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RACIAL HIERARCHY
Black Americans Never Had the Same Opportunities as Others
And the racial hierarchy is more than a two-rung ladder
Quiet as it is kept, there is a racial hierarchy in America. The nation’s original sin, chattel slavery, created this initial gap between Black and White citizens, but racist laws and policies maintained inequality. For instance, the Homestead Act of 1862 offered White settlers 160 acres of land to promote the nation’s westward expansion. A few years later, the federal government broke its promise to provide 40 acres and a mule to formerly enslaved people as restitution. Another example would be the GI Bill, which promised to treat World War II veterans equally but, in reality, mainly benefited White veterans. Realtors denied mortgage loans to Black citizens, depriving them of access to homeownership. Like giving someone an out-of-date coupon, the purported benefits were rendered useless.
Today, even as many claim society is fair, Black people are the group with the least wealth. As the authors of From Here to Equality wrote, “the nation’s formerly enslaved and their progeny consistently have been refused access to monetary requirements enabling full citizenship.” This “refusal crystallizes in America’s black-white wealth gap.” Yet, any effort to discuss the full depth and…
