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OCR for page R1
A COMMON
D E S T I N Y
BLACKS AND
AMERICAN SOCIETY
Gerald David Jaynes and
Robin M. Williams, Jr.
Editors
Committee on the Status of Black Americans
Commission on Behavioral and
Social Sciences and Education
National Research Council
NATIONAL ACADEMY PRESS
Washington, D.C. 1989
OCR for page R2
National Academy Press · 2101 Constitution Avenue, NVV · Washington, DC 20418
NOTICE: This project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board
of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National
Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine.
The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special compe-
tences and with regard for appropriate balance.
This report has been reviewed by a group other than the authors according to procedures
approved by a Report Review Committee consisting of members of the National Academy of
Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine.
The work that provided the basis for this volume was supported by grants from the Carnegie
Corporation of New York, the Ford Foundation, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the
Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Pew Charitable Trusts, the Rockefeller Foundation, and
the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. Additional support came from the National Research Council
Fund, a pool of private, discretionary, nonfederal funds that is used to support a program of
Academy-initiated studies of national issues in which science and technology figure significantly.
The NRC Fund consists of contributions from a consortium of private foundations including
Carnegie Corporation of New York, Charles E. Culpeper Foundation, William and Flora
Hewlett Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Andrew W. Mellon
Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, and Alfred P. Sloan Foundation; and from the Academy
Industry Program, which seeks annual contributions from companies that are concerned with
the health of U.S. science and technology and with public policy issues with technological
content.
..
Library of Congress Catalog~ng-~n-Publication Data
A common destiny: Blacks and American society/Gerald D. Jaynes and
Robin M. Williams, Jr., editors: Committee on the Status of Black
Americans, Commission on Behavioral and Social Sciences and
Education, National Research Council.
p. cm.
Papers and studies resulting from a four-year study conducted
under the aegis of the Committee con the Status of Black Americans.
Bibliography: p.
Includes index.
1. Afro-Americans-Social conditions-1975- 2. Afro-Americans-
Economic conditions. 3. Afro-Americans-Politics end government.
4. United States-Race relations. I. Jaynes, Gerald David.
II. Williams, Robin M. III. National Research Council. Committee
of the Status of Black Americans.
E185.86.C582 1989
305.8'96073-dc20
ISBN 0-309-03998-3
Art research by Richard Powell, Director of Programs, Washington Project for the Arts.
89-12253
CIP
Cover: Romare Bearden, The Family (1948), watercolor and gouache on paper.
Evans-Tibbs Collection, Washington, DC.
Copyright C) 1989 by the National Academy of Sciences
Printed in the United States of America
~ irst Printing, June 1989
Second Printing, September 1989
Third Printing, December 19 89
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COMMITTEE ON THE STATUS OF BLACK AMERICANS
ROBIN M. WILLIAMS, JR.(Chair), Department of Sociology, Cornell
University
HUBERT M. BLALOCK, JR., Department of Sociology, University of
Washington
LEE P. BROWN, Police Department, Houston, Texas
JOHN HOPE FRANKLIN, Department of History, Duke University
JAMES L. GIBBS, JR., Department of Anthropology, Stanford University
BERNARD R GIFFORD, Apple Computer, Inc.
