Bois points out that whites expect less of blacks so when a black tries to excel and does men patronize him. Slavery had burned the image of a lower class citizens into the minds of all whites. But what about other non-whites such as Jews? Du Bois manages to differentiate other minorities from blacks by saying that blacks were expected to fail. Italians, Irishmen and Jews were not. In my honest opinion, I believe Du Bois was implicitly saying that it wasn’t even worth trying because you wont succeed because the enviroment was not accepting yet. To conclude, I simply found this reading pessimistically progressive. While the nation of blacks hoped for equality and worked towards it Du Bois was the sobering voice that pointed out the bleak truth. Blacks were not yet Americans and wouldn’t be for many years to come.
I also applaud Du Bois for his foresight into the civil rights struggles blacks had yet to face, but I don’t think he wrote this to resign blacks to their plight. I see it as more of a wakeup call to those people in power who, like you said, were probably feeling pretty good about the progress made toward African American civil rights. For those wondering why, many years after their emancipation, so many African American communities had not managed to pull themselves out of the ghetto, Du Bois provided a pretty compelling answer.
I don't think what Dubois had to write was progressive in the sense that he was 'ahead of his time.' It's hard to believe that since Blacks had to endure discrimination, prejudice, oppression, and inequality for hundreds of years. What's so progressive about this to me is that this ethnography was even published! What a great feat for Dubois as a Black man during this time and he really pushes the envelope for Black people to be seen and treated as equals.
Du Bois points out in his section 'Color Prejudice' the actual problems that people of color faced in terms of prejudice, because it had been widely known to exist, but commonly misunderstood as to how this is manifested or how 'influential' it is. It is clear through his listing of circumstances that cause a negative attitude in so many African-Americans what the actual problems are. They include the inability to get work despite qualifications, the low wages or working conditions due to exploitation of the competitive job market for blacks, the higher cost of poor housing, and other social inequalities stemming from racism that become manifest as simple difficulties in maintaining relationships with any white person, specifically one who could offer a job position. The other thing to note is the fact that the more trust, honor, and respectability of the job, the less likely the opportunity for one in power to give a negro even the chance to show his performance. Early African-Americans were inable to do their best because of being kept at a sub-society level, and one of the main problems was that their stereotypes of incompetence were thought of as the mass or majority of blacks, though for many years they had successfully filled many trades where they were allowed to, in the south, particularly, as Du Bois says on page 124, right column, third paragraph.
This may be incredibly off of the topic, but I think an interesting thing to look at, can be seen through the caparison of race relations between blacks and whites in Du Bois' era compared to race relations in contemporary society. During this time Blacks were frustrated because they had to deal with job discrimination. Today, blacks are still dealing with institutional discrimination, even after America outlawed it. In my opinion, the intentions behind outlawing discrimination were good, but it created a perpetuating ideology that every person, no matter which race, is given equal opportunity.
WEB Du Bois' writing and ideas from "The Philadelphia Negro" are still relevant in today's society. While society may think that such prejudices and discriminations are on the decline, they are still present at an alarming rate. Difficulties seem to be the most prevalent in the work force, which in turn affects credit scores.
It is very difficult for a black person to initially get a job. Even when a black person is able to obtain a job, the earnings are lower than that of a white person, and it is difficult to maintain that job due to these prejudices. Promotions are nearly nonexistent, or quite rare to blacks.
While I am unsure if race still affects rent rates (since they seem to be standardized), low income and credit information may now create the same effects. Credit is now a highly influential determinant of interest rates, insurance rates, and much more. The worse a credit score is (from not being able to pay the high bills), the more an individual pays in the long run. It is a vicious cycle that individuals and families get themselves trapped in. So, in theory, since wages for blacks are lower, it could be more difficult to pay bills, which in turn increases their overall expenditures in interest payments, higher insurance rates, and other increased cost due to poor credit. Credit history takes time to repair; if individuals begin with poor credit, it can take years to repair.
In places of business, workers have the opportunity to discriminate against customers. While this is illegal and highly discouraged, supervisors are not always present to watch over the shoulder of every employee. As Du Bois said in his article, employees tend to provide poorer service to any race other than whites. This concept of racial discrimination is also prevalent around the world. Interracial discrimination is not only committed against blacks, but between various races across the globe. While I was in Venezuela, there were certain resorts and places of business that were racist toward me and other Americans. This was a very eye-opening and humbling experience to see the discrimination that several people go through in the United States; we had never really experienced such discrimination. In the United States, prejudice against blacks and "minority" groups is very prevalent.
To further reiterate the arguments in Du Bois' article, some research of Devah Pager seems to be quite relevant. Pager's recent studies demonstrate strong discrimination taking place in the work force. She studies racial stratification in relation to the labor force, among other topics. One of her studies focused on felony convictions on job applications. Her findings were utterly disturbing. She found that white men with a FELONY listed on their applications were MORE LIKELY to get a job offer or a call-back than black men with NO FELONY on their application. This clearly emphasizes and reiterates Du Bois' points about discrimination, especially in the work force. It demonstrates that, in today's society, there is still a high amount of discrimination and prejudice that affects everyday life for many individuals and families.
This ethnography was to show what the true employment (and in turn economic and financial) situation of the Philadelphia Negro is, which is not limited to the group of study but is extended to their physical environment and the "far mightier social environment-the surrounding world custom"(pg 120). DuBois notes that this group is not only looking to maintain a decent standard of living but wants to reach a higher one. He presents a situation where Blacks are driven from many occupations, not from a lack of education but because of a lack of employment opportunity. DuBois gives many examples in this essay of well-educated and highly skilled Black men and women who cannot find work because they are Black.
What I see in this essay could be the beginnings of an argument for affirmative action. DuBois is showing how racism is alive and well, even if law does not prohibit it. Here racism is institutionalized through (in part) by public opinion. One can change the law, but it is far more difficult to change popular public opinion. "...color prejudice in this city is something between these two extreme views: it is not today responsible for all, or perhaps the greater part of the Negro problems, or of the disabilities under which the race labors; on the other hand it is a far more powerful social force than most Philadelphians realize."(pg122). I feel that these problems of minorities be socially ostracized has continued, perhaps not in these extreme obvious ways, but it does still have a very noticeable place in our society. Which is in why in my opinion, affirmative action should be continued today in the work place. It is sad that this article was written over 100 years ago, and you still hear of similar “equal opportunity” roadblocks in the work place. This reading made me think of the comment Senator Joe Biden, made recently about Senator Barack Obama. He said, "I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy," Biden said. "I mean, that's a storybook, man." (CNN.com). I think that this is a way that racism is institutionalized by public opinion.
Another thing I appreciated about this reading was that DuBois did not leave women out of this ethnography. He recognizes them as important and skillful part of the work force. I think this is very important because from what I understand of sociological research, including women and or children as part of a study was not common practice until recently (and this study was published in 1899). I do wonder if he mentions women's roles in the work force is because of the low wages made by their male counterparts due to racism. It would not be enough for the man alone to work, so it then becomes necessary to have a second income from the woman. Again, I am making an educated guess but I thought it was inappropriate for women to work outside the home during this time. If this is the case then I think that adds to the uniqueness of this group of people.
I think the Biden story is interesting. I didn’t hear his entire comment, but it seems as though the commentary about his comment was entirely centered on the question of whether he is racist, on the one hand, or his comment just came out wrong, on the other. Whether he is or is not, I think it is good that we as a country, or at least the media we watch, call him to task when making such a potentially racist comment.
OBE #1
What characteristic problems (and ways of dealing with them) were specific to the early African American urban experience?
Du Bois outlines the various ways in which the African American population of Philadelphia was restrained to few or no options regarding their subsistence in an urban environment. He describes the physical segregation of the Seventh Ward, which was the primary African American neighborhood, in the following passage:
“North of it is the residence and business section of the city; south of it a middle class and workingmen’s residence section; at the east end it joins Negro, Italian and Jewish slums; at the west end, the wharves of the river and an industrial section separating it from the grounds of the University of Pennsylvania and the residence section of West Philadelphia.”
In addition to describing the African American residences’ physical barring from certain areas of the city, Du Bois points out that they are also shunned from social and economic opportunities. He shows that the segregation of African Americans is primarily due to social rather than legal systems. Although opportunities for African Americans to find employment is theoretically possible (in a legal and political sense), the workings of a complex and sometimes unintentional social system prevent this from happening. For example, Du Bois shows that African American residents of Philadelphia often have only bad options and concerning social interaction within the city, he writes:
“If an invitation is issued to the public for any occasion, the Negro can never know whether he would be welcomed or not; if he goes he is liable to have his feelings hurt and get into unpleasant altercation; if he stays away, he is blamed for indifference. If he meet a lifelong white friend on the street, he is in a dilemma; if he does not greet the friend he is put down as boorish and impolite; if he does greet the friend he is liable to be flatly snubbed.” Du Bois refers to psychological impacts that can take place because of the many small ways in which an individual can be discriminated against. He says “Any one of these things happening now and then would not be remarkable or call for especial comment; but when one group of people suffer all these little differences of treatment and discriminations and insults continually, the result is either discouragement, or bitterness, or over sensitiveness, or recklessness. And people feeling thus cannot do their best.” Therefore, it is not only the fact that employers will often straight out not hire an African American, but they are put at yet a further disadvantage because of the many trying social situations which they confront.
