reality check

this is a question and sentiment that i often hear asked or implied (usually by a european american male, but sometimes by individuals of color like Ward Connerly (photo to right)). it is one of my greatest frustrations as i have tried to help people see reality in north america.

i came across an article in the new york times yesterday that reminded me of why we must continue to be vigilant in our advocacy of those who are different from the norm or dominant group — in our context here in north america, that means white european north americans.

most white north americans believe that we live life on a level playing field. in the u.s., that means that all americans are afforded the same opportunities and that with enough will and determination, any american can achieve anything. my mom tells me that when i was born, her father (my grandfather) called from okinawa and commented with admiration that i could someday be president of the united states because i was born in the u.s. his sentiment reflects this traditional american belief and value.

we (as americans) want to believe this about ourselves and this is most true for those of the dominant ethnic group because to believe otherwise would disrupt the status quo. the dynamics of dominant and sub-dominant in a system are not unique to north america so i want to emphasize that this is not a commentary on european americans as a people group. one can see this dynamic play itself out virtually every system in the world.

this short article at nytimes.com reported a recent study which showed that a primary factor in income for immigrants was the amount of melanin in one’s skin. in other words, how light or dark one’s skin is has a significant impact on one’s earning potential. “how significant an impact?” you ask. so much so that one shade lighter in skin tone has about the same impact “as having an additional year of education.” the study found that those with the lightest skin earned an average of 8 to 15 percent more than similar immigrants with much darker skin.

Dr. Hersch took into consideration other factors that could affect wages, like English-language proficiency, education, occupation, race or country of origin, and found that skin tone still seemed to make a difference in earnings. That meant that if two similar immigrants from Bangladesh, for example, came to the United States at the same time, with the same occupation and ability to speak English, the lighter-skinned one would make more money on average.

“I thought that once we controlled for race and nationality, I expected the difference to go away,” Dr. Hersch said, “but even with people from the same country, the same race, skin color really matters.”

Although many cultures show a bias toward lighter skin, she said her analysis showed that the skin-color advantage was not based on preferential treatment for light-skinned people in their country of origin. The bias, she said, occurs in the United States.

The New York Times: Study of Immigrants Links Lighter Skin and Higher Income

we live in a racialized society and race does indeed matter! it is more comfortable for us to believe that it does not because of who we want to believe we are as americans.

as an american, i am thankful and proud to live in a country that values freedom and equality! but “liberty and justice for all” is something we need to aspire to and and not something we have already achieved. it is not a reality that we enjoy today or have ever enjoyed in our country’s history.