NATHAN GLAZER, Graduate School of Education, Harvard University
BEATRIX A. HAMBURG, Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry,
Mt. Sinai School of Medicine
CHARLES V. HAMPTON, Department of Political Science, Columbia
University
JOEL F. HANDLER, School of Law, University of California, Los Angeles
ROBERT M. HAWSER, Department of Sociology, University of Wisconsin
JAMES S. JACKSON, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan
STANLEY LIEBERSON, Department of Sociology, Harvard University
MICHAEL LIPSKY, Department of Political Science, Massachusetts Institute of
Technology
GLENN C. LOWRY,* John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard
University
ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON, Georgetown University Law Center
THOMAS F. PETTIGREW, Psychologr Board of Studies, University of
California, Santa Cruz
JAMES TOBIN, Department of Economics, Yale University
PHYLLIS A. WALLACE, Sloan School of Management, Massachusetts Institute
of Technology
NANCY l. WEISS, Department of History, Princeton University
WILI,LAM JUI`lUS WILSON, Department of Sociology, University of Chicago
RAYMOND E. WOLFINGER, Department of Political Science, University of
California, Berkeley
GERALD DAVID THYMES, Study Director
REYNOLDS FARLEY, Senior Research Consultant
LAWRENCE BOBO, Senior Research Associate
THOMAS CAVANAGH, Senior Research Associate
JOHN BROWN CHARDS, Senior Research Associate
DARNEEL HAWKINS, Senior Research Associate
MARY BETH MOORE, Senior Research Associate
CARETON HENRY, Research Associate
THOMAS BARNEY, Research Assistant
CHERYL L. DORSEY, Research Assistant
DANIEL LETV7IN, Research Assistant
MARION POTTER, Research Assistant
GALE MOORE, Administrative Specialist
DEIRDRE L. YOUNG, Secretary
*Did not participate in committee activities after June 1987.
...
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PANEL ON EDUCATION
ROBERT M. HAWSER (Chair), Department of Sociology, University of
Wisconsin
HUBERT M. BLALOCK, JR., Department of Sociology, University of
Washington
BERNARD R GIFFORD, Apple Computer, Inc.
NATHAN G~AzEa, Graduate School of Education, Harvard University
JENNIFER HOCHSCH~D, Woodrow Wilson School, Princeton University
LYLE V. JONES, L. L. Thurstone Psychometric Laboratory, University of
North Carolina, Chapel Hill
JOHN U. OGBU, Department of Anthropology, University of California,
Berkeley
PANEL ON EMPLOYMENT,
INCOME, AND OCCUPATIONS
JAMES TOBIN (Chair), Department of Economics, Yale University
SHELDON H. DANZIGER, Department of Economics and Population Studies
Center, University of Michigan
DAiriD T. ELLWOOD, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard
University
TAMES I. HECKMAN, Department of Economics, Yale University
NoRuAN Him, A. Philip Randolph Institute, New York, New York
FRANK LEVY, School of Public Affairs, University of Maryland
GLENN C. LOWRY, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard
University
ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON, Georgetown University Law Center
PHYLLIS A. WAtrAcE, Sloan School of Management, Massachusetts Institute
of Technology
WILLIAM JULIUS WILSON, Department of Sociology, University of Chicago
PANEL ON HEALTH AND DEMOGRAPHY
BEATRix A. HAMBURG (Chair), Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry,
Mt. Sinai School of Medicine
KAREN P. DAVIS, School of Hygiene and Public Health, Johns Hopkins
University
M. ALFRED HAYNES, Charles R. Drew Postgraduate Medical School
JAMES S. JACKSON, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan
STANLEY LIEBERSON, Department of Sociology, Harvard University
HARR~TTE PIPES McADoo, School of Social Work, Howard University
DEtoREs L. PARRON, National Institute of Mental Health, U.S. Departmen
of Health and Human Services
DOROTHY P. RICE, Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, University
of California, San Francisco
LEE NEIKENS ROBINS, School of Medicine, Washington University
IV
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PANEL ON POLITICAL PARTICIPATION AND
ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE
JOEL F. HANDLER (Chair), School of Law, University of California, Los
Angeles
LEE P. BROWN, Police Department, Houston, Texas
CHARLES V. HAMILTON, Department of Political Science, Columbia
University
JAMES JENNINGS, College of Public and Community Services, University of
Massachusetts, Cambridge
MICHAEL LIPSKY, Department of Political Science, Massachusetts Institute of
Technology
LESLIE BURL MCLEMORE, Department of Political Science and Dean.
