Topic > 'Class in America' by Gregory Mantsio: The Question of Prejudice in Society

Harvard anthropologist Dr. James Herron defines racism as “Racial ideologies are fundamentally judgments about who is worthy, who is dignified, who belongs and who doesn't. Inclusion and exclusion". (Fieseler, Baran, and Herron 2017) Most people do not want to be called racist because most people agree that it is a negative label. What if I told you that you, your parents, and our government are unconsciously racist. A little absurd but not far from the fact that you have the privilege of being born white and that you are already 100 steps ahead of those who are not by doing nothing. This essay will examine how class, society, education, policies, and our political system harbor prejudiced beliefs within them. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay In Gregory Mantsios' work, Class in America, the author discusses in his article how there is no middle class in America. By providing strong evidence to support his argument, he is able to convey to his audience the clear separation between the poor and rich classes. In this topic he mentions how Americans normally don't mention how they recognize class among themselves. It's more of a taboo topic to talk about. In today's society it is much easier for people belonging to the lower classes to get designer clothes due to the mass production of clothes at a cheaper price. (Mantsios 382) Because of this, this contributes, among other factors, to the façade of a middle class in America and makes it more difficult to discern whether someone is of a lower class. When we are unable to distinguish someone's status based on appearances, this leads us to judge other aspects including race, ethnicity, location, and gender. Mantsios presents multiple profiles of people including: parents' occupation, education, activities, caregiving, past and current jobs, and income. By analyzing these 3 profiles he comes to the conclusion that the one you were born into is usually where you will remain for your entire life. For example, if you were born into the top 1% of the 323,000 Americans and earn more than a $1 million salary, you hold 36% of the nation's wealth while the top 20% hold 90%. (Mantsios 380) That said, this will result in the opening of abundant opportunities. Compared to being born into one of the 42 million low-class or poverty-stricken people who will not have access to these types of opportunities in their lifetime. All of these factors, most of which are uncontrollable, can negatively affect lifestyle, materials, physical and mental health, healthcare, mortality rates and/or housing. Consequently, what you are born into will determine what opportunities and abilities you will have in this life. You can be born into privilege or strive for the bare necessities your entire life. It has been nearly 60 years since the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that segregation in schools was unconstitutional. Since those were public high schools, kids are districted based on the geographic location of their home to decide which school to attend. Along with school zones, this is how congressional voting districts are decided. There are states that practice gerrymandering, which is when boundaries or “district lines” are manipulated to favor one group over others. For example, suppose there is a part of a generally Democratic city in a red state. This unfair practice is accomplished by drawing zones right between the blue area and grouping each part with larger republican areas. This will bring the area.