(Many) Whites think blacks are lazy, poor and violent. But that's not what the statistics say.

[qwlauren35]

Last edited Fri May 8, 2015, 02:20 PM - Edit history (2)

YouGov’s recent peek into racial attitudes shows whites overwhelmingly annoyed by discussions on race, the usual entry point into a conversation on black living. An earlier poll shows a slim majority of whites believing African Americans don’t face much discrimination today.

Gilens suggested these perceptions not only shape social interactions between blacks and whites but they eventually infect white electoral behavior. That behavior has managed to stunt black entry into the vaunted middle class: Because we think of blacks as poor, we also think of them as irresponsible, lazy, and violent.

Blacks, at 13 percent of the population, represent 22 percent of the poor and 14 percent of those receiving “safety net” benefits. Yet, according to a Center for Budget and Policy Priorities report, whites—at 64 percent of the population and 42 percent of the poor—receive 69 percent of government benefits.

The commonly held view that African Americans perpetually feed from the government trough could use a bit of course correction. The largest beneficiaries of safety net programs—food stamps included—are white people. Yet these same white recipients are the most likely to vote for Republican candidates who oppose the existence of such programs. GOP candidates, in turn, frequently dog whistle black poverty stereotypes as both a cultural confidence booster and a vote grabbing tool for white voters. Recall 2012 GOP presidential candidate Rick Santorum’s comments during a campaign stop in Iowa: “I don’t want to make black people’s lives better by giving them somebody else’s money.”

http://www.psmag.com/politics-and-law/are-we-talking-enough-about-the-black-middle-class

[Kelvin Mace]

1. I have lived in poor white neighborhoods and poor black neighborhoods

and I saw WAY more people on public assistance in the white neighborhoods.

[jwirr]

45. And many of us who are white and use public assistance are all but invisible. No one knows I

am poor and no one just assumes. That is not true for persons of color. First thought is often that they are poor and on public assistance. With no proof at all. It is a horrible stereotype.

[qwlauren35]

2. Wow.

One comment.

It is amusing to see how quickly this topic sinks to the bottom.

[malaise]

5. But but but divide and rule works so well

K & R for the truth you won't see or hear on M$Greedia

[Enthusiast]

16. Divide and rule is very effective.

TPTB can get away with anything now that there's a black president.

[sendero]

3. RACIST Whites think blacks are lazy, poor and violent...

.... there, fixed it for you.

[qwlauren35]

10. I'm not sure

that all of the white people who feel this way think that they are racist. I think this is part of the institutional racism. Maybe not the lazy part, maybe not the violent part (although I would bet that there are a lot of women who don't think of themselves as racist, but get a small tremor when they pass a black man on the street), but I would say that POOR is something that a lot of people associate with "black" without knowing the true statistics.

[sendero]

14. Just because they don't think they...

.. are racist doesn't mean they aren't. By definition, they are.

[phil89]

15. Based on what??

do you even think before you post?

[sendero]

19. Apparently ...

.... I think a lot more than you. The VERY DEFINITION of racism is you think "those people" are different, usually in a negative way, than you because they are a different race. THE VERY DEFINITION.

[NoJusticeNoPeace]

28. In time you will learn which people on DU are incapable of understanding what you

are so eloquently saying.

White privilege and racism is so deep in us white folk, we have had SO much privilege for SO long, that we simply have no idea that we have it nor it's negative effects on others.

Downright ignorance I guess is the best way to express it.

[qwlauren35]

21. Definition

Racist: a person who believes that a particular race is superior to another.

I think it is possible to subconsciously believe that white is superior to black, and consciously rationalize that subconscious belief with thoughts such as black people are lazy, poor, violent. Keep in mind that much of the media constantly reinforces this.

So, the definition is objective. My response is subjective opinion. I could hunt for another study to validate my opinion if you like, but I think the article does it well.

[LanternWaste]

53. If "many" includes the subset "racist", it was accurate to begin with.

If "many" includes (regardless of whether limited to or nor) the subset "racist" (it does), it was accurate to begin with.

