The political economy of black inequality: An exploratory analysis

This study explores the limits of the concepts of race and racism as scientifically valid explanations for the unequal socioeconomic status of blacks in relation to that of whites. The study aims to produce evidence in support of the hypotheses that (1) racism as an ideological system cannot provide a causal explanation for black inequality and (2) that the causal basis of black inequality is rooted in the internal dynamic of the U.S. political economy.;Second, proceeding from the basis of the Marxian theory of capitalist accumulation and the "Reserve Army of Labor" and employing the method of linear regression, the analysis of national income and labor force data over the post World War II era produces outcomes supporting the hypothesis that black inequality results primarily from the process of capitalist accumulation which leads to the absolute and relative growth of the reserve army of labor and the disproportionate presence of blacks in the labor reserve.;The general conclusion drawn from the historical and empirical analysis is that the continued reliance on racism and racial discrimination as the causal basis for black inequality ultimately leads to the adoption of Social Darwinist precepts in the realm of theory and a "blame the victim" posture in the fields of civil rights and social welfare policy.;The study employs two analytical approaches in testing the above hypotheses. First, historical material is presented tracing the development of the "Race paradigm", or the racial explanation for black inequality covering the period from the colonization of North America to "Civil Rights" era. The examination of the forms assumed by the race paradigm in response to the labor needs of the evolving U.S. political economy yields considerable support for the assertion that race functioned as the ideological rationale for North American slavery and, following Emancipation, the widespread practice of segregation on the basis of color. The historical record also reveals that the objective basis for the hegemonic influence of the race paradigm was that it provided the most effective solution to the problem of labor scarcity.