Social_Stratification_in_the_Us

Social Stratification in the Contemporary United States Introduction: Social inequality is a general aspect that characterize virtually all societies a cross the world. This has to do with an individual’s position in the society which is usually determined by the economic advantage, power and prestige. Social stratification can be referred to as the hierarchical position that the society divides its people based on the economic advantages which in turn have an influence on their social position within the society. The social stratification results into social classes which are a group of individuals who shares similar status based on the wealth, power and prestige associated with their stratification. Stratification therefore stems from inequality in the society as some individuals are ranked higher in status compared to the others. Social inequality is a situation where the different individuals have unequal access to wealth, power, and prestige in the society. Social stratification in turn influences the individual’s behavior, attitudes and chances in life (Cuber & Kenkel, p 6). Racism has been one index that has been used in social stratification where the whites have seen themselves being superior to the black people. In the United States, racism is a problem that has refused to go a way and its influences are still being felt even though it is not blatant. There is a conflicting situation between the whites and the blacks in regard to equality within the American society. This paper shall explore the social stratification in the United States specifically in regard to racial discrimination. Background on Racial Stratification in the United States: Racial discrimination has been a major problem in the United States since the colonial times. Though racism has been directed towards the minority groups, the African Americans have had to bear the heaviest burden (Cuber & Kenkel, p 3). In the United States, various issues since the mid of the 20th century indicates that racial equality has remained hard to pin down. Racial segregation is still existent in public schools and statistics from college attendance indicates that the minority groups are still not at par with the majority whites. There is what can be referred to as racial stratification in the employment sector, housing, education and government. Though racial discrimination was outlawed during the civil rights movement in the 1960s and it was seen as an unacceptable phenomenon, it has continued to find its way in the modern society (Fairclough, p 23). There is evidence that racially prejudiced attitudes have continued to be held by some individuals in the American society. There is discrimination towards the African Americans, Latin Americans, and the Muslim faithful among many other minority groups. Most members of the dominant group have treated the minority group members with some racial prejudice when dealing with them. Contemporary Racial stratification in the United States: Racial segregation in the American society is still a general problem that requires a new approach. There is evidence from research findings that the minority groups in the United States records high rates of poverty level, unemployment racial profiling and oppressive imprisonment. Segregation is also practiced in schools even in present day America (Phillips, para 1). Using the economic indicators such as measuring the employment rates, poverty, housing, income and wealth; the African Americans are said to score poorly compared to their white counterparts. According to the National Urban League, in cases where the white Americans scores 100%, the African Americans only manage an average of 56.8% (Bigg, para 1). In regard to other indices like educational matters, heath, social justice, and civic engagement, the African Americans scores slightly above 70% (Bigg, para 2). The report by the National Urban League also revealed that there were more African Americans living below the poverty line compared to the whites. The blacks also recorded a high unemployment rate compared to the whites. The disparities recorded in the more than three hundred categories that were addressed by the report remains to be substantial and the according to Marc Morial, the League President, “the disparities between black and white Americans remain consistent, nagging and substantial” (Bigg, para 5). The report as published by UCLA entitled “Reviving the Goal of an Integrated Society: A 21st Century Challenge,” by Gary Orfield indicates that the public schools in the United States have about 40% of the non-whites students. The Latinos and the African Americans were identified as the two groups that are rapidly emerging in the public school enrollment. The report further noted that the Latino and the African American students attend schools more segregated than even during the civil rights time (Phillips, para 3). Schools in America are still segregated and unequal more than half a century following the United States Supreme Court ruling in the Brown v. Board of Education case. The study by UCLA indicated that the most affected schools were fund in the Western States that includes California and not in the South as many individuals would believe (Phillips, para 4). The emerging new form of racial segregation is essentially based on how the urban areas are organized in the geographical sense which has been described as being organized into ‘vanilla suburbs’ and ‘chocolate cities’ according to Cornel West (Phillips, para 5). White privilege has been blamed for the perpetuation of the racial segregation as indicated by the diminished opportunities being availed to the colored students whereas creating greater privileges for the white students. The white people often think of themselves as hard workers and that there achievement is a reward for their efforts. This can be partly accepted but the fact remains that white privilege often works to the advantage of the whites and therefore the geographical and structural racism is exploited to the advantage of the whites (Phillips, para 7). Those perpetuating racial discrimination are targeting the minority groups which are economically disadvantaged and therefore having low power status in the society. The minority groups in the United States have been subjected to all sorts of discrimination in accessing the resources that are provided by the society. It must be noted that African Americans have been sidelined by financial institution in accessing the loans which are give to the whites especially in the agricultural sector until recently. The election of Barrack Obama as the first ever Africa American President is regarded as a major breakthrough in addressing the racial issues that have limited the minority groups to low status citizenship. The past Presidential election though culminated in the election of Obama, statistics indicated that the whites preferred to vote for the white candidates with only a few percentages favoring Obama who was a black candidate (Weisberg, para 3). Racism is a vice that has refused to go away as it has kept haunting the American society even in this modern time. Segregation is still witnessed in schools and the incidences of police racial profiling has remained high. Though there is an emerging middle class for the minority group in the United States, there is need for enforcement of the civil rights and affirmative action to be taken by the authorities to safeguard the interests of the minority groups (Fairclough p 143). Many ways of addressing the issues have been suggested with some scholars rooting for the calling by Martin Luther King Junior that individuals need to be judged by the content of their character as opposed to the color of their skin. Others have however called for goal towards the achievement of a colorblind society where the color of the skin should not be used in judging an individual. Others still calls for the need to embrace diversity and respect for the differences in races through the adoption of multi-racial policies that targets the abolition of racial inequalities (Fairclough, p 145). Conclusion: Racism as a form of social stratification is a major problem that is faced by the American society. Racism per se has reduced but it is still being practiced. It must be noted that racial discrimination is something that had taken root in the America society and that it is not something that will go a way easily since it had been entrenched and institutionalized in the society at one point. Though some progress has been made in achieving racial equality, there is a long way to go as there is overwhelming evidence that the minority groups have continued to be segregated on racial grounds even in the modern society. This is evidenced by the recorded disparities in the economic advantages by these individuals when the majority whites have continued to floss in great wealth. Work Cited: Bigg, Matthew. Racial inequality persists in U.S.: report. Retrieved on 28th June 2010 from; http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN0561390420080305 Cuber, John F. & William F. Kenkel. Social Stratification in the United States. 1954. New York, Appleton-Century-Crofts. Fairclough, Adam. Better Day Coming: Blacks and Equality, 1890–2000. 2001. New York: Viking. Phillips, Peter. Racial Inequality Still Going Strong in U.S. 2009. Retrieved on 28th June 2010 from; http://news.newamericamedia.org/news/view_article.html'article_id=bc8c6994f8bbccf16cf0a83663f3a445 Weisberg, Jacob. If Obama Loses; Racism is the only reason McCain might beat him. 2008. Retrieved on 28th June 2010 from; http://www.slate.com/id/2198397