Du Bois shows how not only African Americans are discriminated against, but how sympathetic white people are also shunned, which ultimately further perpetuates the disadvantages of the African Americans. This is to say that white people who would otherwise be sympathetic to African Americans often are deterred from doing so through another side to this social system. Du Bois tells an anecdote about a prominent lawyer who sought to find employment for a young black girl as a typist. All of the employers to whom he talked said they would be happy to have her work in their offices until they found out that she was not white. Du Bois writes: “It happened, however, that the girl was so light in complexion that few not knowing would have suspected her descent. The lawyer therefore gave her temporary work in his own office until she found a position outside the city. ‘But,’ said he [the lawyer], “to this day I have not dared to tell my clerks that they worked beside a Negress.” Du Bois describes a different manifestation of this problem in the following way: “If he gain the affections of a white woman and marry her he may invariably expect that slurs will be thrown on her reputation and on his, and that both his and her race will shun their company.”
I like the suggestion you make that, while legally and politically, African Americans could pursue employment, the social structure was often prohibitive. This piece is particalry salient with our contemporary sensibilities, i think, because now prejudice has widely just gone underground and is manifested in the systemic inequality that is often more damaging than out and out disrimination because there is no legal and little political recourse available to its sufferers.
The first step towards revolution is to identify the current problems. I appreciated Dorian's description of Dubois as a "sobering voice pointing out the bleak truth." I also think that the introduction's description of ethnographic studies which says that they "shed light on variations within communities that are seen as homogeneous by outsiders" brings up a good point. Dubois was holding up a candle to illuminate the conditions that society had covered over with apathy, ignorance and blatant prejudice. He was thorough and accurate in his research and cynical and witty in his assessment of his findings. I love the quotes he takes from people who refused jobs to African American individuals because they're so poignant. It's as if by using them, Dubois is saying, '"Look at how ignorant these people are, this is the type of language they use". Especially the final quote with its double negatives and hateful wording.
I found myself thinking, as Ashley wrote that she did, about affirmative action when reading this passage, and wondering about what else can be done. A lot of the problems that Dubois mentions have to do with social attitudes and inaccurate perceptions. As Ashley said, "racism is institutionalized by public opinion" and looking at our society and media, I still see racist public opinion running rampant. Although Affirmative Action does prevent institutions from discriminating, it has vicariously led to that ridiculous opinion held by a portion of the public that people who aren't worthy candidates are now getting jobs simply because of their ethnicity. I disagree with that opinion, but even if it were accurate, that's the same phenomenon that Dubois was upset about. He wrote (on pg. 124) about various African American people who were fully qualified for positions but lost them to less qualified people who were Caucasian. Now people claim that the opposite is happening and though I doubt it is, in that way Affirmative Action perpetuates racial tensions and continues to accentuate differences in ethnicity that will hopefully someday be irrelevant. I don't think Affirmative Action should stop, I believe that it is a necessary step towards the goal of actual equality, but I just wonder when we will finally reach a point where we recognize that the only race that any of us are is human. Before we get there we have some very complex culturally created meanings to erase and/or re-define.
Reading this passage as well as some of our classmate's blogs, I was reminded of the RACE exhibit by the American Anthropological Association that's currently at the Minnesota Science Museum. I went to see it a few weekends ago and was somewhat surprised ( In spite of the sociology classes I've taken.) to learn about how great the disparities are still between the job and housing opportunities of people of different ethnicities. As some of my blog mates wrote, a lot of the problems that Dubois wrote about are still present in our society after all these years and that's discouraging. At the same time, it is heartening that such educational exhibits exist, and the very fact that we are discussing this in class is encouraging.
I think that we are left with the torch and must continue to identify the problems so that we can push forward. I would suggest, for one thing, changes in the tv media. Unfortunately a lot of public opinion is influenced by the news and other spoutings of the boob tube, and as we all know, the news and television on the whole tend to perpetuate stereotypes and that hasn't changed all that much yet. There are other changes that can be made. Perhaps the first change we all should make is to take a good hard look at any internalized prejudices we might have and work on understanding and eradicating them. In the words of Ghandi, "Be the change you want to see in the world."
OBE 2 - Du Bois, The Philadelphia Negro !!REVISED!!
W.E.B. Du Bois’ article, The Philadelphia Negro, brought up many thoughts about contemporary society. It was in this reading that I could not help but think of institutionalized racism and racial transparency that has continued to benefit those who are white. What is even more shocking to me is that this article was written in 1899, and personally, I feel that many of the struggles that faced Blacks in 1899 still haunt this minority group today. Du Bois claims that, “color prejudice in [Philadelphia] is…a far more powerful social force than most of the inhabitants of Philadelphia realize” (122). Nothing to my knowledge has changed regarding people recognizing the “quiet racism.” Being that whiteness is socially constructed, it is important to note that those who construct what is evil also construct what is good. The same holds true for Philadelphia in 1899 as well as Minneapolis in 2007. The whites who have always had the power define cultural norms, standards, and ultimately laws that advantage themselves. From a previous race relations class, I know all too familiar about colonization, extortion of underclass populations, and ultimately domination over a subordinate class. In an interview from the book, White Privilege: Essential Readings on the Other Side of Racism, interviewee T. Wise writes, “The virtual invisibility that whiteness affords those of us who have it is like psychological money in the bank, the proceeds of which we cash in every day while others are in a perpetual state of overdraft” (Wise 107-108). I feel that such a statement clearly ties into Du Bois’ argument about getting work, keeping work, and trying to enter a new line of work. The same chances are not there for everybody. Today, it is quite clear that those who are white still benefit from getting a good job, getting a decent house, and have the social capital to get ahead in life. Despite this fact, many people would argue that the U.S. has made tremendous efforts toward gaining equality for all, which appears on the surface, but not in true reality. Recent gains in the political and business world mask the fact that Blacks still remain “on average the poorest and most disadvantaged of all groups in the U.S.” (U.S. Bureau of Census 2004). When comparing median incomes from blacks in 1999 compared to whites one can see the disparities. The median annual income for black households was $29,423, compared to $44,687 for white households (U.S. Bureau of Census 1999). Clearly, we have major disparities in income for blacks and whites but what is more interesting is how blacks are received in the community. In 1899, Du Bois describes some of the people in the Seventh Ward of Philadelphia. “The corners, night and day, are filled with Negro loafers – able-bodied young men and women, all cheerful, some with good natured, open faces”…to which most of the poverty stricken ones are gamblers, thieves and prostitutes with few having a fixed steady occupation of any kind (121). As this image is painted in my mind, it is quickly stirred up by a notion all too familiar painted by the mass media. It is hard to imagine a world without the mass media. As Du Bouis points out, those who are poor and black are not violent criminals, as the mass media in today’s world would speculate. In a study conducted by Gray in 1995, his research on race in media reveals that “working-class and poor African Americas – especially men – sill may be depicted as a menace involved in such activities as crime, gang violence, drug use, and general aimlessness” (Gray 394). It is also noteworthy to point out that whites are more likely to be portrayed as victims of crime on the television news.
In the various texts we have read, there are ranging ways of viewing the urban environment. I am interested in the difference between Wirth’s account and Du Bois’ account of the city. In comparison to Wirth’s vague description of the city dweller, Du Bois’ excerpt from The Philadelphia Negro is the ethnographic detail that builds a clear image of an explicit experience in Philadelphia. Therein lays its beauty. Each community is diverse and contains a tapestry of communities with in itself. Despite the variety of subcultures, Du Bois identifies a common dilemma for the populations of Philadelphia: the issue of race and class within an urban neighborhood.
Wirth describes the typical American city as having “glaring contrasts between splendor and squalor” and as consisting of “personal disorganization, mental breakdown, suicide, delinquency, crime, corruption, and disorder” as if it were natural to the urban environment. He explains that these problems derived from factors such as the population density, the heterogeneity, and the large population within the city. I would argue that the density, heterogeneity, and spatial construction of big cities may illuminate the omnipresent problems such as crime, corruption, and disorder, but they do not inherently cause such “personality types” to exist.
Wirth only mentions the social divides briefly, and focuses more on the differences between rural and urban populations rather than the various experiences and perspectives people have in particular cities and communities. Wirth also generalizes that there are “substitutes for the bonds of solidarity [in the city] that are relied upon to hold a folk society together”. He sees the urban environment as instable, anonymous and mechanical. In contrast to Wirth’s generalizations of city folk, Du Bois explains in detail the fundamental problems African-Americans faced in Philadelphia.
