The findings in the research study you linked firmly postulates that workplace segregation is cogent enough simply by this institutionalized and shared attitude and belief to sustain the status quo of their (White males) social dominance.
In the stratification economics model proposed by Professor Darity or in the identity economics model developed by economists George Akerlof of Georgetown University and Rachel Kranton of Duke University, economically advantaged groups such as white men in the United States support institutions that perpetuate segregation in order to maximize their own socioeconomic power or sense of identity.30
To those who consider our thoughts as whining, let me be clear. It isn’t merely a lack of gumption that many conjured up Horatio Alger stories conspire to deflate and demoralize us in spite of the disproportionate numbers of Blacks that are unemployed. The disadvantage perpetuated unto us afforded by the advantage fraudulently secured and socially constructed by whites requires more than just the over-simplistic mythology behind bootstrapping your way out of poverty dilemma that we face. As entrepreneurs there is systemic discrimination within the institutions and the perversion of a racialist society that serves as an immoral obstacle to attaining some level of subsistent success.
[…]Black entrepreneurs seeking loans for their businesses were subjected to far more scrutiny compared to their equal or less creditworthy white counterparts.
“This research provides us with a new lens through which to look at disparities faced by African American business owners,” said Stella Adams, Chief of Equity and Inclusion at NCRC and one of the lead researchers in the study. “The study shows that it’s access, not assets, that serve as a barrier to the capital and credit necessary to grow a business.”
While discrimination experienced by minorities seeking home ownership has been studied and addressed in a variety of federal laws designed to prevent it, this new research focused on how discrimination impacts minorities seeking business loans, which has not been documented as thoroughly.
I don’t mince words here, subsistence is a plausible goal for any small business. Anything above that is luck bestowed or a Matthew Effect of some sort. That extra is merely bonus or icing for the cake.
This is why I either pause or am deeply offended by bootstrapping ideologies. The problem is not that easy to overcome. By the way each time you apply for a loan you bear the consequences of credit score dings or decreases because 1) you have an inquiry, and 2) you failed to obtain the loan.
Having the credentials for Blacks like myself are not a hinderance. There are many of us who have it. My credit score, my education, my experience, my skills, and the lack of a criminal record — all accompanied by my gumption — still does not get me a business loan that easily as is suggested or inferred. And if this is granted the rate of interest attached along with its contractual conditions would see to it that I fail.
To add insult to this injurious plight simply going out to obtain clients or bring in customers will have its own set of prejudices to contend with. This will lead to reduced profits and overall business instability making the likelihood of business failure surpass any national or local average currently cited.
As I am bearing witness to your fate read in you articles that you have written Marley K., I am saddened and irritated by your circumstances. This inevitably leads to what has been grossly overlooked and underestimated in underserved and disadvantaged communities of color — particularly Blacks — and that is the psychological distress that comes with it.
Psychological distress has been defined as “a number of uncomfortable subjective states” and can take on three forms — malaise (somatic symptoms), anxiety, and depression (Mirowsky & Ross, 1986). Psychological distress is associated with higher risk of mortality (Pratt, 2009), cardiovascular disease (Ferketich & Binkley, 2005), poor self-rated health (Farmer & Ferraro, 1997), chronic health conditions and smoking (McGuire et al., 2008), and lower likelihood of a routine checkup within the past five years (Pearson et al., 2009). Despite the importance of this issue, most past research has been dominated by race-comparative analyses between Blacks and Whites, generally finding higher levels of psychological distress among Blacks. There is a relative dearth of research investigating psychological distress among Black Americans.
My thoughts and well wishes are with you during this period and my hope is that this government shutdown will end soon. But not only that — a more uniform change of understanding how interdependent we are in terms of the national economy and its sustainability to create opportunities should also gleaned by this remarkable travesty and taken to task.
I will likely reprint this response as a separate article linking your original story.
