01:920:108 Lecture Notes - Lecture 13: Vocational School, Invisible Hand, Class Stratification

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Student presentations today on Sakai articles in class
The “invisible hand” refers to a meritocracy, where who you know shapes employment options.
By comparing the experiences of Black and White working class men who graduated from the same vocational high school, Royster shows
how race can shape Black men’s access to job networksmaking who you know a critical factor in their economic well-being.
Even more troubling are data indicating that the proportion of blacks who attend and graduate from college appears to be shri nking, with
the inevitable result that fewer blacks will have the credentials and skills necessary to get the better jobs in the growing technical and
professional occupational categories.
In terms of social networks, black men are at a disadvantage in terms of configuration, content, and operation, a disadvantage that is
exacerbated in sectors with long traditions of racial exclusion, such as the blue-collar trades.
Without being aware of it, white males’ descriptions of their experiences revealed a pattern of intergenerational intraracial assistance
networks among young and older white men that assured even the worst young troublemaker a solid place within the blue -collar fold.
Visible hands tramp the “invisible hand”-and norms of racial exclusivity passed down from generation to generation in American cities
continue to inhibit black men’s entry into the better skilled jobs in the blue-collar sector.
These sorts of claims seek to locate working-class black men’s employment difficulties in the men’s alleged deficitsbad attitudes,
shiftlessness, poor skillsrather than in the structures and procedures of worker selection that are typically under the direct control of older
white men whose preferences, by custom, do not reflect meritocratic criteria.
The present research suggests that the options are few: either accommodation to the parameters of a racialized system or fail ure in
establishing a successful trade career.
The enduring power of segregated networks in the blue-collar trades is as responsible as segregated neighborhoods for the existence of
extremely poor and isolated black communities and of the disproportionately black and male prison population in fact, more so.
1.
“Race and the invisible hand: How white networks exclude black men from blue-collar jobs.” (Sakai article)
This is an audit studya study in this case where pairs of Black and White men are identically matched in their social characteristics and
compared in employment outcomes following incarceration.
Pager shows the barrier that a criminal record creates for subsequent employment, showing the influence of race in the likelihood of former
prisoners finding jobs.
Over the past three decades, the number of prison inmates in the United States has increased by more than 600%, leaving it th e country
with the highest incarceration rate in the world
These vast numbers of inmates translate into a large and increasing population of black ex-offenders returning to communities and
searching for work.
The barriers these men face in reaching economic self-sufficiency are compounded by the stigma of minority status and criminal
record.
In particular, incarceration is associated with limited future employment opportunities and earnings potential (Freeman 1987; Western
2002), which themselves are among the strongest predictors of recidivism
In 50% of cases, employers were unwilling to consider equally qualified applicants on the basis of their criminal record.
There were, in fact, some employers who seemed to prefer workers who had been recently released from prison.
Among blacks without criminal records, only 14% received callbacks, relative to 34% of white noncriminals__ In fact, even whites with
criminal records received more favorable treatment (17%) than blacks without criminal records (14%).
Race continues to play a dominant role in shaping employment opportunities, equal to or greater than the impact of a criminal record
The effect of a criminal record is thus 40% larger for blacks than for whites.
The effect of a criminal record appears more pronounced for blacks than it is for whites.
Employers, already reluctant to hire blacks, appear even more wary of blacks with proven criminal involvement.
Instead, the employment barriers of minority status and criminal record are compounded, intensifying the stigma toward this g roup.
On three separate occasions, for example, black testers were asked in person (before submitting their applications) whether t hey had a prior
criminal history. None of the white testers were asked about their criminal histories up front.
Over the past decade, affirmative action has come under attack across the country based on the argument that direct racial di scrimination is
no longer a major barrier to opportunity.
2.
“The mark of a criminal record.” (Sakai article)
Authors point outa pernicious side of the choices White parents make for good schoolingthat is, the perpetuation of racial inequality
in education.
Community and school decisionsaffect the everyday lives of parents and their children but contribute significantly to a family’s life
chances, their future prospects, and their identities.
We are interested in understanding what seems to be “going on” in the minds of whites in contemporary U.S. society when it comes to race,
schools, and neighborhood choice, and how this mind-set informs behavior and action.
Authors research findingsthe process of school and community choice can be seen as a key mechanism that reproduces race and class
stratification. The choices are made within an arena that is rigidly stratified and socially structured to reward those in ad vantageous
positions for making decisions that will further their advantage and similarly situate their children.
Interviewing White Families about Race:
3.
“Good neighborhoods, good schools: Race and the ‘good choices’ of White families.” (Sakai article)
Lecture: Day 13
Thursday, March 8, 2018
6:04 PM
Minority Groups in American Society Page 1
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Document Summary

Criminal justice system new institution sorting and stratifying of young and disadvantaged men. compared in employment outcomes following incarceration. In particular, incarceration is associated with limited future employment opportunities and earnings potential (freeman 1987; western. 2002), which themselves are among the strongest predictors of recidivism. These vast numbers of inmates translate into a large and increasing population of black ex -offenders returning to communities and. Interviewing white families about race: the case even for parents who send their children to private schools and do not use the public school system. When asked how they chose their neighborhood, most white parents explained right away that it was for the school district. And because property taxes fund school districts, residential location and school quality tend to go hand in hand. Our data reveal deep levels of explicit racism by whites against blacks in particular.

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