The “economic survival” of African Americans was the largest concern for people of the seventh ward of Philadelphia during the late 1800’s. The “economic survival” was deeply connected to the daily conflicts African-Americans faced in education, social intercourse, family life, poverty, and housing. Du Bois states that these conditions were visible in the city of Philadelphia due to the polarization of race- and the institutionalized discrimination as well as personal prejudice that maintains this split. He describes the environment in units of streets and blocks that represent the complex communities within the Seventh Ward. What connects the communities within the seventh ward may be the general environment, the daily experiences of the “worst Negro slums of the city”.
Du Bois describes an experience within the urban setting of Philadelphia. He points out that the situation is not identical in Southern cities. The physical environment of Philadelphia facilitates the problems of the seventh ward, but more importantly, the social hierarchy determines whether this “corruption and disorder” exists or not. He concludes by describing the interactions between the privileged and the oppressed, the systemic discrimination leading to personal hatred—“L----- was a first-class baker; he applied for work some time ago near Green street and was told shortly, “We don’t work no niggers here”.
Personal Note: Perhaps it is the poetic and symbolic style that Du Bois uses, but I find his text about the Seventh Ward in Philadelphia to be much more interesting, thoughtful, and critical.
Chrissi
I really like your contrast with Wirth and Dubois. A lot of what Dubois had to say can be piggybacked off from Wirth but there are some differing perspectives as well. As far as similarities go with Wirth and Dubois, Wirth does tell about homeownership inequalities with urban residents and Dubois' account of the inequalities in homeownership with Blacks provides evidence that the inequality among blacks (in both cases-urban black residents) exists; this bit and piece of their perspective support each other.
Dubois does give a more critical and more 'personal' account of a group of people within a city than Wirth!!! Now that you've pointed out the contrast, to think of it, most of what we've read so far doesn't give such an up close and personal account of a group of people within a city.
With all of the wordage, I thought it'd be good to throw out a visual aid on how blacks and whites were ordered in the social hierarchy based on what Dubois had to say.
I like the reading about Du Bois in showing how color people used to lived and some still live because of racism. But this remains me about Jim Crow and how it inspired color people to change their future for the better, from this event different kinds of music came to make a culture which exist today.
Blacks were discriminated in the workplace. When a black person applied or was looking for a job that made them equally qualified for it with that of a white person, the black person was turned down a job opportunity on the basis that they were black. The black person's work performance (be it highly exceptional) is critiqued not individually, but collectively along with other blacks who are working alongside them. If the rest of his black workers are underperforming, but he's doing a very great job, his highly exceptional skills have lost value among his superiors. The black individual also earns a lower wage compared to that of his white counterpart when they may be performing similar tasks and occupations.
There also was housing discrimination among blacks in the 'city of brotherly love.' Some blacks were living in homes similar in worth as white inhabited homes, but were paying higher prices. Housing conditions "are mostly brick, some wood, not very old, and in general uncared for rather than undilapidated."
*note* i posted this originally on wednesday, but since i am new to blogging, i think i deleted it after the fact when i really meant to save it.
Du Bois= discussion on the racial issues that the African American community was facing in Philadelphia can shed a lot of light on the racial issues that communities all over the nation continue to face today. One of the most important statements made throughout this entire excerpt comes at the very beginning of the piece. While discrimination against certain groups is not a new phenomena, the odds that faced the African American community were certainly unique considering the deep historical roots of their oppression and exclusion in the United States. Blacks not only faced discrimination simply because they were not white, but also faced the social, political, economic and historical picture of inferiority and danger that had been painted by ignorant authors, politicians and leaders years before. In this respect, Du Bois discreetly highlights a topic that is rarely discussed. The discrimination of African Americans in the United States stems from deeply rooted historical oppression that has set members of their race decades, and even centuries, behind in regards to civil liberties and the pursuit of a productive and >happy= life. However, many of the criticisms that Du Bois identifies in his work and many of the criticisms that continue today result from the fact that many African Americans still have not had the chance to >catch up,= whether it be socially, politically or economically, to other racial and ethnic groups. What is even more striking about this is the discussion that Du Bois presents about successful African Americans in Philadelphia. In the statistics found on the bottom of page 121 we find that in 1899 when these pieces were written, 83% of the African American male population 21 years of age and older were >gainfully employed.= Despite the difficulties faced by so many blacks that Du Bois addresses on pages 124 and 125, 83% of these adult males held employment and worked to better their lives and the lives of their families. Even while such a large percentage of men held employment, unfortunately, the visions of African Americans that stuck in many people=s minds, whites and blacks alike, were those of gambling, stealing, violence and prostitution. Although the >problem= that Du Bois discusses may be in reference to African Americans, it would appear to me that there is a much greater issue that has been swept under the rug since the birth of our nation. Whites adopt slavery and perpetuate the inferiority and submission of African Americans, leading African Americans to fight for rights that are just as equally theirs. Following years of oppression, blacks gain >rights= that are contested against despite the fact that they are inherently unequal and face decades of continued discrimination and prejudices. Over time as more African Americans begin to reach success and influence their communities and the entire world, many people still discriminate. There is also a population who supports the advancement of civil rights for all, including African Americans. But after hundreds of years of pain and suffering, the black community may not be ready to accept the embrace of whites and others who are possibly offering too little too late, and many still feel that the responsibility for the friction between these two races can be shrugged off on African Americans for being >unwilling= or >difficult= in cooperation efforts. Instead of working harder to come together, it seems that instead our society is more content to avoid discussing the racial issues that are still prominent and visible in many, if not all, aspects of our lives and point fingers or name names for blame. I feel that the work we have read by Du Bois holds many important pieces for the puzzle of race relations in our country that has yet to be assembled.
Blacks in Philadelphia faced multiple forms of discrimination, and many of these forms can still be seen today. Even if he or she were the most qualified candidate for a job or position, any non-African American candidate would receive the job over the more qualified African American. Discrimination was also seen in education, and it took many forms. Black schools were often lacking in adequate resources including textbooks, supplies and even teachers. African Americans attempting to gain admittance into institutes of higher education were often denied the opportunity despite academic qualifications. Even after obtaining a degree, most African Americans still struggled in the job market and were often forced to work in low-skill jobs to earn a living. Discrimination from friends was probably one of the more striking forms that Du Bois discusses. Many African Americans were faced with a lose-lose situation when encountering a white ‘friend’ or acquaintance in the street. If he or she were to acknowledge the friend, he or she would be faced with rejection or disdain. But, if he or she were to decline acknowledgment, the white ‘friend’ and others may regard him or her as rude or disrespectful. Du Bois describes all of these forms of discrimination in early 20th century Philadelphia, but many forms can still be seen today.
With the Civil War only a few decades past at the time DuBois wrote this article, it is not surprising to read that African-Americans were still facing considerable discrimination.
Even though African-American people were free, their opportunities in life were still very much limited. I don’t believe that very many white Americans really wanted to see African-Americans rise to their full potential within this society, and I still think this holds true nowadays. So many white Americans were (and some still are) trying to cling to the myth that their race was naturally superior, and I think they were scared of having that blow up in their face. American society was built upon beliefs of white superiority and other lies such as “manifest destiny”. Refusing well-qualified African-American people the opportunity to obtain any kind of respectable employment in which they could provide a better quality of life for themselves and their families was another way that white Americans worked to hold on to those ideals. In a capitalist society such as our own, money is power. Therefore, preventing African-American people from building any kind of financial stability through employment discrimination really hindered their growth in all aspects of society. In addition, I think that the frustration that comes with having to bust your ass everyday at a job that barely allows you to afford the essentials of living makes it pretty hard to keep believing that things will ever get easier if you keep trying. On that note, I think it is so amazing that DuBois himself was able to accomplish all that he did in his lifetime. American society has made some progress in moving away from the complete degradation of its African-American citizens, but like many others have already said, there is so much more than needs to be dealt with.
in my group we discussed the candymaker who would not hire the black worker because "the other help would not work with him." While on the surface this looks like discrimination, we decided it was actually segregation; the owner acting as the force behind the separation between the white workers (who, incidentally, probably did not all object to a black coworker) and the black applicant.
I cannot remember what our topic was for the group work, however, Allison Tierney and I came up with a quote "the Negro is conspicuously absent from all places of honor, trust, emoulment, as well as from those of respectable grade in commerce and industry" (124).
As we were discussing last Thursday in class, DuBois' points on discrimination and prejudice, we found a quote from the reading that maybe embodied both ideas and was a main point of this reading. "Thus the young white man starts life in knowing that within some limits and barring accidents, talent and application will tell. The young Negro starts knowing that on all sides his advance is made difficult if not wholly shut off by his color." (pg 123) Again, we felt this noted that discrimination then leads to prejudice which effects ones achivements, because he/she may never be able to accomplish anything on his/her own individual merit.
