Stan and Dima had an interesting article up. I wanted to comment on it over at Overspill, but Haloscan is still being evil. First, here's the article.

Foreign-born Blacks do better than US born Blacks

This was very interesting.

First, a misnomer. Ethnically, blacks in America are not the same as Blacks from Africa and the Caribbean. If you know your plantation history, then you'll know that almost all slave owners "got it on" with their slave women. Also, when the Irish and Scots first came to the US in colonial times, they were indentured servants which bascially means they were slaves. Especially the Scots, who lost the Jacobite Wars and lost a lot of their land. They intermingled with the slave and free black population here. This explains the rich diversity of colors and Anglicanized surnames seen in the American Black community today. It did occur in the Caribbean as well. Just because we have the same skin color doesn't mean we're the same. But that's a different argument. I just wanted to give a history lesson.

The study seems to be indicative of all immigrant groups. Example: Look at Miami. Cuban immigrants have done extraordinarily well. In my hometown, the Pakistani and Indian community is thriving. They own businesses (including a taxi service) and bring a diverse atmosphere to an otherwise lilly-white town. Asian immigrants historically have always done well, starting with the Chinese at the turn of the 20th Century, then the Japanese, and so on.

But back to the study at hand. I thought this paragraph was interesting.

But Kasinitz said the continued role of discrimination in job opportunities may be revealed in the new study: immigrants from Africa are one of the most educated groups in America, with an average of 14.5 years of education, compared with 13.9 years for Asians and 13.5 years for whites. Nonetheless, the median household annual income for African immigrants was $40,300, compared with $52,000 for whites and $64,200 for Asians, based on 2000 Census figures.

Hmmm... thought I.

This was also interesting.

While that drive to succeed has been well-documented, specialists argue that blacks who are at the bottom rung of the American ladder - many stuck in public housing projects and on the welfare roles - have been stripped of that desire.

By contrast, analysts say, immigrants from all ethnic and racial backgrounds tend to have a willingness to leave everything familiar for the hope of a better life in the United States.

''When you control for education, across the board, immigrants tend to do better than natives,'' said Philip Kasinitz, a sociologist at the City University of New York graduate center. ''That's true of black immigrants and black natives and it's true for white immigrants and white natives.''

Culturally, immigrants are more willing to do anything to get a piece of the American Dream. It's always been that way from the earliest days. It's also why the US has had occasional bouts with xenophobia.

So this really isn't a black vs. white issue, although it can be. It's more an immigrant vs. native-born issue.

Now, in the U.S., for the better part of a century following Emancipation, blacks (native-born blacks) were 2nd class citizens. Many lived in states were they were not permitted to vote. All attended sub-standard segregated schools and all were not permitted by a policy of racism to achieve all that America had to offer. Thanks to the Civil Rights Movement and all the things (affirmative action included) that came out of it, things are a lot better. But we're still not there yet, and this study, among many others, proves it. I have some suggestions for the native-born black community so that our foreign-born cousins don't pass us by. I have some suggestions to the government to help us, too.

1. To us: Get off Welfare. It sucks. And American culture doesn't support European-style social welfare. We're way too individualistic for that even though it works in Europe and frankly we should admit that to ourselves. Now, I know how hard it can be to get off of welfare because it bascially is free money so my suggestion to the government is to keep funding those job training programs. They work. I've seen the evidence. An example of a good working program that has done wonders for many who were on welfare is the Philadelphia Housing Authority Pre-Apprentice Program. I know a number of relatives who went through this program. Before, they were destitute. Now, they're working with the city, and they're much, much happier.

2. Go to College, Trade School, or some type of program (hell, even the military).

3. Fight for what's rightfully yours. Everyone in America deserves a fair chance at the American Dream, immigrant and native born. If you don't fight for it, you're not going to get it.