Deegan Norman
SOCL 401-01
Dr. JoEllen Pederson
April 20th, 2024
W.E.B DuBois Sociological Theory
W.E.B DuBois is a well-known sociologist who focused on race relations of African Americans in the United States. He is a prominent sociologist who has helped lay the groundwork for many theories and was an early figure in the civil rights movement and an advocate for social change. Some of his theories discuss the idea of double consciousness and the ideas of systemic racism and inequality in opportunities.
W.E.B DuBois talked about how race and identity look in cultures. DuBois discusses how living as a member of a minority or a non-dominant race and how this can make up someone’s identity. Dubois was influenced by this as he was a Black man in the South (Kenneth Allan, & Sarah Daynes2017). His theory talks about how race becomes an issue when society gives power to it or unequal amounts of power to different races. DuBois says that minorities can see social systems from a different angle due to the fact that they are outside of them. This is because the minorities who are being discriminated against by the social systems are not benefiting from the system, so they can see it in a different light. One of the ideas of W.E.B Dubois was that he wanted the African populations to work together to help create their own communities to help fight discrimination in the United States. The social ideas that Dubois was studying were the effects of inequality and the impact of racism and inequality. Dubois discusses the challenges and inequality of opportunities and how the system in the United States has been put in place to not allow minorities to have the same access to things such as jobs. He talks about how not the same opportunities having can lead to vastly different lives.
Another issue discussed by Dubois is the exclusion of African Americans in the History of the United States. Dubois goes on to talk about how the United States history has been written in a way that excludes the impact of African Americans as well as women and due to this it has led to many being unaware of their contributions to history and to society. This is important because we as a society give legitimacy to social structures that can be backed up by history (Kenneth Allan, & Sarah Daynes, 2017).
Dubois says that there have been issues in minority communities because of racial prejudice and how society views people. An example of this is that at one time in the United States, African Americans were not allowed to do the same jobs as white Americans such as joint unions in trade jobs which would offer a higher salary. Due to this, there were higher rates of poverty and more minorities out of work which led to prejudice against African Americans. One of his writings of the “Souls of Black Folks” investigates the identity of African Americans and how this affects them. He talks about how there was a color line present in America and not only did it make it hard for African Americans to do things like become employed, but it also took a toll on them emotionally. This connects to his other theory of double consciousness.
All of this is described by DuBois as his theory of double consciousness. Double consciousness investigates African Americans viewing themselves through the lens of others or being a Black person in a white world. This theory means that African Americans in America view themselves as Americans but also view themselves as Africans. Dubois believed that African Americans feel this way because of past challenges and historical issues of inequality.
Some of the ways that W.E.B. DuBois’ work is seen today when talking about race and power as there are still minority groups fighting for equality and equal representation in the United States. Many minority groups are still facing issues with equality because of previous legislation and rules that were put in effect such as redlining. This is one of the reasons that minority groups such as African Americans do not inherit wealth at the same rate as white people in America. One of the best ways that generational wealth is built over time is through the idea of home ownership, due to previous rules put in place which made it so African American families could only purchase homes in certain areas as well as often had difficult times securing mortgage loans it has made is so that minorities have less wealth than white families.
Dubois’s work can still be used today as there are still systemic obstacles in place for minorities in America. An example of this that has been discussed in some of my previous sociology classes is racism and inequality in the United States healthcare. In this class, we discussed the disadvantages that African Americans face in the healthcare system as well as the inequality that they face. One thing that Dubois discusses is how African Americans did not have access to the same jobs and opportunities as white people. This can lead to working longer hours and more stressful jobs which can lead to overall worse health and higher rates of death and poverty, and because the United States Healthcare model is not free for everyone, not everyone can afford it. To tie in these two examples there is definitely a link between systemic issues that have hurt the socioeconomic status and healthcare due to the healthcare model found in the United States can be explained using W.E.B Dubois’s theories.
References
Kenneth Allan, & Sarah Daynes. (2017). Explorations in Classical Sociological Theory : Seeing the Social World: Vol. Fourth edition. SAGE Publications, Inc.