The "Two Books in America"

Picture by Humans of New York

Today I noticed an interesting parallel that connected to our class discussion of de facto segregation.

Humans of New York is a Facebook page that posts pictures of people on the streets of New York City, with their quotes as captions. One of these pictures, specifically the quote that corresponds with it, really caught my attention.

In my opinion, the picture itself, two men sitting on a stoop, is not the most fascinating part of this piece, but instead the caption. The quote (pictured below) from one of the men describes a phenomenon that he calls the "two books in America: one for the poor and one for the rich". In other words, I believe that he is commenting on the economical stereotyping in America. As much as one tries to break free from their class, the prejudice persists.

I believe that this man is very aware of the stereotypes that he is facing, and therefore feels the need to give examples of what he is doing in his life that defies that. He lists his accomplishments, such as leaving Alabama, getting a job, and sending four kids to college, all without receiving help from welfare or food stamps. He then identifies a specific stereotype and proves that its not true in his case: "But they say all poor people do is sit around with a quart of beer. Look in this bag next to me. I've got three things in this bag next to me: a Red Bull, a Pepsi, and Draino, because my drain is clogged." To me, this seems like the opposite of confirmation bias; this man uses himself as an example to defy his stereotype. He presents his evidence right on the spot, seemingly desperate to prove the assumptions wrong. He evens finds it necessary to explain why he purchased Draino, and this reaction could possibly be a product of peoples constant suspicious due to his stereotype.

Both of the men pictured above are African-America. It very well could be a coincidence, but I think that this aspect of the photograph evokes an interesting parallel to the de facto segregation before and during the Civil Rights Movements. Also, the fact that he picked cotton is a familiar connection to that era. The man feels discriminated towards due to his economic class, a similar feeling that occurred in the African- Americans who were segregated due to their race. Even in the areas where there was no legal segregation, there were unwritten rules that discriminated against the African-Americans. There is a similar situation today where people of lower economic class are seen differently than those in higher economic classes, who seem to get special privileges, and the benefit of the doubt. As the man in the picture said, they are stuck, and by the last sentence, the man seemed exhausted: "But you see, even if I do everything right, I still have to play by the poor book". Is there anyway to break this seemingly inescapable system?