We felt that most of what DuBois described was not really what the stereotypical image of a ghetto is. (Poverty stricken, crime) Though it did fit with a group of people with similar ethnicity being exploited and being taken advantage of be it through their employment, housing, etc. A quote that described it well:
"Everybody speaks of the matter, everybody knows that it exists, but in just what form it shows itself or how influential it is few agree. In the Negro's mind, color prejudice in Philadelphia is that widespread feeling of dislike for his blood, which keeps him and his children out of decent employment, from certain public conveniences and amusements, from hiring houses in many sections, and in general from being recognized as a man." (p122)
Some of the examples of prejudice from Du Bois's article included the fact that some employers simply wouldn't hire a black person simply because of their skin color, as well as some of the double standards like acknowledging a white female in public, and the consequences for both acknowledging and disregarding her presence. -dave and justin
W.E.B.Du Bois wrote about color prejudices in Philadelphia and what are the odds to the development of the Negro under privileged living there then. He was highly intelligent and wrote a lot of things about life in American by then. I was convinced by the way he decribed the hardship of the black and how the society was trying to make them understand their role as inferior in the society.This project will try to draw comparison between color prejudice during the 1899 in Philadelphia and what changes has taken place in modern days. The first part will deal with the social aspect , that is how negro where not considered in any important social gathering and where alway in the dark and the changes modern days blacks has taken.The second will talk about environmental and educational problems that blacks faced during those day and how these two resulted into poverty and a very poor environment,and what are the changes that has taken place in most of the black communities today. His work made it clear how color prejudice used to be carryout.
Although there were others groups suffering in Philadelphia , they blacks ( negro ) was the ones who suffered the most. They where faced with social problems like labor , crime , poverty and ignorance, which their lives making changes almost impossible affected , but not to exclude that societal preception of blacks was not positive by then . These problems have changed over time and have become more internalized and comes out unconsciously these days. That is to say, people's discrimination comes out when the don’t expect it , for example when a black man is in a white neighbor hood, they white usually calls the police of fear that he/she might do something ill legal . A description of how blacks used to lived shows that they were “ haunts of note criminals , male and female , of gamblers and prostitutes , and at the time of many poverty stricken people decent but not energetic “ ( p 121). Basically people living in this conditions have no social respect or if they do low social respect. Blacks were totally not considered for better jobs , so they jobs they had were, stevedores, porters, laborers and laundress . It is just hand to mouth jobs with low esteem . Realistically , social respect comes with good jobs and better living conditions. Today , the social conditions of blacks have changed drastically . They occupies jobs , crime rate is still high( in some areas) but prostitution in most part of the country is ill legal . Black people has change their lives and developed a sense of respect, but the perception has not gone away that black people are dangerous.They do envolved in entertainment and most social functions with high repect from all race.
The people were poor and so it obvious for them to live in poor environment. Lack of good education will creates jobs of low income , which can be manifested in the environment . It is definite that not all blacks were poor but majority were. If we take America today , blacks have a lot of power and some holes political power and even aspiring for president . Research shows that the black middle class is rapidly improving than the rest of the colors in the country. Although I am drawing a line between two different eras but it is important to know the changes cities has undergone over the pass years. In Philadelphia today, in most hoods it still looks poor , but on the other hand other areas has developed because of racial discrimination does not exist .
This essay tried to show how the racial discrimination was bad and how it is now in America. The first part talked about the problems of negros when Du Bois wrote this essay and when further to show how modern days social discrimination has taken a new form. The second part talks about how education been the main cause of the environmental set back and how balcks has improved on that for the better.
The people were poor and so it obvious for them to live in poor environment. Lack of good education will creates jobs of low income , which can be manifested in the environment . It is definite that not all blacks were poor but majority were. If we take America today , blacks have a lot of power and some holes political power and even aspiring for president . Research shows that the black middle class is rapidly improving than the rest of the colors in the country. Although I am drawing a line between two different eras but it is important to know the changes cities has undergone over the pass years. In Philadelphia today, in most hoods it still looks poor , but on the other hand other areas has developed because of racial discrimination does not exist .
This essay tried to show how the racial discrimination was bad and how it is now in America. The first part talked about the problems of negros when Du Bois wrote this essay and when further to show how modern days social discrimination has taken a new form. The second part talks about how education been the main cause of the environmental set back and how balcks has improved on that for the better.
I like what you have to say, but I think that there are definelty structural and social constructs that paint black people how they are today. For example, many loan companies red-lined neighborhoods, which did not allow blacks to recieve loans which kept them in poor neighboorhoods. As a result, crime swept throughout the neighboorhood, which gave whites this vision of blacks being violent.
As a Black woman I must disagree with your statement that "These problems have changed over time and have become more internalized and comes out unconsciously these days."
While there have been many progressive changes since W.E.B. Du Bois' writings Black people still face many of the same issues today hence crime rates, incarceration statistics, and so forth.
Yes, in 108 years some progress has been made but the struggle continues. Social stratification is still a very big problem in this country. Racial discrimination and social injustices still exist.
The fact that some Blacks hold political offices, work in the entertainment industry, have realized some upward mobility, is not proof nor does it indicate that Blacks have gained any social or economic "power."
To dates Blacks still do not control the businesses and institutions in Black communities for the most part.
Black people make up roughly 12% of the American population. 24.4% of Blacks are living in poverty...
"About 8.4 percent of all black male U.S. residents between 25 and 29 years old were in a state or federal prison in 2004, compared to 2.5 percent of Hispanic males in the same age group and 1.2 percent of white males. Among male and female prisoners combined, 41 percent were black, 34 percent were white, 19 percent Hispanic and the rest were other races or two or more races." http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/press/p04pr.htm
The views and opinions expressed in this page are strictly those of the page author. The contents of this page have not been reviewed or approved by the University of Minnesota.
February 07, 2007
OBE # 2 Progressive Pessimism
I was reading W.E.B Du Bois’ excerpt from The Philadelphia Negro with a degree of awe. He wrote this article in 1899. That’s almost 70 years before the civil rights movement yet it read almost as if it could have been written in 1964. This article was written post reconstruction without extensive hindsight knowledge of how freemen will be treated differently from Jews or Italians yet he successfully foreshadows problems that will haunt blacks for years to come. The change that Du Bois seeks wont come within Du Bois’ lifetime yet he points out the inequalities and tries to change through print that which most people see as common place and will continue to do so for a long time to come. Du Bois was way ahead of his time. At this period in our nation’s history the Irish were still not considered white. As for blacks, reconstruction had just come to a close and aspirations for a full integration into society were still high.
Reconstruction had succeeded in creating education for blacks along with more job opportunities. There were even blacks elected to public office during this particular time. One would hope and assume that the integration would be going well and progress onward. Du Bois had the foresight to point out that even though Jews and Italians lived in slums just like blacks and were considered outsiders, blacks were not in the same category. Du Bois indeed knew that even though integration was supposed to be progressing it had, in fact, stopped and began to regress. He sites that “[with]…Negroes the segregation is more conspicuous [than that of Italians or Jews].” Blacks would not enjoy the same “luxuries” as some outsiders like Jews, Italians or Irish. Du Bois also had a lot of foresight to be able to point out that “no mater how well trained a Negro may be, or how fitted for work of any kind he cannot in the ordinary course of competition hope to be much more than a menial servant.” I am very surprised that at this time Du Bois was already able to make a statement like that. It is not ambiguous in any way. He does not think it is possible for a black to escape the shackles of servitude even with the freedoms that were bestowed upon all people with the 13th,14th and 15th amendments. To me this strikes me as radical thinking when I think about the fact that reconstruction had done so much for newly freeded slaves and their children’s expectations.
As for the act of getting work itself Du Bois points out that whites expect less of blacks so when a black tries to excel and does men patronize him. Slavery had burned the image of a lower class citizens into the minds of all whites. But what about other non-whites such as Jews? Du Bois manages to differentiate other minorities from blacks by saying that blacks were expected to fail. Italians, Irishmen and Jews were not. In my honest opinion, I believe Du Bois was implicitly saying that it wasn’t even worth trying because you wont succeed because the enviroment was not accepting yet. To conclude, I simply found this reading pessimistically progressive. While the nation of blacks hoped for equality and worked towards it Du Bois was the sobering voice that pointed out the bleak truth. Blacks were not yet Americans and wouldn’t be for many years to come.
Dorian
Posted by Dorian Stanasel at 01:16 AM | Permalink | Add a Comment (2)
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I also applaud Du Bois for his foresight into the civil rights struggles blacks had yet to face, but I don’t think he wrote this to resign blacks to their plight. I see it as more of a wakeup call to those people in power who, like you said, were probably feeling pretty good about the progress made toward African American civil rights. For those wondering why, many years after their emancipation, so many African American communities had not managed to pull themselves out of the ghetto, Du Bois provided a pretty compelling answer.
