Foolish and vain indeed is the workingman who makes the color of his skin the stepping-stone to his imaginary superiority. The trouble is with his head, and if he can get that right he will find that what ails him is not superiority but inferiority, and that he, as well as the Negro he despises, is the victim of wage-slavery, which robs him of what he produces and keeps both him and the Negro tied down to the dead level of ignorance and degradation.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Racial superiority is false; all workers are victims of wage-slavery regardless of skin color.
- In plain terms
- Thinking white workers are better is wrong; everyone suffers under capitalism.
- What can you take from it?
- Racial division undermines worker unity against economic exploitation.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- How does racism divide workers?
- What unites people across race?
Another view
It conflates race and class without addressing systemic racism separately.
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