Opinion: Urban poverty, in black and white

Street Knowledge

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http://www.cnn.com/2014/07/11/opinion/alexander-olson-poor-urban-whites/

Opinion: Urban poverty, in black and white

We traced the experience of nearly 800 children in Baltimore for more than 25 years, from the time they entered first grade in the fall of 1982 in 20 Baltimore public schools to well into their third decade. Half their families were low income, according to school records, and the typical low-income parent hadn't finished high school. What might be surprising is that of that half, 40% are white.

Looking at where these children started in life and where they ended up, the study results are troubling but clear: At 28, hardly any of the children from a disadvantaged background, black or white, had finished college.

But even without the benefit of a college degree, whites, and white men especially, had vastly better employment outcomes. At every age, the white men experienced shorter spells of unemployment, were more likely to be working full-time and earned more.

Baltimore, like so many other American cities, suffered immensely under the ravages associated with de-industrialization: the loss of industry, population and wealth. Under such circumstances, many of the city's disadvantaged youths stumbled along the way.

But the consequences have been especially dire for African-Americans. As young adults, African-American men had fared much worse than whites in the job market, even though they and their white counterparts had about the same levels of education and the whites reported higher rates of marijuana and heavy drug use and binge drinking.

Take, for example, the types of jobs the men in our study held. At 28, nearly half of the white men who had not attended college were employed in the industrial and construction trades, the highest-paying sector of blue-collar employment. By contrast, only 15% of African-American men worked in these sectors, and even within that small group, annual earnings were less than half that of whites -- $21,500 versus $43,000.

This disparity is no accident.
 

newarkhiphop

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What they ain't telling you is that it's all dem illegals Mexicans fault!
 

acri1

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It's actually not a racial issue but a cultural issue. These minority men lack work ethic and have a culture of criminality. If not for that they'd be on par with whites in terms of income.


:troll::troll::troll:
 

theworldismine13

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It's actually not a racial issue but a cultural issue. These minority men lack work ethic and have a culture of criminality. If not for that they'd be on par with whites in terms of income.


:troll::troll::troll:

It is also a cultural issue, if we want to change the situation we will have to change our culture
 

wheywhey

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More of the article:
It fits a broader pattern evident as far back as high school: About one-fifth of white men who grew up in disadvantaged families had after-school and summer jobs in these industries -- important experience that can help secure a full-time job -- while not a single African-American person did.

Indeed, throughout the course of our study, it was clear that African- Americans face greater barriers to employment. Having an arrest record or failing to complete high school were less consequential for white men than for African-American men: 84% of whites without a high school degree were employed at 22; among African Americans, just 40% were.

I was almost 20 and in college before I got my first job. I graduated high school with honors and had clerical training but I couldn't get hired because I didn't have experience. A lot of us simply have no parental/adult guidance and have to figure out everything by trial and error. It's easier to graduate, stay out of jail, avoid pregnancies if someone continually explains the consequences of these actions.

I read somewhere that in Britain minority medical school applicants were having trouble getting health-care related experience because unlike the white applicants they didn't know anyone in the healthcare field. A third of new doctors in the National Health Service are minority so it was important that they got into medical school.

Most of the women of disadvantaged background, white and African-American, became mothers as teenagers, worked sporadically and when working, their employment was concentrated in the low-pay clerical and service sectors

I've worked with women who's income seemed to be stuck in neutral. Either they would quit work to stay home with the children or they would work they same low paying job for years. They never seemed to be on the lookout for another job that paid a dollar or two extra that would help lift them out of their circumstances. Needless to say children are an opportunity cost; you can't be as flexible as someone without children. In job interviews, unasked, I always mentioned that I did not have children.
 

theworldismine13

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What about black on black crime? :troll:

breh i dont give a fuk about any of your c00n quotes

black on black crime is another problem that black people have to address, its foolish for black people to wait on white people to address it

the onus is on black people to fix black problems
 

wheywhey

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@Falcons258 The other night you made a thread about black people. I tried to replied but the whole thread disappeared. Do you know what happened?
 

Falcons258

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breh i dont give a fuk about any of your c00n quotes

black on black crime is another problem that black people have to address, its foolish for black people to wait on white people to address it

the onus is on black people to fix black problems

I agree, I was just :troll: you with c00n train lines.

We need to clean up our communities, build an economic base, :camby:with all this single mommery, stop black on black crime, and the bottom third of our community REALLY needs to focus more in achieving in life instead of ignant hood chit.

Side note: Did you even read this article? :what:Everyone knows the skilled trades are a middle aged Larry the cable guy looking CAC good ole boy club.
 
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