Greg
Posted by: greg | February 8, 2007 12:15 AM
I don't think what Dubois had to write was progressive in the sense that he was 'ahead of his time.' It's hard to believe that since Blacks had to endure discrimination, prejudice, oppression, and inequality for hundreds of years. What's so progressive about this to me is that this ethnography was even published! What a great feat for Dubois as a Black man during this time and he really pushes the envelope for Black people to be seen and treated as equals.
Posted by: Kathy Xiong | February 8, 2007 08:19 AM
Problems for early African-Americans
Du Bois points out in his section 'Color Prejudice' the actual problems that people of color faced in terms of prejudice, because it had been widely known to exist, but commonly misunderstood as to how this is manifested or how 'influential' it is. It is clear through his listing of circumstances that cause a negative attitude in so many African-Americans what the actual problems are. They include the inability to get work despite qualifications, the low wages or working conditions due to exploitation of the competitive job market for blacks, the higher cost of poor housing, and other social inequalities stemming from racism that become manifest as simple difficulties in maintaining relationships with any white person, specifically one who could offer a job position. The other thing to note is the fact that the more trust, honor, and respectability of the job, the less likely the opportunity for one in power to give a negro even the chance to show his performance. Early African-Americans were inable to do their best because of being kept at a sub-society level, and one of the main problems was that their stereotypes of incompetence were thought of as the mass or majority of blacks, though for many years they had successfully filled many trades where they were allowed to, in the south, particularly, as Du Bois says on page 124, right column, third paragraph.
Posted by Nich at 12:08 PM | Permalink | Add a Comment (1)
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This may be incredibly off of the topic, but I think an interesting thing to look at, can be seen through the caparison of race relations between blacks and whites in Du Bois' era compared to race relations in contemporary society. During this time Blacks were frustrated because they had to deal with job discrimination. Today, blacks are still dealing with institutional discrimination, even after America outlawed it. In my opinion, the intentions behind outlawing discrimination were good, but it created a perpetuating ideology that every person, no matter which race, is given equal opportunity.
Posted by: Karah | February 11, 2007 08:49 PM
OBE #3 - REVISED Du Bois & Pager
WEB Du Bois' writing and ideas from "The Philadelphia Negro" are still relevant in today's society. While society may think that such prejudices and discriminations are on the decline, they are still present at an alarming rate. Difficulties seem to be the most prevalent in the work force, which in turn affects credit scores.
It is very difficult for a black person to initially get a job. Even when a black person is able to obtain a job, the earnings are lower than that of a white person, and it is difficult to maintain that job due to these prejudices. Promotions are nearly nonexistent, or quite rare to blacks.
While I am unsure if race still affects rent rates (since they seem to be standardized), low income and credit information may now create the same effects. Credit is now a highly influential determinant of interest rates, insurance rates, and much more. The worse a credit score is (from not being able to pay the high bills), the more an individual pays in the long run. It is a vicious cycle that individuals and families get themselves trapped in. So, in theory, since wages for blacks are lower, it could be more difficult to pay bills, which in turn increases their overall expenditures in interest payments, higher insurance rates, and other increased cost due to poor credit. Credit history takes time to repair; if individuals begin with poor credit, it can take years to repair.
In places of business, workers have the opportunity to discriminate against customers. While this is illegal and highly discouraged, supervisors are not always present to watch over the shoulder of every employee. As Du Bois said in his article, employees tend to provide poorer service to any race other than whites. This concept of racial discrimination is also prevalent around the world. Interracial discrimination is not only committed against blacks, but between various races across the globe. While I was in Venezuela, there were certain resorts and places of business that were racist toward me and other Americans. This was a very eye-opening and humbling experience to see the discrimination that several people go through in the United States; we had never really experienced such discrimination. In the United States, prejudice against blacks and "minority" groups is very prevalent.
To further reiterate the arguments in Du Bois' article, some research of Devah Pager seems to be quite relevant. Pager's recent studies demonstrate strong discrimination taking place in the work force. She studies racial stratification in relation to the labor force, among other topics. One of her studies focused on felony convictions on job applications. Her findings were utterly disturbing. She found that white men with a FELONY listed on their applications were MORE LIKELY to get a job offer or a call-back than black men with NO FELONY on their application. This clearly emphasizes and reiterates Du Bois' points about discrimination, especially in the work force. It demonstrates that, in today's society, there is still a high amount of discrimination and prejudice that affects everyday life for many individuals and families.
Allison
Posted by Allison Tierney at 02:09 PM | Permalink | Add a Comment (0)
OBE#1 DuBois
This ethnography was to show what the true employment (and in turn economic and financial) situation of the Philadelphia Negro is, which is not limited to the group of study but is extended to their physical environment and the "far mightier social environment-the surrounding world custom"(pg 120). DuBois notes that this group is not only looking to maintain a decent standard of living but wants to reach a higher one. He presents a situation where Blacks are driven from many occupations, not from a lack of education but because of a lack of employment opportunity. DuBois gives many examples in this essay of well-educated and highly skilled Black men and women who cannot find work because they are Black.
What I see in this essay could be the beginnings of an argument for affirmative action. DuBois is showing how racism is alive and well, even if law does not prohibit it. Here racism is institutionalized through (in part) by public opinion. One can change the law, but it is far more difficult to change popular public opinion. "...color prejudice in this city is something between these two extreme views: it is not today responsible for all, or perhaps the greater part of the Negro problems, or of the disabilities under which the race labors; on the other hand it is a far more powerful social force than most Philadelphians realize."(pg122). I feel that these problems of minorities be socially ostracized has continued, perhaps not in these extreme obvious ways, but it does still have a very noticeable place in our society. Which is in why in my opinion, affirmative action should be continued today in the work place. It is sad that this article was written over 100 years ago, and you still hear of similar “equal opportunity” roadblocks in the work place. This reading made me think of the comment Senator Joe Biden, made recently about Senator Barack Obama. He said, "I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy," Biden said. "I mean, that's a storybook, man." (CNN.com). I think that this is a way that racism is institutionalized by public opinion.
Another thing I appreciated about this reading was that DuBois did not leave women out of this ethnography. He recognizes them as important and skillful part of the work force. I think this is very important because from what I understand of sociological research, including women and or children as part of a study was not common practice until recently (and this study was published in 1899). I do wonder if he mentions women's roles in the work force is because of the low wages made by their male counterparts due to racism. It would not be enough for the man alone to work, so it then becomes necessary to have a second income from the woman. Again, I am making an educated guess but I thought it was inappropriate for women to work outside the home during this time. If this is the case then I think that adds to the uniqueness of this group of people.
Posted by Ashley Day at 06:51 PM | Permalink | Add a Comment (1)
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I think the Biden story is interesting. I didn’t hear his entire comment, but it seems as though the commentary about his comment was entirely centered on the question of whether he is racist, on the one hand, or his comment just came out wrong, on the other. Whether he is or is not, I think it is good that we as a country, or at least the media we watch, call him to task when making such a potentially racist comment.
Greg
Posted by: Greg | February 8, 2007 12:55 AM
Du Bois
OBE #1
What characteristic problems (and ways of dealing with them) were specific to the early African American urban experience?
Du Bois outlines the various ways in which the African American population of Philadelphia was restrained to few or no options regarding their subsistence in an urban environment. He describes the physical segregation of the Seventh Ward, which was the primary African American neighborhood, in the following passage:
“North of it is the residence and business section of the city; south of it a middle class and workingmen’s residence section; at the east end it joins Negro, Italian and Jewish slums; at the west end, the wharves of the river and an industrial section separating it from the grounds of the University of Pennsylvania and the residence section of West Philadelphia.”
In addition to describing the African American residences’ physical barring from certain areas of the city, Du Bois points out that they are also shunned from social and economic opportunities. He shows that the segregation of African Americans is primarily due to social rather than legal systems. Although opportunities for African Americans to find employment is theoretically possible (in a legal and political sense), the workings of a complex and sometimes unintentional social system prevent this from happening. For example, Du Bois shows that African American residents of Philadelphia often have only bad options and concerning social interaction within the city, he writes:
“If an invitation is issued to the public for any occasion, the Negro can never know whether he would be welcomed or not; if he goes he is liable to have his feelings hurt and get into unpleasant altercation; if he stays away, he is blamed for indifference. If he meet a lifelong white friend on the street, he is in a dilemma; if he does not greet the friend he is put down as boorish and impolite; if he does greet the friend he is liable to be flatly snubbed.” Du Bois refers to psychological impacts that can take place because of the many small ways in which an individual can be discriminated against. He says “Any one of these things happening now and then would not be remarkable or call for especial comment; but when one group of people suffer all these little differences of treatment and discriminations and insults continually, the result is either discouragement, or bitterness, or over sensitiveness, or recklessness. And people feeling thus cannot do their best.” Therefore, it is not only the fact that employers will often straight out not hire an African American, but they are put at yet a further disadvantage because of the many trying social situations which they confront.