(Set Theory was usually avoided by many people in high school, so I can readily understand the inaccurate use of it)

[daredtowork]

4. I repeatedly bring this up

The majority of welfare recipients aren't black, but politicians use the racist insinuation they ARE black as a way to garner supports to cut welfare programs. Then these cuts hurt poor people across the ethnic spectrum: IIRC the white piece of the pie is larger than the black one - especially when you consider that most of what people mentally project as welfare (money you can live off of) is disability. Black people are not disproportionately disabled. It seems likely to me that white people are more likely to have the legal resources you need to make a disability case before the age of 65, and the family/social resources you need to hold out during the application process.

Anyway, continually indulging in this racism has made things increasingly difficult for actually disabled people since it allows politicians to keep raising the bar on the SSI/SSDI application process while eviscerating general assistance resources people would need to survive during the application process.

[malaise]

6. The idea is to divide the poor

and rule on behalf of the 1%. If we're busy hating one another, we're to busy to hate our real enemies

[NoJusticeNoPeace]

29. But the system uses the black person as the instigator as LBJ said.

On one hand you are lazy and so on and at the same time I get to use you as an excuse for everything that has gone wrong in my life.

very clever, actually


and there are many on DU who make these conversations difficult....getting pretty fucking tired of worrying about being banned if i talk about racism on a liberal message board

[malaise]

38. Well said

I love the lazy part - that start after we left the plantations. Remember our job is to make everyone else rich while we slave on their behalf and dwell in squalor.

[Enthusiast]

18. I believe you are correct.

[geek tragedy]

7. racism hasn't gone away, it's just gone underground.

Anyone who thinks black Americans are lazy ought to take public transportation in NYC around 6:15 am during the work week.

As Jesse Jackson said in 1988, (1988!)

They catch the early bus. They work every day.

They raise other people's children. They work everyday.

They clean the streets. They work everyday. They drive dangerous cabs. They work everyday. They change the beds you slept in in these hotels last night and can't get a union contract. They work everyday.

No, no, they are not lazy! Someone must defend them because it's right, and they cannot speak for themselves. They work in hospitals. I know they do. They wipe the bodies of those who are sick with fever and pain. They empty their bedpans. They clean out their commodes. No job is beneath them, and yet when they get sick they cannot lie in the bed they made up every day. America, that is not right. We are a better Nation than that. We are a better Nation than that.

[madokie]

20. I'm not even sure it has gone underground anymore

Our electing a Black President sure brought the racist asshole jackasses out. Its as if they climbed out of the wood work or something

I'm sick of the racist and homophobic assholes and now that I'm an old man who doesn't give two shits as to what someone else might think of me I let them know how I feel when I'm faced with it either.

[okaawhatever]

8. Excellent article. TY you may want to cross post this in Good Reads nt

[qwlauren35]

22. I didn't know that I was allowed to do that.

It never occurred to me that anyone can post there.

I guess I thought that if something got enough recs, it would go there.

Silly me.

[AgingAmerican]

9. Watch FOX news sometime and you will understand

They push this shit endlessly.

Even their African American hosts push it.

[JustAnotherGen]

12. Yep - totally failing to THANK

Middle class and higher black Americans who are HAPPY to pay taxes to take care of ALL poor Americans - including white folks.

[4Q2u2]

34. Why let

Why let facts get in the way of a narrative.

It is the Fox Entertainment Co.

[JustAnotherGen]

11. The actual title of the article -

Are We Talking Enough About the Black Middle Class?

When it comes to racial inequality, most of the political conversation centers on black poverty. But this ignores a segment of black America that has attained some measure of success and is being held back from achieving more.


Dear America - no you aren't. And I totally disagree that the 'man' is trying to pit poor against poor.


They are going after poor white people and getting them to 'target' middle class and higher black people.


They've got them convinced that we 'took something' from them - when in fact regardless of luck or not - if we are here we tend to come from a long line of people that threw a lot of elbows.

[Cali_Democrat]

13. ^^this^^

Successful blacks are definitely targets.

[jtuck004]

25. If you are here you profit on the bones of a huge genocide, and part of your wealth comes

from a nation that was built on slavery, where many white folk still profit from or support racism today.

Threw elbows. Yeah, that we did.

But here is an article about that study with the title...
http://tobingrant.religionnews.com/2014/12/08/poll-whites-say-blacks-lazier-less-intelligent-whites-3-graphs/

We did, and are, taking something from people. It's the ones who can't figure that out who are the problem.