Graduate School, Jackson State University
STEVEN J. ROSENSTONE,* Department of Political Science Univer.sirv of
Michigan
~_ ~ ~ ~_ ~ ^^ ~ _^ vie ") ~4
t~m in. Scour, Rational Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives,
Landover, Maryland
RAYMOND E. WO1;FINGER, Department of Political Science, University of
California, Berkeley
PANEL ON SOCIAL AND CULTURAL
CHANGE AND CONTINUITY
JOHN HOPE FRANKLIN (Chair), Department of History, Duke University
JAMES LOWELL GIBBS, JR., Department of Anthropology, Stanford University
THOMAS F. PErrIGREW, Psychology Board of Studies, University of
California, Santa Cruz
NANCY J. WEISS, Department of History, Princeton University
ROBIN M. WILLIAMS, JR., Department of Sociology, Cornell University
*Did not participate in panel activities after July 1986.
v
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The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society
of distinguished scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to
the furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare.
Upon the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the
Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific
and technical matters. Dr. Frank Press is president of the National Academy of
S.
clences.
The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter
of the National Academy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engi-
neers. It is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members,
sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the
federal government. The National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering
programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and
recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. Dr. Robert M. White is president
of the National Academy of Engineering.
The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of
Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the
examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute
acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its
congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, upon its own
initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Samuel O.
Thier is president of the Institute of Medicine.
The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences
in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the
Academy's purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government.
Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the Academy, the
Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy
of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the
government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Coun-
cil is administered jointly by both Academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr.
Frank Press and Dr. Robert M. White are chairman and vice chairman, respectively,
of the National Research Council.
Vl
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CONTENTS
PREFACE / ix
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS / 1
Summary of Major Findings · A Record of the Status of Black
Americans · The Future: Alternatives and Policy Implications
Conclusion
OVERVIEW: THEN AND NOW / 33
Change and Continuity in Black-White Status Since 1940 · Data,
Findings, and Interpretations: Concepts and Methods · Note
References
BLACK PARTICIPATION IN AMERICAN SOCIETY / 55
The Baseline Period: 1935-1945 · Black Participation in Social
Institutions Since 1945 · Residential Segregation · Black
Participation in Social Life Since 1945 · Condusion · References
RACIAL ATTITUDES AND BEHAVIOR / 113
The Empirical Record: 1940-1986 · Contemporary Black-White
Relations · Explanations of Black and White Attitudes Toward
Race · References
IDENTITY AND INSTITUTIONS IN THE BLACK
COMMUNITY / 161
Social Structure · Institutions: Instruments of Change · Black
Identity · References
..
vll
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A COMMON DESTINY: BLACKS AND AMERICAN SOCIETY
5 BLACK POLITICAL PARTICIPATION / 205
From Rights to Resources · Core Political Values · The Struggle
for Civil Rights: Protest and Litigation · Democratic Status:
Voting and Holding Office · Allocational Status: Influencing
Public Policy · Summary · References
6 BLACKS IN THE ECONOMY /269
A Half Century of Uneven Change · Poverty · Income and
Wealth · Blacks in the Labor Market · Employment and Equal
Opportunity · Conclusions · References
7 THE SCHOOLING OF BLACK AMERICANS /329
Enrollment and Attainment · Achievement · School Factors in
Attainment and Achievement · Extraschool Factors in Attainment
and Achievement · Policy Context and Conclusions · References
(3 BLACK AMERICANS' HEALTH / 391
Overview · Pregnancy and Infancy · Childhood · Adolescents
and Young Adults · Adulthood · Older Adults · Provision of
Health Care · Conclusions · References
9 CRIME AND THE ADMINISTRATION OF CRIMINAL
JUSTICE /451
Crime and Punishment · Criminal Offenders and Victims · The
Criminal Justice Process · Black Criminal Justice Personnel
Summary · References
0 CHILDREN AND FAMIElES / 509
Changing Family Patterns · Causes of Changing Family Patterns
Conclusions · References
APPENDICES
A Notes on Methodology, Definitions, and Needed Data and
Research / 559
B
Biographical Sketches of Committee and Panel Members
and Staff / 570
Committee Activities / 585
INDEX / 589
...
vlll
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PREFACE
This report documents the unfinished
agenda of a nation still struggling to come to terms with the consequences
of its history of relations between black and white Americans. In many ways
this history has left a legacy of pain, and the report would be remiss if it did
not acknowledge and emphasize that fact. In the pages that follow, we
describe many improvements in the economic, political, and social position
of black Americans. We also describe the continuance of conditions of
poverty, segregation, discrimination, and social fragmentation of the most
serious proportions.
