Problem: What is responsible for the economic inequality between White and Black Americans? White supremacy or racial capitalism?
Charles W. Mills (1951-2021) believes that the racial inequalities (e.g., gaps in income and wealth between Whites and Blacks) can be explained using an analytical framework that establishes that the truth of the social contract binding Americans is a Racial Contract, that is, the contract of White supremacy (see how Mills defines White supremacy in Introduction 3). According to Mills, racial inequalities extend beyond economic exploitation to the fact that White people have the greatest political influence and cultural hegemony and are head of the moral hierarchy (Overview 32). Do you think the "Racial Contract" is the most effective way to conceptualize racial injustices, or are rival conceptions such as racial capitalism more appropriate? Are issues of race part of a larger problem, that is, class struggle? Which of these terms would best explain whiteness's material, political and cultural benefits?