[malaise]

27. True - the UN meme works also very well

The 'you people' ...so kill affirmative action and anything else that leads to an African-American President or social mobility for those UNs.

[NoJusticeNoPeace]

31. Yep....The white racist needs to see you as someone who is out to get them, and if you would just

get a job (even though you already have one) or better, go away, all my problems would be gone

[jwirr]

49. That is an excellent point. We watch the black news persons on the shows and never see them as

representing the success of the black middle class. Even at that level we do not develop positive ideas of success around the black community. It is like the stereotype is set in concrete. Nothing - even evidence shakes it.

[Number23]

64. "It is like the stereotype is set in concrete. Nothing - even evidence shakes it."

You nailed it. That was absolutely perfectly said.

[jwirr]

67. Thank you.

[Number23]

63. Nailed it. And middle class black folks face almost as much shit as our poorer fam

Some middle class black folks may not have to worry about being tossed out on the street, but we still are harassed by cops, denied opportunities, followed in stores, ignored, lessened, feared just as much as our poorer brethren.

Reason number 6,992,498 that the "it's class, not race" argument is complete bullshit.

[Dream Girl]

17. kick

[Bigmack]

23. Lyndon Johnson said it best....

"If you can convince the lowest white man that he's better than the best colored man, he won't notice you're picking his pocket. Hell, give him somebody to look down on, and he'll even empty his pockets for you."

That's why poor whites vote Republican. LBJ's civil rights actions - and the Repub "Southern Strategy" - moved poor whites into the Repub party...and further.

[underpants]

30. And Reagan followed with the "picking up Welfare checks in Cadillacs" line

Calvin Trillin once wrote a great piece lampooning the Republicans on this. One of his main points was that when they hear "Cadillac" the only see a beautiful fancy ride, they can't even envision a rusty old clunker.

[NoJusticeNoPeace]

35. He was a dumb man, he really believed this shit. I love his son Ron Jr, I wish

I could hear him on radio again

[951-Riverside]

24. This is coming from the same race responsible for wiping out millions over the past 250 years

From colonizing America and Australia & wiping out the indigenous population to World War 1, World War 2, Vietnam and the Iraq wars.

In fact most of their "riches" have been gained from killing others and taking their property on a massive scale but they go spastic over a black guy taking toilet paper from a CVS store.

[shenmue]

33. Wow

Just wow.

[tclambert]

36. Hey, genocide used to be a widely respected method for solving problems

like the existence of other people. White people were really good at it. Then somebody invented morality and ruined everything.

[LittleBlue]

37. That is more indicative of having technological advances

Lethality in warfare was much lower before guns. Others also engaged in war but with less lethal instruments that were more difficult to learn. That kept the death tolls lower.

It goes both ways, though. Advances like antibiotics have saved more people than have ever perished at the end of a European gun.

[bettyellen]

60. Oh please, they've been keeping good medical care far from the impoverished as best they could...

They invented meds and treatments for themselves.
Why did people start surviving Ebola? Because it came to our doorstep, that's why.

[malaise]

40. You left out sharing up Africa for themselves

after decimating out the population by forced movements and disease

[AgingAmerican]

72. You are describing settler colonialism

Settler colonialism was practiced in the Americas with the main goal of territorial occupation.

In Africa they engaged mostly in extractive colonialism. Extraction colonialism leaves the native population largely in tact, while taking the natural resources. This is still happening in Africa in diamond producing regions.

One leaves a population dead and the other leaves the population impoverished.

[heaven05]

47. +1000

[AgingAmerican]

71. Countries were responsible

Not a race.

[Buzz Clik]

26. That was a long and excellent read.

Lots of subtlety in there.

thanks.

[shenmue]

32. Nice

[MaggieD]

39. Racism is alive and thriving - no doubt

To me, it seems more prevalent that ever, and I think that is because having a black president just caused the everyday, fairly quiet racists to blow their top. They were so "insulted" at the idea that this country would actually elect a black president they simply could not keep their hate tamped down any longer.

What also irks me is the BS that the poor are lazy. Anyone who has ever been poor knows what crap that is. Surviving as a poor person is literally exhausting. Ezra Klein once wrote an excellent article about the kind of hyper-vigilance it takes to survive as a poor person. I can't find the article now, but having been poor in the past, I can say he nailed it.