Du Bois shows how not only African Americans are discriminated against, but how sympathetic white people are also shunned, which ultimately further perpetuates the disadvantages of the African Americans. This is to say that white people who would otherwise be sympathetic to African Americans often are deterred from doing so through another side to this social system. Du Bois tells an anecdote about a prominent lawyer who sought to find employment for a young black girl as a typist. All of the employers to whom he talked said they would be happy to have her work in their offices until they found out that she was not white. Du Bois writes: “It happened, however, that the girl was so light in complexion that few not knowing would have suspected her descent. The lawyer therefore gave her temporary work in his own office until she found a position outside the city. ‘But,’ said he [the lawyer], “to this day I have not dared to tell my clerks that they worked beside a Negress.” Du Bois describes a different manifestation of this problem in the following way: “If he gain the affections of a white woman and marry her he may invariably expect that slurs will be thrown on her reputation and on his, and that both his and her race will shun their company.”
Jonathan Little
Posted by Jonathan Little at 08:23 PM | Permalink | Add a Comment (1)
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I like the suggestion you make that, while legally and politically, African Americans could pursue employment, the social structure was often prohibitive. This piece is particalry salient with our contemporary sensibilities, i think, because now prejudice has widely just gone underground and is manifested in the systemic inequality that is often more damaging than out and out disrimination because there is no legal and little political recourse available to its sufferers.
Posted by: sean ds | February 8, 2007 01:59 PM
OBE Numero Uno: Identifying the Problems
The first step towards revolution is to identify the current problems. I appreciated Dorian's description of Dubois as a "sobering voice pointing out the bleak truth." I also think that the introduction's description of ethnographic studies which says that they "shed light on variations within communities that are seen as homogeneous by outsiders" brings up a good point. Dubois was holding up a candle to illuminate the conditions that society had covered over with apathy, ignorance and blatant prejudice. He was thorough and accurate in his research and cynical and witty in his assessment of his findings. I love the quotes he takes from people who refused jobs to African American individuals because they're so poignant. It's as if by using them, Dubois is saying, '"Look at how ignorant these people are, this is the type of language they use". Especially the final quote with its double negatives and hateful wording.
I found myself thinking, as Ashley wrote that she did, about affirmative action when reading this passage, and wondering about what else can be done. A lot of the problems that Dubois mentions have to do with social attitudes and inaccurate perceptions. As Ashley said, "racism is institutionalized by public opinion" and looking at our society and media, I still see racist public opinion running rampant. Although Affirmative Action does prevent institutions from discriminating, it has vicariously led to that ridiculous opinion held by a portion of the public that people who aren't worthy candidates are now getting jobs simply because of their ethnicity. I disagree with that opinion, but even if it were accurate, that's the same phenomenon that Dubois was upset about. He wrote (on pg. 124) about various African American people who were fully qualified for positions but lost them to less qualified people who were Caucasian. Now people claim that the opposite is happening and though I doubt it is, in that way Affirmative Action perpetuates racial tensions and continues to accentuate differences in ethnicity that will hopefully someday be irrelevant. I don't think Affirmative Action should stop, I believe that it is a necessary step towards the goal of actual equality, but I just wonder when we will finally reach a point where we recognize that the only race that any of us are is human. Before we get there we have some very complex culturally created meanings to erase and/or re-define.
Reading this passage as well as some of our classmate's blogs, I was reminded of the RACE exhibit by the American Anthropological Association that's currently at the Minnesota Science Museum. I went to see it a few weekends ago and was somewhat surprised ( In spite of the sociology classes I've taken.) to learn about how great the disparities are still between the job and housing opportunities of people of different ethnicities. As some of my blog mates wrote, a lot of the problems that Dubois wrote about are still present in our society after all these years and that's discouraging. At the same time, it is heartening that such educational exhibits exist, and the very fact that we are discussing this in class is encouraging.
I think that we are left with the torch and must continue to identify the problems so that we can push forward. I would suggest, for one thing, changes in the tv media. Unfortunately a lot of public opinion is influenced by the news and other spoutings of the boob tube, and as we all know, the news and television on the whole tend to perpetuate stereotypes and that hasn't changed all that much yet. There are other changes that can be made. Perhaps the first change we all should make is to take a good hard look at any internalized prejudices we might have and work on understanding and eradicating them. In the words of Ghandi, "Be the change you want to see in the world."
Posted by Tav at 08:48 PM | Permalink | Add a Comment (0)
OBE 2 - Du Bois, The Philadelphia Negro !!REVISED!!
W.E.B. Du Bois’ article, The Philadelphia Negro, brought up many thoughts about contemporary society. It was in this reading that I could not help but think of institutionalized racism and racial transparency that has continued to benefit those who are white. What is even more shocking to me is that this article was written in 1899, and personally, I feel that many of the struggles that faced Blacks in 1899 still haunt this minority group today. Du Bois claims that, “color prejudice in [Philadelphia] is…a far more powerful social force than most of the inhabitants of Philadelphia realize” (122). Nothing to my knowledge has changed regarding people recognizing the “quiet racism.” Being that whiteness is socially constructed, it is important to note that those who construct what is evil also construct what is good. The same holds true for Philadelphia in 1899 as well as Minneapolis in 2007. The whites who have always had the power define cultural norms, standards, and ultimately laws that advantage themselves. From a previous race relations class, I know all too familiar about colonization, extortion of underclass populations, and ultimately domination over a subordinate class. In an interview from the book, White Privilege: Essential Readings on the Other Side of Racism, interviewee T. Wise writes, “The virtual invisibility that whiteness affords those of us who have it is like psychological money in the bank, the proceeds of which we cash in every day while others are in a perpetual state of overdraft” (Wise 107-108). I feel that such a statement clearly ties into Du Bois’ argument about getting work, keeping work, and trying to enter a new line of work. The same chances are not there for everybody. Today, it is quite clear that those who are white still benefit from getting a good job, getting a decent house, and have the social capital to get ahead in life. Despite this fact, many people would argue that the U.S. has made tremendous efforts toward gaining equality for all, which appears on the surface, but not in true reality. Recent gains in the political and business world mask the fact that Blacks still remain “on average the poorest and most disadvantaged of all groups in the U.S.” (U.S. Bureau of Census 2004). When comparing median incomes from blacks in 1999 compared to whites one can see the disparities. The median annual income for black households was $29,423, compared to $44,687 for white households (U.S. Bureau of Census 1999). Clearly, we have major disparities in income for blacks and whites but what is more interesting is how blacks are received in the community. In 1899, Du Bois describes some of the people in the Seventh Ward of Philadelphia. “The corners, night and day, are filled with Negro loafers – able-bodied young men and women, all cheerful, some with good natured, open faces”…to which most of the poverty stricken ones are gamblers, thieves and prostitutes with few having a fixed steady occupation of any kind (121). As this image is painted in my mind, it is quickly stirred up by a notion all too familiar painted by the mass media. It is hard to imagine a world without the mass media. As Du Bouis points out, those who are poor and black are not violent criminals, as the mass media in today’s world would speculate. In a study conducted by Gray in 1995, his research on race in media reveals that “working-class and poor African Americas – especially men – sill may be depicted as a menace involved in such activities as crime, gang violence, drug use, and general aimlessness” (Gray 394). It is also noteworthy to point out that whites are more likely to be portrayed as victims of crime on the television news.
Posted by Jesse Kortuem at 11:33 PM | Permalink | Add a Comment (1)
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Posted by: Anonymous | May 7, 2007 07:11 PM
February 08, 2007
OBE #1 ---Du Bois and Wirth
In the various texts we have read, there are ranging ways of viewing the urban environment. I am interested in the difference between Wirth’s account and Du Bois’ account of the city. In comparison to Wirth’s vague description of the city dweller, Du Bois’ excerpt from The Philadelphia Negro is the ethnographic detail that builds a clear image of an explicit experience in Philadelphia. Therein lays its beauty. Each community is diverse and contains a tapestry of communities with in itself. Despite the variety of subcultures, Du Bois identifies a common dilemma for the populations of Philadelphia: the issue of race and class within an urban neighborhood.
Wirth describes the typical American city as having “glaring contrasts between splendor and squalor” and as consisting of “personal disorganization, mental breakdown, suicide, delinquency, crime, corruption, and disorder” as if it were natural to the urban environment. He explains that these problems derived from factors such as the population density, the heterogeneity, and the large population within the city. I would argue that the density, heterogeneity, and spatial construction of big cities may illuminate the omnipresent problems such as crime, corruption, and disorder, but they do not inherently cause such “personality types” to exist.
