The "Culture of Poverty" and Color-blind Racism

 The three articles below make a connection between what's happening around us and the concept of "Culture of Poverty" which is part of Color-blind Racism.

1.Hundreds of public housing tenants defy evacuation orders, choosing to wait out Hurricane Sandy in buildings without elevators, heat or hot water
 http://www.nydailynews.com/public-housing-tenants-refuse-leave-article-1.1194854
2.How We Cured "The Culture of Poverty" Not Poverty Itself

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2012/03/barbara-ehrenreich-what-causes-poverty

3.The Hideous Inequality Exposed by Hurricane Ssandy

http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2012/10/the-hideous-inequality-exposed-by-hurricane-sandy/264337/

 

The concept "Culture of Poverty" is closely related to Bonilla-Silva's Color-blind Racism. Bonilla-Silva's analysis of colorblind racism constitutes with four central frames, namely, abstract liberalism, naturalization, culture racism and minimization of racism. "Culture of Poverty", the prevailing notion in modern America, belongs to the category of cultural racism. It refers to the idea that poverty was caused, not by low wages or a lack of jobs, but by bad attitudes and faulty lifestyles learned in childhood.

 

In the first article, as we can see, most of those who are reluctant to evacuate are people of color. Why they do not want to evacuate? Are they not afraid of the devastation hurricane? Also, when disasters come, middle-and upper-class people leave with their family while poor people have to stay to "defend" the city and "serve" those who live in new shelters because they need their jobs for survival and support their family. Capitalism brings few people most freedom while deprives more people of the freedom to choose what kind of life to live. So when politician speak vehemently that every on should live in freedom, they need to first think that freedom is related to what you have, the property and the power provided to make choice.

 

When people say "poverty was caused by bad attitudes and faulty lifestyles", they just stand on their own point without thinking what caused poor people's current lifestyles. Dominant groups manipulate the job market and deprive of poor people's right to gain access to good educational resources. Now they blame them that poverty was caused by themselves and money cannot save them, no matter how hard they work. "American Dream", to this point, become a tool for whites to justify their privilege.