The study was initiated early in 1985 after more than 3 years of preliminary
investigation, planning, and organization. That preliminary work included
consideration of the status of other racial and ethnic minorities in America.
After much discussion, it was decided to restrict the study to black Ameri-
cans. The decision arose from limited resources and time and from recogni-
tion of the great variations in the experience of different racial and ethnic
groups in the United States. And the case of black Americans is unique-in
its history of slavery and of extreme segregation, exclusion, and discrimina-
tion.
We recognize the potential value of comparative studies and hope that
they will be carried out in the future. Each minority has its unique history,
and the reasons for variations in current status vary widely. At this time,
however, a crucial factor is the availability of data: information on blacks is
far more extensive and of better quality than that for other major racial and
ethnic minorities. Most important, however, the historical significance of
blacks to the nation and the importance of black-white relations in U S.
society today are surely more than adequate grounds for the focus of this
study.
The original charge to the Committee on the Status of Black Americans
from the National Research Council and its Commission on Behavioral and
Social Sciences and Education (CBASSE) reads as follows:
IX
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A COMMON DESTINY: BLACKS AND AMERICAN SOCIETY
. . . marshal! descriptive data on the changing position of blacks in Amen-
can society since 1940; draw from the wealth of existing research to describe
the cultural context, including an increasingly complex Eamework of laws,
policies, and institutions within which the observed changes have occurred;
and explore the consequences, anticipated and unanticipated, of public and
private initiatives to ameliorate the position of blacks in Amenca.
The historical dimension of this task has reinforced our awareness of the
distinctive history of black Americans. Due in part to that special history,
blacks are the most studied racial or ethnic population group in the nation.
This report will undoubtedly be compared to earlier studies of American
race relations, especially to two reports that, like it, were collaborative ef-
forts: An American Dilemma (1944) and the J~portof the NationalAdviso~y
Commission on Civil Disorders (1968~. [An earlier, rarely noted effort of this
type was Charles S. Johnson, editor, The Negro in American Civilization
(1930), which has not been given its just due as a treatise on black-white
relations in the United States.] Readers of this report might profit from a
brief reminder of the legacy of those well-known studies.
In the midst of World War II, Gunnar Myrdal's monumental survey of
race relations, An American Dilemma, predicted slow improvement in the
educational, political, and social status of blacks; a worsening economic
situation; rising self-confidence and assertiveness among blacks; and an im-
pending breakdown among whites of formerly accepted beliefs and attitudes
of white race dominance.
An American Dilemma correctly anticipated increasing black solidarity and
activism, increasing dissension over racial practices among whites, heightened
conflict, and a national movement toward "equalitarian reforms." It cor-
rectly saw that the impending domestic changes would be strongly affected
by World War II and by the international status of the nation that claimed
to represent democracy in a race-conscious world. The accuracy of many of
these forecasts is documented in the present report.
What Myrdal did not correctly forecast was the strong resistance to full
equality for blacks that would remain after the old system of legalized segre-
gation had been eliminated. In hindsight, An American Dilemma appears
overly confident that change "in the hearts and minds" of men and women
would eliminate racial separation and discrimination.
A quarter century later, the urban uprisings of blacks during the 1960s
prompted another major inquiry-this time through the appointment of a
presidential commission. The Report of the National Advisory Commission on
Civil Disorders, "the Kerner report" (1968), is a forthright and vivid report
whose basic conclusion stressed a condition, also emphasized in An American
Dilemma, of a nation continuing to move toward "two societies, one black,
one white-separate and unequal" (p. 1~. The Kerner report emphasized
how the legacy of past discrimination in the forms of segregation and poverty
had created a black ghetto whose environment was destructive to many of
its inhabitants-a ghetto "largely maintained by white institutions and con-
doned by white society" (pp. 1-2~. After this diagnosis, the report called
x
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PREFACE
for prompt national action and presented a set of recommendations aimed
at reducing segregation and discrimination, safeguarding civil and political
rights, and increasing educational and economic opportunities.
