Exploring the Role of Discrimination in Race and Economics

RJH: I find Professor William's perspective on how racism works in our economy to be an excellent foil to the bias that dominates public discourse. His study of discrimination, and the political exaggeration of racism, was published in 2011. His commentary, founded in a skillful view of the facts, is a very relevant, and persuasive contrast, to the exaggerated political hyperbole broadcast by the prejudiced media today. This book offers a very critical argument against the victimhood attitude trying to create an entitled award for elements of our society. His discussions also goes far in arguing against the class stereotypes that foster more prejudice than the challenges people face in our society.

Excellant book.

United States on Aug 29, 2021

Amazon Customer: Dr. Walter Williams, while agreeing there is some racism, provided many instances in which economic factors decided the decision. For example, there are two people applying for a loan. Both have the same income, but one is heavily in debt and is not reliably paying it off, and the other person is carrying debt but paying it off on a regular basis. The person who makes the loan is going to choose the person who is most likely to pay back the loan. Racism is not a factor.

United States on May 13, 2021

Bruce D Link: Short answer, it’s not racism.
Author goes through history of U.S. focussing on the laws and economic outcomes for Blacks (who are called various things depending on time period). Shows that in lead up to civil rights era, blacks were doing better vis a vis whites, with main down turn coming in New Deal legislation in 1930’s, continuing to present day (not ameliorated by 1960’s Great Society programs).
Main culprit argued to be a variety of laws enacted and enforced by government at behest of nascent labour union movements that restrict the ability of people to sell their labour at a price agreeable to the purchaser of said labour.
Things such as minimum wage laws, licensing requirements, diploma or degree requirements have disparate impacts on individuals (especially minorities) trying to better their lives.
When created, many of these factors were explicitly anti-Black, less so now, but the effects persist.
Heavily footnoted, so readers can check the analysis.

Canada on Mar 11, 2021

Amazon Customer: Published in 2011, this book becomes ever more important with every passing year. A must read for those interested in truth and facts.

United Kingdom on Jul 21, 2020

Daniel: Walter E Williams is a brilliant and brave economist, who is willing to tell the harsh but critically necessary truth. Reading this book will prove that we blacks don't need racism to go away to win, socio-economically speaking. He'll show that in the face of real systemic racism embedded within the law, blacks were outpacing whites in terms of economic growth during the 1910-1930s. He'll show that what usually appears to be racism is usually mistaken for other factors. Finally, Dr Williams makes the case that blacks will do better if the government gets out of our lives, deregulating across the board and leaving the economy to perform freely for the most part! After reading Dr Sowell as well, I'm convinced of this hypothesis! Thank you Dr Williams for your amazing work, for being a strong example do us young, black men growing in this world, and God bless you!

United Kingdom on Jul 16, 2020

Reader KA: "Race and Economics" by Walter E. Williams was not what I was expecting. However, the book was insightful and filled with valuable information. Due to this, I gave the book a 4-star rating. I would have rated it 5-stars, but I expected something quite different. It was my desire to read a book about systemic racism that diminished black people's abilities and talents. There was nothing like that about this book. According to the author of "Race and Economics," laws, rules, and regulations kept blacks out of the marketplace.

The book was enjoyable to read. I completed it in two days.

In this book, laymen could understand what was being said since it was written in layman's terms.

In regards to race and economics, I recommend Walter E. Williams' book. For those interested in how black people were prevented from achieving their American Dream, it was worth reading.

United States on Jul 04, 2020

Joel Nicholls: Very much gets to the point and cuts through the spin and politics. Very, very easy to read and follow.

United Kingdom on Mar 04, 2019

Mr. P. Waller: I wished we in the UK had more people of Mr Williams and Mr Sowell ilk, who use facts rather than emotion to elucidate what the real problems/complexities in contemporary society are. Whilst reading this book, i had many aha! moments, those moments where you think to yourself "that is just common sense" or "why do we in society think/act in this way, when the alternate is quite clearly more beneficial to all concerned".
Collusion, licensure, monopolies from what i have read have intentionally prevented those in lower socioeconomic standing from gaining economic propsperity. Government with either good intentions or to curry favour with a certain electorate demographic have also, perhaps, unintentionally prevented economic prosperity for a certain demographic as well. The ability to willfully transact in a free market under ones own volition, in which prices are unrestricted and free from regulation, government price setting/monopoloy or any other authority, in my eyes is the only way to elevate those aforementioned persons economic outcome. Read the book, fascinating

United Kingdom on May 23, 2018

-Dr. D.L.C.: As much as I believed the contrary about the plight of African Americans (specifically) in terms of restricted opportunities, this book (along with worthy citations that you really should look up in controversial books like this to verify accuracy) revealed some sobering truths. Dr. Williams demonstrated how government intervention programs such as minimum wages and Affirmative Action (though it is more about lawful review of ALL applicants through merit rather than empty quotas) programs actually do more harm than good for the most part in terms of economic growth is various ethnicities and cultures.

Dr. Williams showed that even during antebellum slavery, some Blacks owed hotels and other lucrative businesses and many were doing well until government intervention with the labor market. Williams discussed fascinating, yet economically-harmful actions taken by the federal as well as state and municipal governments regarding taxi cabs and even hair-braiding. Wait until you read these and other maladies the Occupational and Business Licensing chapter; it should both make you a bit angry as well as enlighten you. It is as though the economy is being stifled and the idea of...

United States on Apr 19, 2013

Rob: I picked this book up after hearing Williams speak on TV and was happy to learn an awful lot. The book is an easy read and he provides some very clear explanations of the end result of government policy, which, as he says, does not always achieve its "intended" goal.

Some items that are explained in the book:
- Minimum wage law actually hurts the least skilled and poorest workers, especially teenagers picking up a part time job. While you can legislate a wage, you cannot legislate productivity nor that a person gets hired, which results in more unemployment.
- Licensing, while on the surface is designed to protect the consumer, it is commonly used to protect the incumbents' high wages from outside competition.
- He makes a case that while slavery and discrimination were clearly abominations, they do not explain the current economic state of the poor black communities. He shows how government policy that was intended to help them has actually made things worse in the last 75 years.

The concrete examples in the book simplify the concepts so that anyone can understand, even one without a background in economics. He shows, most importantly, that economic forces,...

United States on Sep 21, 2011