AMERICAN SOCIETY

01.15.14
Meritocracy, Horatio Alger, American dream narrative
Affirmative action introduction
1. Social Stratification: the existence of structured inequalities among different groups
Question: how do we explain inequality between groups?
Group differences, the question of being part of a group. oes ability and age affect how
your opportunity is structured?
Sometimes, these terms are applied to indi!iduals. "owe!er, mostly they#re applied on a
group le!el.
Social stratification doesn#t always mean economics, yet it#s often interpreted as sociology
by loo$ing at economic status.
%. &lass: Socioeconomic differences between groups that create differences in material prosperity
and power
&lass !s. race approach to policies 'for instance, college apps(. "ow do you measure class?
"ousehold income, personal income?
"ow is class conceptuali)ed by social theorists?
*ot +ust thin$ing about economic ownership, but also economic power and prestige. &an
you enforce an agenda? &an you ma$e impact on others# li!es? ,hat is your status?
-. .ife chances: opportunities for achie!ing economic prosperity
/his term comes from 0ax ,eber, a German social theorist. "e also thought about social
status and prestige. /here is a difference here between 12/&103S and
14415/2*6/63S, where he#s focusing on opportunities. So, sometimes we see people
granted the same 144S to compete, without thought of actual economic outcomes.
7. Social mobility: mo!ement of indi!iduals and groups between class positions
3!en in the 2S, social mobility doesn#t happen much. 4eople don#t often change their
class.
/hin$ about &.8SS 41S6/61*. ,hat ma$es a class a class? 'upper, middle, lower(
1ften, it#s connected to economic status as well as educational bac$ground. 9our culture,
taste, consumption patterns also factor in. :or instance, the consumption of white bread is
seen as ;lower class,< and some people refuse to consume it as a status marker. "ow is
class status measured and percei!ed? 6s the 1= the only $ind of upper class that exists?
/hin$ about economic ownership and also the relationship of the groups to each other.
6ntragenerational: mobility in course of people#s wor$ing li!es
o 6ndi!idual le!el. 6t#s also associated with the low-range concept.
6ntergenerational: mobility across generations
o 3mbedded is assumption that things S"12. get better. 2se this type of data to
show 451G53SS :15 G5124S. &i!il 5ights mo!ement, etc.
o 8lso a question of assimilation: are you able to be a full 8merican? .egal
citi)enship? Social acceptance?
3xchange: exchange of positions where most talented in each generation mo!e up and less
talented mo!e down
Structural: upward mobility made possible by expansion of better>paid occupations at
expense of more poorly paid ones
o 1ften measured as socioeconomic assimilation
.ow>range: mo!ement from lower social bac$ground to a high status +ob 'not
necessarily high>PAYING?(
o 3xamples: 1bama came from a single>parent household, grew up on social welfare,
came from modest wor$ing>class bac$ground 'socioeconomic status(. 1n the other
hand, he attended elite schools, and his mother has a 4h. "e was also raised in a
white household@ would someone in the same racial bac$ground ha!e the same
opportunity for mobility? ';"on$ey<: white man who escaped housing pro+ects due
to his race, whereas many of his blac$ associates couldn#t.( 6f 1bama had been
raised in a primarily blac$ household, would he ha!e the same amount of social
mobility?
o "igh>status !s. high>paying: pay attention to the networ$s that one forms.
o .ow>range mo!ement is often at the le!el of the individual. 1ften the exception
more often than the rule. "ow does ;exceptional< ability get in!o$ed, though?
Aertical: mo!ement up or down socioeconomic scale
2pward: upward mo!ement in property, income, or status
ownward: downward mo!ement in property, income, or status
o ,hat are some groups that experience downward mobility as a group?
o 8ging: when one retiresBstops wor$ing, most people ha!e a certain le!el of
downward mobility. "ow far you fall depends on existing wealth and existing
resources. ,hat are your sa!ings? :amily? :riends? Safety net?
o 0a+or foreclosure crisis: textboo$ said that downward mo!ement doesn#t really
happen in the 2S. :alse? /here are probably a lot more people today who ha!e
experienced this due to the economic crisis. 8 lot of people#s wealth is in their
homes@ some racial groups ha!e largerBdisproportionate share of their wealth in
their homes.
.ayoffs, inability to get +obs
2nemployment insurance getting cut recently
.osing pensions