Two decades after that landmark report, we now find that-despite impor-
tant changes-there are striking resemblances between the description of
1968 and the position of black Americans reflected in our findings. To the
extent that such continuity of black status exists, it derives from persisting
basic conditions not yet removed by either private initiatives or the national
actions that have been taken, much less by those repeatedly proposed but
never fully undertaken.
Contemporary views of the status of black-white relations in America vary
widely. Perspectives range from optimism that the main problems have been
solved, to the view that black progress is largely an illusion, to assessments
that the nation is retrogressing and moving toward increased racial dispari-
ties. To some observers, the present situation is only another episode in a
long history of recurring cycles of apparent improvement that are followed
by new forms of dominance in changed contexts: the level of black status
changes, it is said, but the one constant is blacks' continuing subordinate
social position. To other observers, the opposite conception is correct: long-
run progress is the dominant trend. Listening to these discordant views,
reasonable men and women may well wonder what, indeed, is the case. To
this serious question the present report has sought to bring to bear a large
compilation of facts and analyses. It would be unrealistic to expect all readers
to agree with all the emphases and nuances of the report. We hope, how-
ever, that it is clear that we have tried to search out and critically assess
objective evidence wherever available. Our interpretations are those that have
survived a lengthy and intensive process of criticism and refinement.
To the extent possible, existing data and published and unpublished re-
search were used, but we also developed new data and analyses. A great
many studies over the years since World War II have dealt with specific
aspects of the position of black people in the United States. But there
remained a need for a synthesis of existing research that could serve as a
point of departure for future analyses and for the informed development of
policies by business, voluntary associations, and local, state, and federal
governments. The availability of an unprecedented resource of data and
research findings from diverse sources makes such a synthesis possible; con-
troversies over the facts of the case as well as over cast and current policies
. . ~
· .
. . .
make the study especially timely.
This report concentrates on description and analysis of the position of
black Americans-now some 30 million people-in our complex society.
During the nearly 50 years covered in our survey, significant changes oc-
curred in almost every aspect of the national society, from family life to
international relations, from manufacturing technologies to styles of life,
from employment patterns to civil rights. All Americans were affected, but
as the body of the report makes clear, in many ways black people were
uniquely involved.
Xl
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A COMMON DESTINY: BLACKS AND AMERICAN SOCIETY
The large inventory of data and research analyses used by the committee
and its panels and consultants made it feasible to complete a difficult assign-
ment. At the same time, we found that many important questions simply
could not be answered because crucial data were missing. Some of these
serious gaps in the nation's resources of information are noted in Appendix
A. Considerable uncertainty must attend any attempt to develop effective
social policies unless vital statistical series are maintained and more adequate
support provided for research on the economic and social changes that are
now transforming the lives of the American people.
While the study proceeded, the dynamic nature of black-white relations
was being repeatedly demonstrated through changes occurring in American
society. Thus, U.S. Representative William Gray became chair of the House
Budget Committee in 1985, and, 4 years later, chair of the House Demo-
cratic Caucus, a major leadership position; also in 1989, Ronald Brown
became national chair of the Democratic Party, Bill White became president
of professional baseball's National League, and Barbara C. Harris became the
first female bishop in the Episcopal Church. Other significant events also
occurred, and as participants suggested that we were compelled to comment
on this or another event, it became clear that the report could not be
completed and keep apace of American society. Consequently, we chose
1985-1986 as a rough terminal point for the report's analyses
In some
instances data or easily interpreted events that occurred after 1986 are re-
ported, but they are relatively infrequent.
The committee's 22 members were selected from most of the major disci-
plines in the social and behavioral sciences. The committee was subdivided
into five working panels, dealing, respectively, with economic status, educa-
tion, health and demography, political participation and criminal justice, and
social and cultural continuity and change. These panels also included 22
additional members having relevant special knowledge. Biographical sketches
of committee, panel, and staff members appear in Appendix B. The work of
the committee, its panels, and its staff was aided by still other scholars and
research specialists who prepared more than 30 commissioned papers; a list
of papers is in Appendix C, along with a list of committee and panel
meetings. Altogether, nearly 100 people thus brought their professional skills
to the task of analyzing the status of black Americans during nearly five
eventful decades of American history. We also note with thanks all those
people who communicated with us in person, by mail and telephone, and
by published commentaries. We thereby received many useful suggestions,
and the report gained from the criticisms freely offered at all stages of its
development.
