Race & Ethnicity in American Politics
Professor Smith
Spring 2015
Issue Brief – Final Draft
Yujin Kang
Socioeconomic Heterogeneity among African-Americans
Keywords: Socioeconomic status, minority, African-Americans, class divide, income
Description: Does the growing polarization in socioeconomic status make the African-American
population more heterogeneous in terms of political alignment and racial attitudes? Does such
polarization encourage middle class blacks to align with middle class whites, ultimately diluting
the cohesiveness of the African-American community?
Key Points:
● The class differences within the African-American community have created a spatial
segregation, as the emerging black middle class is moving to the suburbs whereas the
underclass remains in the poor metropolitan areas.
● However, there is a persisting gap between the black and white middle class in terms of
economic mobility.
● The class differences also contribute to the variation in views on racial inequality, where
middle class blacks are less likely than lower class counterparts to consider individual
attributes as basis for inequality.
● Although the economic success of middle-class blacks has provided grounds for
realignment with the “dominant” group (white middle class), the political party alignment
of African-Americans has not substantially changed over time.
● Despite the growing class differences, there is no significant or empirically proven effect
on the internal cohesiveness of the African-American community.
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Issue Brief:
Over the recent decades, the variation in socioeconomic status (abbr. SES) among
African-Americans has increased, “dividing” the black population along class lines (Hwang et al,
p.1). Some scholars contest that, “because of government efforts, such as Affirmative Action
programs, black Americans with better qualifications and resources are able to experience
unprecedented upward mobility,” suggesting the increasing spatial and socio-economic chasm of
African-Americans (Hwang et al, p.1).
First question is: does the
variation in party identification
correspond
differences
to
the
of
class
African-
Americans? According to the
recent data above, approximately
62%
of
themselves
blacks
as
identify
Democrats,
whereas a mere 6% of them
categorize themselves as Republicans (Pew Research Center, p.62). According to the table
above, despite the growing class differences, an overwhelming majority of blacks still support
the Democratic Party. From 1990 to 2007, 76 to 84% of blacks identified themselves as
Democrats, whereas 9 to 14% of them aligned with the Republican Party. Such trend seems
continuous, substantially unaffected by the growing class gap among blacks. Thus, it is evident
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that the impact of growing socioeconomic heterogeneity within the black community on party
identification variation remains insignificant.
Although the variation in SES among
blacks
does
not
identification, it
affect
or alter party
discloses
difference in
attitudes towards racial inequality among
blacks. The empirical findings suggest that,
“close to two-thirds of the respondents
believe
that
lack
of
opportunities
are
responsible for blacks’ poorer education and
jobs; yet 36% of them believe that blacks
themselves are to blame,” explaining how middle class blacks are less likely to blame the lack of
opportunities for receiving poorer education and jobs compared to their counterparts (Hwang et
al, p.4).
If the class differences among blacks
do not affect or alter party preferences, do they
have any significant effect on the in-group
cohesiveness
of
the
African-American
community? Some scholars have speculated
that the emergence and growth of “middle
class blacks” would essentially divide the
black community because the wealthier blacks
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would socially identify with the dominant middle class whites, as “middle-class blacks [would
be] less ethnocentric in their social orientation because of their presumed closeness to whites”
(Hwang et al, p.2). However, the Median Wealth graph illustrates how slightly over half of
blacks view themselves as a single race and explain why middle class blacks do not entirely
identify with the dominant middle class whites. First, there is a significant difference between the
“middle class whites” and “middle class blacks,” as Pattillo-McCoy asserts that, “the reality,
however, is that even the black and white middle classes remain separate and unequal” (PattilloMcCoy, p.2). The white middle class’ median wealth ranges from $80,000 to $180,000, whereas
the black middle class’ median wealth ranges from $20,000 to $40,000. The considerable income
gap between the middle class whites and blacks ultimately hinders the latter from
socioeconomically identifying with the former.
The economic mobility gap between the middle class whites and blacks further
discourages the latter group from socially and economically aligning with the former (Isaacs,
p.1). Isaacs affirms that, “...almost half (45 percent) of black children whose parents were solidly
middle class end up falling to the bottom of the income distribution, compared to only 16 percent
of white children,” suggesting the allure of middle-income status among blacks (Isaacs, p.2).
Moreover, the segregated housing market further discourages the middle class blacks
from aligning with the dominant white middle class. Pattillo-McCoy contends that, “ the black
middle class overall remains as segregated from whites as the black poor…[therefore] the search
for better neighborhoods has taken place within a segregated housing market. As a result, black
middle-class neighborhoods are often located next to predominantly black areas with much
higher poverty rates” (Pattillo-McCoy, p.25). Thus, despite the emergence and growth of “black
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middle class,” the income and economic mobility gap, and the segregated housing market
maintain the socio-economic chasm between the white and black middle class.
It is apparent that the income gap between lower and middle class blacks has increased
the level of heterogeneity among the African-American population; however, its effects on ingroup cohesiveness and political realignment are marginal at best. The empirical findings by
Hwang, Fitzpatrick and Helms further suggest that, “the largest difference between middle- and
lower-class black Americans is in regard to their political activism…[there is] no significant
difference between the two groups in terms of in-group cohesiveness” (Hwang et al, p.5). Hence,
it is evident that the socioeconomic variance within the African-American community does not
dilute in-group cohesiveness or foster political party realignment. Rather, such differences divide
African-Americans’ views on racial inequality.
Relevant Websites:
Examines ethnic and racial minorities in terms of SES:
http://www.apa.org/pi/ses/resources/publications/factsheet-erm.aspx
Shows statistical data regarding African-American populations in New York and New Jersey
such as income, SES, education, poverty, politics, and so on:
http://blackdemographics.com/cities-2/new-york-nj-ny/
Analyzes population dynamics in the United States:
http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/00000.html
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Works Cited:
“Blacks See Growing Values Gap Between Poor and Middle Class.” Pew Research Center. (2007): 1-63.
Print.
Bruenig, Matt. In Reality, Middle-Class Blacks And Middle-Class Whites Have Vastly Different Fortunes.
2013. Chart. DemosWeb. 25 Feb 2015. <http://www.demos.org/blog/8/29/13/reality-middle-class-blacksand-middle-class-whites-have-vastly-different-fortunes>.
Hwang, Sean-Shong, Kevin M. Fitzpatrick, and David Helms. “Class Difference in Racial Attitudes: A
Divided Black America?.” Sociological Perspectives. 41.2 (1998): 1-6. Print.
Isaacs, Julia. “Economic Mobility of Black and White Families.” Brookings Institution. (2007): 1-16.
Web. 11 Apr. 2015.
<http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/research/files/papers/2007/11/blackwhiteisaacs/11_blackwhite_isaacs.pdf>
Pattillo-McCoy, Mary. Black Picket Fences: Privilege and Peril Among the Black Middle Class. 1st ed.
University of Chicago Press, 2000. 1-283. Print.
** “Party Identification Trends” table and “Blacks Assess Their Racial Identity” graph have been taken
from the Pew Research Center (2007) data, and “Median Income” table has been retrieved from Bruenig.
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