"A Preference for Whiteness"
A recent study has confirmed what other studies—and a healthy dose of reality—have already shown—that skin color impacts a person’s earning potential.
In a government study, conducted by Joni Hersch, a law and economics professor at Vanderbilt University, 2,084 legal immigrants to the United States were surveyed and it was found that those with the lightest skin earned an average of 8 percent to 15 percent more than similar immigrants with much darker skin.
"On average, being one shade lighter has about the same effect as having an additional year of education," Hersch said.
Other researchers said the findings are consistent with other studies on color and point to a skin-tone prejudice that goes beyond race. When considering immigrants with similar English-language skills, education, etc., skin tone still seemed to be a factor in earning power.
"I thought that once we controlled for race and nationality, I expected the difference to go away, but even with people from the same country, the same race — skin color really matters," Hersch said, "and height."
Although many cultures show a bias toward lighter skin, Hersch said her analysis shows that the skin-color advantage was not due to preferential treatment for light-skinned people in their country of origin.
She said that the bias occurred in the U.S.
Economics professor Shelley White-Means of the University of Tennessee at Memphis said the study adds to the growing body of evidence that there is a "preference for whiteness" in America that goes beyond race.
William Darity Jr., an economics professor at the University of North Carolina, said Hersch's findings are similar to a study he co-authored last year on skin tone and wages among blacks.
"We estimate that dark- or medium-skinned blacks suffered a discriminatory penalty of anywhere from 10 percent to 15 percent relative to whites," he said. "This suggests people cue into appearance and draw inferences about capabilities and skills based on how they look."
Darity said it is not clear whether the bias is conscious or subconscious.
BLOGGER COMMENT: I worked at the corporate headquarters for a bank where color did more than just impact what we were paid, it also impacted where we sat in the office. I kid you not, the light-skinned Blacks sat up front and every medium-skinned and dark-skinned Black person sat in the very last offices in our department. We had dark-skinned Blacks making damn near six-figure salaries “joking” about being a darkie in the back of the bus. Everyone noticed it. Even a few bold White coworkers mentioned it aloud. Color impacts a lot in the workplace, including perceptions about attitudes. I’ve noticed that the darker Black people are, especially Black women, the more frequently comments about “bad attitudes” seem to come up. That's not to say we all don't hear that comment--regardless of color--just that the desire to jump to that stereotype may be a bit faster with darker people.
Source: The Associated Press and MSNBC.com, http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16831909/
In a government study, conducted by Joni Hersch, a law and economics professor at Vanderbilt University, 2,084 legal immigrants to the United States were surveyed and it was found that those with the lightest skin earned an average of 8 percent to 15 percent more than similar immigrants with much darker skin.
"On average, being one shade lighter has about the same effect as having an additional year of education," Hersch said.
Other researchers said the findings are consistent with other studies on color and point to a skin-tone prejudice that goes beyond race. When considering immigrants with similar English-language skills, education, etc., skin tone still seemed to be a factor in earning power.
"I thought that once we controlled for race and nationality, I expected the difference to go away, but even with people from the same country, the same race — skin color really matters," Hersch said, "and height."
Although many cultures show a bias toward lighter skin, Hersch said her analysis shows that the skin-color advantage was not due to preferential treatment for light-skinned people in their country of origin.
She said that the bias occurred in the U.S.
Economics professor Shelley White-Means of the University of Tennessee at Memphis said the study adds to the growing body of evidence that there is a "preference for whiteness" in America that goes beyond race.
William Darity Jr., an economics professor at the University of North Carolina, said Hersch's findings are similar to a study he co-authored last year on skin tone and wages among blacks.
"We estimate that dark- or medium-skinned blacks suffered a discriminatory penalty of anywhere from 10 percent to 15 percent relative to whites," he said. "This suggests people cue into appearance and draw inferences about capabilities and skills based on how they look."
Darity said it is not clear whether the bias is conscious or subconscious.
BLOGGER COMMENT: I worked at the corporate headquarters for a bank where color did more than just impact what we were paid, it also impacted where we sat in the office. I kid you not, the light-skinned Blacks sat up front and every medium-skinned and dark-skinned Black person sat in the very last offices in our department. We had dark-skinned Blacks making damn near six-figure salaries “joking” about being a darkie in the back of the bus. Everyone noticed it. Even a few bold White coworkers mentioned it aloud. Color impacts a lot in the workplace, including perceptions about attitudes. I’ve noticed that the darker Black people are, especially Black women, the more frequently comments about “bad attitudes” seem to come up. That's not to say we all don't hear that comment--regardless of color--just that the desire to jump to that stereotype may be a bit faster with darker people.
Source: The Associated Press and MSNBC.com, http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16831909/
posted by S. Mary Wills at 6:08 PM
3 Comments:
Your blog is an invaluable resource for working black folks. Do keep it up! We ARE reading.
Thank you! I'm finishing up on a book that will have much more information and that will include tracking sheets and other resources for fighting on-the-job racism. I'll be searching for a publisher within months! Wish me luck!
The promotion of racism (and your entrepreneurship to make money off of it) is an honorable cause all of today's youth can benefit from.. well done. It's offensive to me that your blog has the word Black in it.. it just screams I'm racist since the "White Factor" would be considered racist. It goes both ways.
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