The interdisciplinary character of the committee and its panels allowed our
deliberations to draw on a wide range of knowledge and differing perspec-
tives. The members also held strong convictions, of course, on many of the
problems and issues that we considered. Consequently, our frequent meet-
ings were marked by lively discussions, some surprising discoveries, and a
lengthy process of debate and mutual education. By the end of 4 years of
..
xll
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PREFACE
immersion in the subject matter, an impressive convergence of views had
developed, greatly facilitated by repeated confrontations with the accumu-
lated evidence. Individual differences of view among the participants remain,
of course, especially concerning questions of social policy. Still, the level and
quality of agreement reached are noteworthy, and we appreciate the pa-
tience, objectivity, and vision of the participants in the study.
The committee notes its very special debt to David A. Goslin, then exec-
utive director of CBASSE, and Alexandra Wigdor, staff officer, whose indis-
pensable initiatives conceived and developed the launching of the project
within CBASSE. Crucial at many important points of the study were the
advice and support of CBASSE executive director Robert Caplan, associate
executive director Brett Hammond, and the two people who served as
CBASSE chairs during the life of the study, Ira Hirsh and Robert McC.
Adams.
We acknowledge with deep appreciation the generous financial support
that made possible the completion of this enterprise. Accordingly, our spe-
cial thanks go to the Carnegie Corporation of New York, the Ford Founda-
tion, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Andrew W. Mellon Foun-
dation, the Pew Charitable Trusts, the Rockefeller Foundation, the Alfred
P. Sloan Foundation, and the National Research Council Fund. The under-
standing and patience of foundation staffs have been of special importance.
Without the staff there would, of course, have been no report. The work
of the senior staff, Lawrence Bobo, Thomas Cavanagh, John Brown Childs,
Darnell Hawkins, and Mary Beth Moore, was crucial in preparing memo-
randa and other background materials covering the variety of topics discussed
in the report. Thomas Cavanagh also contributed to the project by serving
as associate study director for several months during the last phase of the
committee's work. Reynolds Parley, as senior research consultant, was a
major contributor to essential background materiels and research analyses
used in writing the report. Eugenia Grohman, associate director for reports
of CBASSE, played an instrumental intellectual role in aiding the editors
during the writing of the final draft of the report.
The background materials produced during the committee's work were
rewritten, supplemented with additional material, and often reinterpreted by
the committee, its chair, and its study director. The synthesis that forms the
report is thus the sole responsibility of those individuals.
We hope that the evidence and analysis presented is compelling. Our
touchstone has been credible evidence; our mandate, to describe and ana-
lyze. At the same time, the report necessarily deals directly with value-laden
issues-discrimination, prejudice, equality of opportunity, inequality of con-
dition. We have not avoided or minimized the deep contradictions and
conflicts that surround these issues, and our diagnosis certainly leaves no
ground for complacency. It is our hope that the report will provide a solid
base for fruitful debate and reasonable policy initiatives in the years ahead.
We believe that the present critical synthesis deals with matters of central
importance for the future of our society. We believe that research data and
...
x'''
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A COMMON DESTINY: BLACKS AND AMERICAN SOCIETY
thoughtful analysis can help to tell us where we have come from and where
we may be going in terms of the welfare of Americans. The differences in
the status of whites and blacks herein described do not overshadow the
many crucial ways in which all our people are interdependent; we share a
common destiny. The nation's future depends critically on the health, skill,
and commitment of all of its people. Because of a unique past and distinctive
present, the analysis of the special situation of black Americans is an essential
part of any careful appraisal of American society.
Gerald David Jaynes, Study Director
Robin M. Williams, Jr., Chair
Committee on the Status of Black Americans
x~v
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A COMMON DESTINY
BlACKS AND
AMERICAN SOCIETY
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