A refreshing, multilayered study of racial inequality in
America.Wilson (Sociology/Harvard; There Goes the Neighborhood:
Racial, Ethnic and Class Tensions in Four Chicago Neighborhoods and
Their Meaning for America, 2006, etc.) adopts a controversial
method, outlining not only the institutional factors that
perpetuate inequity and poverty, but also the cultural factors,
which have often been overlooked by academics "because of a fear
that such analysis can be construed as 'blaming the victim.' "
Using this framework, Wilson dismantles the current ideology
surrounding the understanding of three fractious topics:
concentrated poverty, the economic plight of inner-city black males
and the breakdown of the black family. "The Forces Shaping
Concentrated Poverty," perhaps the most damning chapter, outlines
the initiatives that served to institutionalize inequality in
America, with particular emphasis on housing and transportation.
Readers who prefer their percentages and policy critique cloaked in
flowery language and anecdotal case studies would be well advised
to look elsewhere; Wilson's strict syntax of statistics and
acronyms readily evokes the bleakness of the landscape he
describes. Cultural factors are most prominent in "The
Fragmentation of the Poor Black Family." One of its most
fascinating passages resurrects the "prophetic" Moynihan report, a
landmark 1976 survey on race and family structure that was
originally lambasted for its inclusion of cultural evidence.
Situating the report both contextually and academically, the author
extracts relevant aspects of Moynihan's research as he
simultaneously traces the course of sociological methodology.
Wilson's strength lies in his ability to see beyond the
culture-versus-structure argument at the center of the discussion
of race and poverty in America. This allows him, for example, to
illustrate the enduring effects of such seemingly unconnected
factors as globalization and "cool-pose culture" on employment
among young black males.Reshapes the frame through which race and
poverty are viewed. (Kirkus Reviews)
In this provocative contribution to the American discourse on race,
the newest book of the Issues of Our Time series edited by Henry
Louis Gates Jr., William Julius Wilson applies an exciting new
analytic framework to three politically fraught social problems:
the persistence of the inner-city ghetto, the plight of low-skilled
black males, and the fragmentation of the African American family.
Though the discussion of racial inequality is typically
ideologically polarized--conservatives emphasize cultural factors
like worldviews and behaviors while liberals emphasize
institutional forces--Wilson dares to consider both institutional
and cultural factors as causes of the persistence of racial
inequality. He reaches the controversial conclusion that, while
structural and cultural forces are inextricably linked, public
policy can change the racial status quo only by reforming the
institutions that reinforce it. This book will dramatically affect
policy debates and challenge many of the leaders.
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