Wirth only mentions the social divides briefly, and focuses more on the differences between rural and urban populations rather than the various experiences and perspectives people have in particular cities and communities. Wirth also generalizes that there are “substitutes for the bonds of solidarity [in the city] that are relied upon to hold a folk society together”. He sees the urban environment as instable, anonymous and mechanical. In contrast to Wirth’s generalizations of city folk, Du Bois explains in detail the fundamental problems African-Americans faced in Philadelphia.
The “economic survival” of African Americans was the largest concern for people of the seventh ward of Philadelphia during the late 1800’s. The “economic survival” was deeply connected to the daily conflicts African-Americans faced in education, social intercourse, family life, poverty, and housing. Du Bois states that these conditions were visible in the city of Philadelphia due to the polarization of race- and the institutionalized discrimination as well as personal prejudice that maintains this split. He describes the environment in units of streets and blocks that represent the complex communities within the Seventh Ward. What connects the communities within the seventh ward may be the general environment, the daily experiences of the “worst Negro slums of the city”.
Du Bois describes an experience within the urban setting of Philadelphia. He points out that the situation is not identical in Southern cities. The physical environment of Philadelphia facilitates the problems of the seventh ward, but more importantly, the social hierarchy determines whether this “corruption and disorder” exists or not. He concludes by describing the interactions between the privileged and the oppressed, the systemic discrimination leading to personal hatred—“L----- was a first-class baker; he applied for work some time ago near Green street and was told shortly, “We don’t work no niggers here”.
Personal Note: Perhaps it is the poetic and symbolic style that Du Bois uses, but I find his text about the Seventh Ward in Philadelphia to be much more interesting, thoughtful, and critical.
Chrissi
Posted by Christina Barber at 01:57 AM | Permalink | Add a Comment (1)
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I really like your contrast with Wirth and Dubois. A lot of what Dubois had to say can be piggybacked off from Wirth but there are some differing perspectives as well. As far as similarities go with Wirth and Dubois, Wirth does tell about homeownership inequalities with urban residents and Dubois' account of the inequalities in homeownership with Blacks provides evidence that the inequality among blacks (in both cases-urban black residents) exists; this bit and piece of their perspective support each other.
Dubois does give a more critical and more 'personal' account of a group of people within a city than Wirth!!! Now that you've pointed out the contrast, to think of it, most of what we've read so far doesn't give such an up close and personal account of a group of people within a city.
Posted by: Kathy Xiong | February 8, 2007 08:10 AM
Social Hierarchy
With all of the wordage, I thought it'd be good to throw out a visual aid on how blacks and whites were ordered in the social hierarchy based on what Dubois had to say.
Posted by Kathy Xiong at 07:23 AM | Permalink | Add a Comment (1)
Comments
Fantastic Diagram Kathy, lets discuss this in class.
TG
Posted by: Teresa Gowanr | February 11, 2007 01:44 PM
The truth but inspirational
I like the reading about Du Bois in showing how color people used to lived and some still live because of racism. But this remains me about Jim Crow and how it inspired color people to change their future for the better, from this event different kinds of music came to make a culture which exist today.
Posted by D.philips at 01:08 PM | Permalink | Add a Comment (0)
% of Owners vs % of Renters in the Twin Cities
St.Paul:
owner-occupied housing units: 58.9%
renter-occupied housing units: 41.1%
Minneapolis :
owner-occupied housing units: 53.3%
renter-occupied housing units: 46.7%
Nationwide:
owner-occupied housing units: 66.9%
renter-occupied housing units: 33.1%
Posted by Angela Mulcahy at 04:19 PM | Permalink | Add a Comment (2)
Comments
thanks for the info
Posted by: sean d.s. | February 12, 2007 08:47 PM
thanks for the info. i for sure thought that there would be more of a difference between the number homeowners in st paul and minneapolis.
Posted by: ashley d | February 13, 2007 12:31 PM
Discrimination in Philadelphia
Blacks were discriminated in the workplace. When a black person applied or was looking for a job that made them equally qualified for it with that of a white person, the black person was turned down a job opportunity on the basis that they were black. The black person's work performance (be it highly exceptional) is critiqued not individually, but collectively along with other blacks who are working alongside them. If the rest of his black workers are underperforming, but he's doing a very great job, his highly exceptional skills have lost value among his superiors. The black individual also earns a lower wage compared to that of his white counterpart when they may be performing similar tasks and occupations.
There also was housing discrimination among blacks in the 'city of brotherly love.' Some blacks were living in homes similar in worth as white inhabited homes, but were paying higher prices. Housing conditions "are mostly brick, some wood, not very old, and in general uncared for rather than undilapidated."
~Kathy and Abha~
Posted by Kathy Xiong at 04:34 PM | Permalink | Add a Comment (0)
February 09, 2007
obe #1: du bois & race relations
*note* i posted this originally on wednesday, but since i am new to blogging, i think i deleted it after the fact when i really meant to save it.
Du Bois= discussion on the racial issues that the African American community was facing in Philadelphia can shed a lot of light on the racial issues that communities all over the nation continue to face today. One of the most important statements made throughout this entire excerpt comes at the very beginning of the piece. While discrimination against certain groups is not a new phenomena, the odds that faced the African American community were certainly unique considering the deep historical roots of their oppression and exclusion in the United States. Blacks not only faced discrimination simply because they were not white, but also faced the social, political, economic and historical picture of inferiority and danger that had been painted by ignorant authors, politicians and leaders years before. In this respect, Du Bois discreetly highlights a topic that is rarely discussed. The discrimination of African Americans in the United States stems from deeply rooted historical oppression that has set members of their race decades, and even centuries, behind in regards to civil liberties and the pursuit of a productive and >happy= life. However, many of the criticisms that Du Bois identifies in his work and many of the criticisms that continue today result from the fact that many African Americans still have not had the chance to >catch up,= whether it be socially, politically or economically, to other racial and ethnic groups. What is even more striking about this is the discussion that Du Bois presents about successful African Americans in Philadelphia. In the statistics found on the bottom of page 121 we find that in 1899 when these pieces were written, 83% of the African American male population 21 years of age and older were >gainfully employed.= Despite the difficulties faced by so many blacks that Du Bois addresses on pages 124 and 125, 83% of these adult males held employment and worked to better their lives and the lives of their families. Even while such a large percentage of men held employment, unfortunately, the visions of African Americans that stuck in many people=s minds, whites and blacks alike, were those of gambling, stealing, violence and prostitution. Although the >problem= that Du Bois discusses may be in reference to African Americans, it would appear to me that there is a much greater issue that has been swept under the rug since the birth of our nation. Whites adopt slavery and perpetuate the inferiority and submission of African Americans, leading African Americans to fight for rights that are just as equally theirs. Following years of oppression, blacks gain >rights= that are contested against despite the fact that they are inherently unequal and face decades of continued discrimination and prejudices. Over time as more African Americans begin to reach success and influence their communities and the entire world, many people still discriminate. There is also a population who supports the advancement of civil rights for all, including African Americans. But after hundreds of years of pain and suffering, the black community may not be ready to accept the embrace of whites and others who are possibly offering too little too late, and many still feel that the responsibility for the friction between these two races can be shrugged off on African Americans for being >unwilling= or >difficult= in cooperation efforts. Instead of working harder to come together, it seems that instead our society is more content to avoid discussing the racial issues that are still prominent and visible in many, if not all, aspects of our lives and point fingers or name names for blame. I feel that the work we have read by Du Bois holds many important pieces for the puzzle of race relations in our country that has yet to be assembled.
Posted by Amber Melaney at 08:59 AM | Permalink | Add a Comment (0)
discrimination a la du bois
Blacks in Philadelphia faced multiple forms of discrimination, and many of these forms can still be seen today. Even if he or she were the most qualified candidate for a job or position, any non-African American candidate would receive the job over the more qualified African American. Discrimination was also seen in education, and it took many forms. Black schools were often lacking in adequate resources including textbooks, supplies and even teachers. African Americans attempting to gain admittance into institutes of higher education were often denied the opportunity despite academic qualifications. Even after obtaining a degree, most African Americans still struggled in the job market and were often forced to work in low-skill jobs to earn a living. Discrimination from friends was probably one of the more striking forms that Du Bois discusses. Many African Americans were faced with a lose-lose situation when encountering a white ‘friend’ or acquaintance in the street. If he or she were to acknowledge the friend, he or she would be faced with rejection or disdain. But, if he or she were to decline acknowledgment, the white ‘friend’ and others may regard him or her as rude or disrespectful. Du Bois describes all of these forms of discrimination in early 20th century Philadelphia, but many forms can still be seen today.
tavia & amber
Posted by Amber Melaney at 09:03 AM | Permalink | Add a Comment (0)
Thoughts from yesterday's discussion
With the Civil War only a few decades past at the time DuBois wrote this article, it is not surprising to read that African-Americans were still facing considerable discrimination.
