Racial Inequality

Paper Summary:

This paper explains that "The Unsteady March" by Philip Klinkner and Rogers Smith is a factual and historically based work, which presents many theories and applies them to actual situations of racial inequality; whereas, "Black Like Me" by John Griffin is a personal look inside the life of the southern Black. The author learns from Klinkner and Smith that Robert Blauner's theory of internal colonialism is applicable to the current problem of many standardized tests being created by and based on the dominant white culture. The paper concludes that both books and the theories presented make great strides in attempting to explain racial inequality, but they do not completely explain the phenomenon to allow himself or herself to be exploited and demeaned without putting forth resistance or what it must be like to be considered inferior and therefore treated as second-class citizen.

From the Paper:

"One sees great examples of segregation in Griffin's book. The blacks have their homes, stores, and cafes, even restrooms in their "black" section. This is where they perform their tasks of daily living. The white society may own most of the business even in the black area. The whites willing take the money of the black, but are not willing to extend him the jobs to earn more and therefore be able to move into areas that are populated by the whites. Whites only extended offers of employment in the menial areas, which most whites would find too demeaning. In this way, the dominant white culture can assure itself a dominant position even when Griffin travels to Atlanta and encounters a more progressive group of blacks. Here where many strides have been made toward equality, there remained the segregation. Blacks could receive a formal education from colleges taught by other educated blacks."

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