38) [Barack O] Is america post-racial?

Thanks, BO, for stopping by my blog--I know you must be busy....

That America elected a black man as president is surely astounding. I’m middle aged, and I never thought it would happen in my lifetime. Commentators are now wondering whether America has indeed become a “post-racial” society. Such a declaration of victory, however, would be premature, to say the least. Race still matters a great deal in terms of the lived experience of America’s citizens. We’ve taken a step in the right direction, but the journey to a post-racial society continues.

Is there evidence to support my claim? Such evidence abounds. Just start with Barrack Obama’s peers. Black men are still marginalized in our society. About one in three men of Obama’s age have been incarcerated. Only one in five, however, have a college degree. Only one in fifty have a professional degree like Obama. Indeed by any standard, Obama is a statistical aberration. By any standard, he is extraordinary.

But perhaps we can depend on the role of race to dissolve going forward. A variety of factors suggest that such hopes are wishful thinking. Black children are still twice as likely to be poor in any given year. And the picture only gets worse if we look at deeper disadvantages. They are three times as likely as white children to live in families whose income is less than half of that required to escape poverty. And when they are poor, black children spend longer periods in poverty.

Nonetheless, perhaps educational opportunities will dissolve these differences. That, too, is unlikely. Currently, the gap in educational opportunities creates differences in possibilities for children of different colors that will last for at least another generation. Researchers at the Brookings Institution report that “in contrast to European and Asian nations that fund schools centrally and equally, the wealthiest 10 percent of U.S. school districts spend nearly 10 times more than the poorest 10 percent, and spending ratios of 3 to 1 are common within states”.

But what about access to higher education? Aren’t programs like the Carolina Promise making a difference? Black enrollment in higher education may be rising, but minorities are under-represented, especially at the highest tier of institutions. Only about 10% of the class of 2008 at UNC is African-American. This percentage is less than half of the percentage of the state’s population that is African-American.

Well, perhaps the youth are faring better when we look at other dimensions? Perhaps the racial difference in criminal justice involvement is shrinking over time. North Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention data, however, reveal that African American youth were twice as likely to be involved in the juvenile justice system. What about other public systems, such as the child welfare system? One again finds over-representation of African-American youth. In North Carolina, black children are twice as likely to be involved in child welfare as white children.

There are a variety of explanations for these differences and what they represent. A good portion of the difference reflects opportunity. Social scientists can demonstrate that when one compares like with like—i.e., poor children living in households headed by high school dropouts—black children fare as well as if not better than their white counterparts. The story is complicated, and some of the difference is unexplained. But opportunity clearly plays a key role.

Some of these differences in opportunity are beyond the control of policy makers. Their ability to stimulate couples of any color to marry, for example, is rather limited. However, some key factors do reflect policy choices. For example, a punitive juvenile justice system that offers little or no rehabilitation or education is one that will penalize individuals but also only preserve racial differences in our society. Other public systems, such as child welfare, play a similar role in preserving a society where race matters. Continued reliance on property taxes as the base for school funding contributes as well.

Still, all is not lost. The proverbial glass is indeed half full, but the appearance of progress is defined partly by our society’s dreadful track record in dealing with race. Obama’s election is a good sign. What it tells me is that when a black youth gets an opportunity, he or she can succeed. However, Obama is clearly an extraordinary person. What his election reveals is that it is still the unusual black youth to overcome the mountain of disadvantages that our society puts between him or her and success.

So, America is not post-racial, but we did take an important step. America, however, will only be post-racial when the average white voter looks at a poor black child—any poor black child—and thinks “hey, that kid might be our next president”. We’re not there yet.