State of Black Asheville and Local Studies of Racial Disparities

By Dr. Dwight B. Mullen

Does racism still exist?

Of course it does—though it is important to specify the type of racism subject to examination. It is also important to differentiate racism from bigotry – the bias a person or group of persons has against others because of their ethnicity. Racism is so much more than this.

Racism can take many forms. For instance, “scientific racism” held that biology determined behavior. In other words, some people were best as thinkers and inventors while others were best as slaves and sharecroppers. The genetic make-up of a person determined where they were on the evolutionary scale. Some were naturally inferior while others were naturally superior. “Scientific racism” led to the Eugenics Board of North Carolina and the subsequent sterilizations of “inferiors.”

There was also Christian racism. This may sound like a contradiction in terms, but historically Christian churches were as divided on race as they now are on same-sex marriage. It was taught that God created a servile race when the descendants of Ham, Noah’s son, were cursed to be the servants of his brothers. This Hamitic Myth was preached from many pulpits throughout the first half of the 20th century.

There are a number of other types of racism, but the one that is of interest here is “institutional racism.” In the 21st century, institutional racism presents as serious a challenge to the promises of equality in the United States as Jim Crow segregation once posed. It is with us every day and can be seen by focusing on the policies of our public and private organizations. It identifies racial disparities in areas that include voting rights, education, health care, criminal justice, housing, employment, and business.

Unlike Jim Crow segregation, though, institutional racism does not identify itself with signs posted over doorways or on water fountains. Nor does it tolerate vicious idiots dressed in hoods and robes. It, in fact, looks remarkably normal.

The offices may open at 8 a.m. and close at 5 p.m. People of all cultures can be found behind the desks. What remind us of previous eras, though, are the outcomes. Annually, these institutions are characterized by assessments that demonstrate racially disparate outcomes. If you are African American, the result of interactions with agencies will not be as positive as those experienced by whites.

A well-known local study is found in education. The Asheville City Schools end-of-course and end-of-grade examinations starkly demonstrate racially disparate outcomes no matter what grade or subject you care to review. And, disturbingly, despite sincere efforts to address the educational gaps, the differences have grown. It is an ill omen when the recent budget cuts passed by the NC General Assembly are viewed in this light. Less money and ridiculously low teacher salaries promise even harsher outcomes.

Another example of institutional racism can be seen in our local employment and business trends. In Buncombe County, the unemployment rate for African Americans is approximately 13%, while that for whites is just 6.5%. Black business ownership in Asheville, on the other hand, is outstandingly low even when compared to the rest of the state.

In Asheville, African Americans own only 2% of businesses despite constituting over 13% of the population. In North Carolina as a whole, African Americans make up 22% of the population and own just over 10% of the businesses. At the very least, it’s difficult to get majority populations locally to do business with or solicit services from minority businesses.

Criminal justice, housing, and health care have similarly disturbing outcomes for African Americans living in Asheville and Buncombe County. “Driving while black” is four times as likely to result in being stopped and searched, cited, or arrested than if you are white. As for housing, African Americans are far less likely, and decreasingly so, to be granted a mortgage for homeownership. In health care, race is repeatedly the deciding characteristic for those most likely to suffer from diseases ranging from diabetes to hypertension. Mortality rates stand as a testament to disparate outcomes in this public policy area.

Why do we have such differences in the outcomes of public policies? Either the individuals are blamed for their own problems, or we must accept something else as a possibility. Or maybe we as a community fell short.

When the signs of segregating the races were removed in the 1960s, we failed to continue the process of desegregating the rest of the building. We left in place ideas, processes, and mechanisms that still mirror Jim Crow. The results are the gutting of the 1965 Voting Rights Act through the end of federal pre-clearance, biased design and disparate application of voter registration rights, and a mindset that will lead to ever more suppressed and disenfranchised communities.

We still have work to do.

Dr. Dwight Mullen holds a PhD in Political Science from Atlanta University, an MA in Political Science from Atlanta University, and a BA in History and Political Science from Loma Linda University. Dr. Mullen teaches courses in Public Policy, American Politics, and African and African American politics.

His scholarly activities include panels chaired and papers presented at meetings of the National Conference of Black Political Scientists; overseeing undergraduates’ research projects covering the State of Black Asheville; and serving in local, state, national, and international capacities that aim to improve the delivery of public services to underserved populations.