The Young Man Of A Slave, Jarvius Cotton

The wage gap between blacks and whites in the U.S. has existed since before the mid 1900’s, and has persisted with us to this day.

In the 1790’s the invention of the cotton gin by Eli Whitney sparked an increase in cotton production in the South. The cotton gin decreased the labor time it took to pick seeds from the cotton. Slave owners moved or sold their slaves to deep Southern states

Racial discrimination is the main and ongoing problem in the social life of Americans. When we look at the gap of incomes between White and African Americans, we can see the inequality between these two groups. In general, whites have more annual earnings than their black counterparts in America. Lori Ann Campbell and Robert L. Kaufman emphasized that the wealth determinants, which are the indicators of socio-economic status, have effected more on Whites than Blacks. And even when society is organized, there is still some disparities on account of race and ethnicity. (Campbell and Kaufman, 2006). And income disparities between African and White Americans have definitely effected the peace of the social life. According to Campell and

Even though the african americans were completely freed from slavery, they still had to face many hardships such as inequality. An example of this appears in a labor contract from 1886 when it mainly discusses the chores and tasks of a black man while

About 3.5 times more blacks are in poverty than whites (DBQ 7). As a result, blacks do not have the same income as whites and it is harder for African Americans to find a jobs. Since the civil rights movement occurred, about 15% of the whites that lived in Latino or black neighborhoods have moved out and into a neighborhood that are mostly white (DBQ 8). This continues to support that whites and even blacks are still showing a great example of the Civil Rights term “separate but equal”.

actually are. The median wealth of white households in 2013 were a baffling $141,900 after the

minorities. But why? Well opportunity may have a lot to do with this. Unequal employment and

With the white people make almost as much as 3 times as much as the average black person, they are obviously the upper or rich people in

As blacks and other people of color began to settle into urban areas, whites fled to suburbs. Considering this white flight initiative was not long after the Civil Rights Movement, blacks and other non-white populations were finally viewed as equal in regards to the laws. Migrating to new communities as equal people, blacks did not acquire equal resources to support themselves and establish these communities. Not only were these communities not assisted by established whites, practices of redlining, mortgage discrimination, etc. created an even larger social/economic gap between whites and blacks particularly (Sharkey). These economic disadvantages placed on blacks more often than not have an impact on following generations. “Blacks and whites inhabit such different neighborhoods that it is not possible to compare the economic outcomes of black and white children.”, says Patrick Sharkey, the author of “Stuck in

In this essay, I would like to discuss the major obstacles to voting, recent changes to overcome voting barriers and the political influence of changed rules. Low turnout in the U.S. reflects that there are obstacles for people to voting and changes to overcome these obstacles may also bring new problems to different social groups. I will elaborate on these aspects in the following parts.

More than half of all citizens in the world are currently able to vote, however, many of them choose not to, leading to an increase of enforced mandatory voting in many countries. This essay will consider the role of compulsory voting and whether legally required voting reduces freedom. Compulsory voting is often supported due to the fact it considerably raises turnout, Birch 2009 found that mandatory attendance at the polls increased turnout by between 6 and 20 percent . Legally required voting is also considered to be an effective instrument to motivate citizens to express their voice in public life, thereby ensuring that their concerns will be heard, and potentially acted upon . However, opponents of compulsory voting argue that it violates freedom and reduces the legitimacy of the elected representatives . The first part of this essay will consider why compulsory voting was adopted, following this, I will consider the different types of freedom that may or may not be compromised with compulsory voting and how legally required voting could increase or decrease freedom.

Compulsory voting is a system where citizens are required to register to vote and attend a polling place on election day (Rosenburg, Matt). Compulsory voting is not the most virtuous solution to the problem of low voter turnout and political disengagement due to its disregard of the peoples’ rights as well as citizens’ opinions and the quality of the their votes. As Theodore Roosevelt once said “A vote is like a rifle; its usefulness depends upon the character of the user” (Roosevelt, Theodore).

There are several possible explanations for the gap, and understanding the origins of the gap will point to policies that can

Participating by voting in elections is a civil right we are given as Democratic Americans. While some people are eager to go out and vote, there are others who despise the system and neglect their duties as citizens and avoid voting in elections all together. Other nations around the globe have instituted a new system of Compulsory Voting; in which citizens are required by law to vote in elections or attend a polling place on a designated day. There are many pros and cons when it comes to compulsory voting, as well as a wide variety of controversy associated with it. Compulsory voting has resulted in many benefits to foreign nations, however, this new system is not perfect and still comes with new problems that nations face and are working to overcome; the general public believes compulsory voting to be a good idea yet still inefficient due to the laziness and lack of regard from some of the practicing nation’s citizens.

The limitations that have been put in place are limiting the economic inequalities just to America. The suggested race most affected by economic inequality in America is African Americans. The median income for white (Non-Hispanics) in America was $55,800. While for nonwhite families the median income was $33,600. From the years 2009 to 2012 there was an income increase of 31.4% for the top 1% of income earners in America while the income for the rest of America grew just .04% during that same