Edited to add: found the article: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2012/09/20/what-romney-doesnt-understand-about-personal-responsibility/

[99Forever]

42. Your headline is dishonest.

I'm white and don't believe any of those things.

[qwlauren35]

46. I'll change it.

But the statistics indicate that this is the majority view.

[99Forever]

48. I don't give a shit what "statistics say,"

If you want to discuss something, you don't start out by broadbrush insulting those you are trying to reach.

[qwlauren35]

54. I don't agree.

I think it's important to get people's attention. I am not the only poster who uses provocative headlines to start a discussion.

But I've changed the title. Not sure why that doesn't satisfy you.

[99Forever]

57. Then you must like Fox News a lot.

That's the of trash tactics they use.

So M. Statistician, precisely how many is many?

Cheap sensationalism is cheap.

[qwlauren35]

58. We don't see eye to eye on this.

And I'm just going to accept that.

[99Forever]

59. No problem.

I can live with that. Just giving you an alternative perspective.

BTW, the article had some great points.

[heaven05]

43. race relations

yes I will say it, are getting progressively worse in this country, with no hope of racial reconciliation in sight. If Obama getting elected didn't change most of the minds of the regular privileged of american society, racist or non, then NOTHING will.

[sulphurdunn]

44. In any multi-racial or ethnic society

with large numbers of poor people, bigotry and racism are divide an conquer tactics employed by ruling elites to keep the the exploited focused on hating each other. This tactic is especially effective when one group of poor suckers is encouraged to think they are superior to another group because of racial or ethnic identity with their oppressors.

[Xipe Totec]

50. There is a Mexican saying that expresses the opposite view:

"Trabajando como negro para vivir como blanco."

Which means: "Working like a black (man) to live like a white (man)."

To work like a black man means to work very, very, very hard.

[eridani]

51. The GOP Is The Food Stamp Party

http://www.nationalmemo.com/the-gop-is-the-food-stamp-party/

It’s a well-known irony that states that tend to vote Republican—the party that constantly raves about the “makers” and trolls the “takers”—generally take in more tax money than they pay out.

The 10 highest tax-producing states have all been “blue states” over the last few presidential elections. Of the 10 lowest, eight are “red.” Even within states, Democratic-leaning counties tend to consume fewer services for the tax money they contribute than red counties do—even though Democratic areas generally include large urban populations.

<snip>

“By nearly every measure, people who live in the blue states are healthier, wealthier, and generally better off than people in the red states,” according to The New Republic’s Jonathan Cohn.

Republican states not only benefit most from government support, their policies create the need for food stamps in the first place.

[qwlauren35]

61. This makes sense.

I am misquoting but someone said that the poorest white person just wants to think himself better than the wealthiest black person. And they vote that way.

[steve2470]

52. k&r! nt

[One_Life_To_Give]

55. And Pilgrims wore Black Clothes with Pewter Buckles

We get our view of reality from what we see. Textbooks with Victorian styled images, or today what the TV and internet vids show. Want to do a news story on welfare recipients? Does the media go out into suburbia? or into the urban centers? Sure it's easier for the news crew to go downtown. But it paints the picture frame thru which many people view the world.

[whatthehey]

56. A good message, but it needs to focus on apples to apples

The real power number is kind of glossed over in pasing, that whites are 64% of the population but get 69% of government benefits. Assuming this is the case, that's the number that proves that welfare isn't biased towards "them", but in fact slightly biased towards "us". While racism and poor educational attainment are correlated, it's a bit implausible to assume that the entire group of racists are too stupid to see the obvious response to "the largest beneficiaries of safety net programs are white". So are the largest number of people, by far. Hell there are more white people in prison than any other race and even the most troglodytic RWNJ knows black offenders are more likely per capita to be in prison than whites (he just assumes it's 100% their fault).

To make this point it really needs to be that X% of whites receive an average of Y dollars in benefits, and the same for minorities. The 64 to 69 datum is a good start, but that's the metric to use and in more detail and front and center.

[bobjacksonk2832]

65. The media has done a poor job presenting a fair and balanced view of black people in general.

Therefore, it's not at all surprising that so many Americans have such uninformed opinions about black Americans. Sad but true.

[uponit7771]

66. +1

[akbacchus_BC]

70. You are very Brave to make to this post and I commend you!