Even though African-American people were free, their opportunities in life were still very much limited. I don’t believe that very many white Americans really wanted to see African-Americans rise to their full potential within this society, and I still think this holds true nowadays. So many white Americans were (and some still are) trying to cling to the myth that their race was naturally superior, and I think they were scared of having that blow up in their face. American society was built upon beliefs of white superiority and other lies such as “manifest destiny”. Refusing well-qualified African-American people the opportunity to obtain any kind of respectable employment in which they could provide a better quality of life for themselves and their families was another way that white Americans worked to hold on to those ideals. In a capitalist society such as our own, money is power. Therefore, preventing African-American people from building any kind of financial stability through employment discrimination really hindered their growth in all aspects of society. In addition, I think that the frustration that comes with having to bust your ass everyday at a job that barely allows you to afford the essentials of living makes it pretty hard to keep believing that things will ever get easier if you keep trying. On that note, I think it is so amazing that DuBois himself was able to accomplish all that he did in his lifetime. American society has made some progress in moving away from the complete degradation of its African-American citizens, but like many others have already said, there is so much more than needs to be dealt with.
Posted by Erica Jensen at 09:08 PM | Permalink | Add a Comment (0)
February 12, 2007
group work: segregation
in my group we discussed the candymaker who would not hire the black worker because "the other help would not work with him." While on the surface this looks like discrimination, we decided it was actually segregation; the owner acting as the force behind the separation between the white workers (who, incidentally, probably did not all object to a black coworker) and the black applicant.
sean and chrissi
Posted by Sean Doe-Simkins at 08:50 PM | Permalink | Add a Comment (0)
Du Bois: Group Work
I cannot remember what our topic was for the group work, however, Allison Tierney and I came up with a quote "the Negro is conspicuously absent from all places of honor, trust, emoulment, as well as from those of respectable grade in commerce and industry" (124).
Posted by Jesse Kortuem at 09:42 PM | Permalink | Add a Comment (0)
February 13, 2007
Du Bois and discrimination and prejudices
As we were discussing last Thursday in class, DuBois' points on discrimination and prejudice, we found a quote from the reading that maybe embodied both ideas and was a main point of this reading. "Thus the young white man starts life in knowing that within some limits and barring accidents, talent and application will tell. The young Negro starts knowing that on all sides his advance is made difficult if not wholly shut off by his color." (pg 123) Again, we felt this noted that discrimination then leads to prejudice which effects ones achivements, because he/she may never be able to accomplish anything on his/her own individual merit.
Posted by Ashley Day at 12:10 PM | Permalink | Add a Comment (0)
Philadelphia Ghetto
(sorry for the late entry, I was a bit confused)
We felt that most of what DuBois described was not really what the stereotypical image of a ghetto is. (Poverty stricken, crime) Though it did fit with a group of people with similar ethnicity being exploited and being taken advantage of be it through their employment, housing, etc. A quote that described it well:
"Everybody speaks of the matter, everybody knows that it exists, but in just what form it shows itself or how influential it is few agree. In the Negro's mind, color prejudice in Philadelphia is that widespread feeling of dislike for his blood, which keeps him and his children out of decent employment, from certain public conveniences and amusements, from hiring houses in many sections, and in general from being recognized as a man." (p122)
Posted by Angela Mulcahy at 12:34 PM | Permalink | Add a Comment (0)
Prejudice in reading
Some of the examples of prejudice from Du Bois's article included the fact that some employers simply wouldn't hire a black person simply because of their skin color, as well as some of the double standards like acknowledging a white female in public, and the consequences for both acknowledging and disregarding her presence. -dave and justin
Posted by Dave N at 01:08 PM | Permalink | Add a Comment (0)
February 15, 2007
Color prejudice and how it works today OBE 1
W.E.B.Du Bois wrote about color prejudices in Philadelphia and what are the odds to the development of the Negro under privileged living there then. He was highly intelligent and wrote a lot of things about life in American by then. I was convinced by the way he decribed the hardship of the black and how the society was trying to make them understand their role as inferior in the society.This project will try to draw comparison between color prejudice during the 1899 in Philadelphia and what changes has taken place in modern days. The first part will deal with the social aspect , that is how negro where not considered in any important social gathering and where alway in the dark and the changes modern days blacks has taken.The second will talk about environmental and educational problems that blacks faced during those day and how these two resulted into poverty and a very poor environment,and what are the changes that has taken place in most of the black communities today. His work made it clear how color prejudice used to be carryout.
Although there were others groups suffering in Philadelphia , they blacks ( negro ) was the ones who suffered the most. They where faced with social problems like labor , crime , poverty and ignorance, which their lives making changes almost impossible affected , but not to exclude that societal preception of blacks was not positive by then . These problems have changed over time and have become more internalized and comes out unconsciously these days. That is to say, people's discrimination comes out when the don’t expect it , for example when a black man is in a white neighbor hood, they white usually calls the police of fear that he/she might do something ill legal . A description of how blacks used to lived shows that they were “ haunts of note criminals , male and female , of gamblers and prostitutes , and at the time of many poverty stricken people decent but not energetic “ ( p 121). Basically people living in this conditions have no social respect or if they do low social respect. Blacks were totally not considered for better jobs , so they jobs they had were, stevedores, porters, laborers and laundress . It is just hand to mouth jobs with low esteem . Realistically , social respect comes with good jobs and better living conditions. Today , the social conditions of blacks have changed drastically . They occupies jobs , crime rate is still high( in some areas) but prostitution in most part of the country is ill legal . Black people has change their lives and developed a sense of respect, but the perception has not gone away that black people are dangerous.They do envolved in entertainment and most social functions with high repect from all race.
The people were poor and so it obvious for them to live in poor environment. Lack of good education will creates jobs of low income , which can be manifested in the environment . It is definite that not all blacks were poor but majority were. If we take America today , blacks have a lot of power and some holes political power and even aspiring for president . Research shows that the black middle class is rapidly improving than the rest of the colors in the country. Although I am drawing a line between two different eras but it is important to know the changes cities has undergone over the pass years. In Philadelphia today, in most hoods it still looks poor , but on the other hand other areas has developed because of racial discrimination does not exist .
This essay tried to show how the racial discrimination was bad and how it is now in America. The first part talked about the problems of negros when Du Bois wrote this essay and when further to show how modern days social discrimination has taken a new form. The second part talks about how education been the main cause of the environmental set back and how balcks has improved on that for the better.
The people were poor and so it obvious for them to live in poor environment. Lack of good education will creates jobs of low income , which can be manifested in the environment . It is definite that not all blacks were poor but majority were. If we take America today , blacks have a lot of power and some holes political power and even aspiring for president . Research shows that the black middle class is rapidly improving than the rest of the colors in the country. Although I am drawing a line between two different eras but it is important to know the changes cities has undergone over the pass years. In Philadelphia today, in most hoods it still looks poor , but on the other hand other areas has developed because of racial discrimination does not exist .
This essay tried to show how the racial discrimination was bad and how it is now in America. The first part talked about the problems of negros when Du Bois wrote this essay and when further to show how modern days social discrimination has taken a new form. The second part talks about how education been the main cause of the environmental set back and how balcks has improved on that for the better.
Posted by D.philips at 02:49 PM | Permalink | Add a Comment (2)
Comments
I like what you have to say, but I think that there are definelty structural and social constructs that paint black people how they are today. For example, many loan companies red-lined neighborhoods, which did not allow blacks to recieve loans which kept them in poor neighboorhoods. As a result, crime swept throughout the neighboorhood, which gave whites this vision of blacks being violent.
Posted by: Jesse | February 16, 2007 03:04 PM
As a Black woman I must disagree with your statement that "These problems have changed over time and have become more internalized and comes out unconsciously these days."
While there have been many progressive changes since W.E.B. Du Bois' writings Black people still face many of the same issues today hence crime rates, incarceration statistics, and so forth.
Yes, in 108 years some progress has been made but the struggle continues. Social stratification is still a very big problem in this country. Racial discrimination and social injustices still exist.
The fact that some Blacks hold political offices, work in the entertainment industry, have realized some upward mobility, is not proof nor does it indicate that Blacks have gained any social or economic "power."
To dates Blacks still do not control the businesses and institutions in Black communities for the most part.
Black people make up roughly 12% of the American population. 24.4% of Blacks are living in poverty...
"About 8.4 percent of all black male U.S. residents between 25 and 29 years old were in a state or federal prison in 2004, compared to 2.5 percent of Hispanic males in the same age group and 1.2 percent of white males. Among male and female prisoners combined, 41 percent were black, 34 percent were white, 19 percent Hispanic and the rest were other races or two or more races."
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/press/p04pr.htm
Just something to think about...
Posted by: Marenda | May 16, 2007 04:01 PM
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