C. 0eritocracy: social order where rewards distributed in accordance with criteria of personal
merit
System of go!ernance 'not +ust discourseBrhetoric, but actually how society is organi)ed(
with brightest and most conscientious indi!iduals accurately occupying most important
positions based on talent and achie!ements
o :lip side: if you are not occupying these positions, assume you aren#t best and
brightest, don#t ha!e talent to get these achie!ements
5ewards are ;earned,< you#re getting returns based on the amount and quality of your
wor$
Social capital: Bhuman capital, connected with meritocracy. Deen embraced by liberals as
critique of meritocracy ;it#s not what you $now, but who you $now.< Dut de!eloping
these networ$s is sometimes through merit itself.
,here does this fit into debates on affirmati!e action? 0eritocracy is often tal$ed about as
being a myth or a narrati!eE
F. *arrati!e: story that depicts sequence of fictional or non>fictional e!ents
4romotes beliefs about history, social inequality, and power dynamics
0obili)es emotional and political responses
&ultural imagery and metaphorsBsymbolism: how ha!e political campaigns engaged in
imagery to depict the aggrie!ed, results of policies, etc?
&elebrity stories: what#s the audience#s reaction to a story of hard>times that ended o$ay?
4eople usually applaud that. 6f someone ended on a miserable note, no applause. As. a
story of a dad calling and getting his son into acting scene.
0obili)ation of the 8merican ream. 4eople will be 01A3 by this type of story, which
is told to e!o$e a certain emotional responds. 9ou might be in certain circles 6#ll ne!er be
in, etc, but your story gi!es me "143. /hat all it ta$es is hard wor$@ that the reason 6#m
not getting anywhere is because 6#m not wor$ing hard enough.
0eritocracy is also promoting the idea that it#s wor$ ethic that gets you where you#re at.
/hat the people at the top simply wor$ harder than e!eryone else. 3mbedded in policy
itself are narrati!es.
Horatio Alger: city life lit of 1GCH#s. 6ndustriali)ation. 9outh delinquency. 5ags>to>riches
stories, populari)ing imagery of wayward boys li!ing rough life in city, dog>eat>dog
en!ironment, who through pluc$>In>luc$ found their way through hard times. /here#s an
idea that through their pursuit of hard wor$, they can o!ercome. 8t the heart of
meritocracy discourse, you recogni)e there#s inequality.
Meritocracy narratives: cut across class, can be shared e!en between classes one would
usually thin$ conflicted with the narrati!e. 1ften there#s a clash of narrati!es in policy
debates.
8ffirmati!e 8ction
J. 3xecuti!e 1rder GGH%
Executive orders are issued by the president, and don#t require appro!al of &ongress.
:5 used executi!e orders wilfully.
GGH% issued by :5 1K71, during ,,66. ,,66 significant for many minorities to ma$e
political demands on go!ernment. ,,66, concerns about racial inequality becoming issue
of national stability. &oncerns about other countries being able to exploit racial conflict in
2S for own agenda. 2S, as act of national defense, wanted to ha!e e!eryone on>board with
these policies. So agencies targeted national go!ernment to 3>S3G53G8/3 +obs,
policies, etc. Lobs in certain sectors 'efense Sector, for ex( expanded.
4rohibits discrimination in employment in federal agencies and all unionsBcompanies
in!ol!ed in war>related wor$
Go!ernment +obs under ;public sector<. "istorically see %>pronged effort: people try to get
access to go!t +obs 'tax funded(, and pri!ate sector 'owned by for>profit companies(.
3mphasi)ed race, creed 'religion(, color, or national origin
o MM58&3 and &1.15 here used differently. 6nteresting scholarship on SN6*
S"83 inequality: for ex, % people in same race, but with diff s$in shadesOhow
does this impact their socioeconomic opps?

G. 3xecuti!e 1rder 1HK%C

L:N 1KF1
4romotes equal opportunities for qualified persons getting +obs in go!t
o ,hat ma$es someone Q28.6:63? 6s there inequality in getting someone
Q28.6:63? '+ob experience, internships, etc(
3stablished &ommittee on 3qual 3mployment 1pportunity: organi)ationally, see roots of
go!ernmentBequal opp enforcement agencies
:irst time term ;affirmati!e action< introduced 'but not defined(
o 6t was L:N, *1/ *ixon who did it
efinition of discrimination not defined@ ;direct and indirect.< "ow do we understand
discrimination? ,ho discriminates?
3mphasi)ed: equal opp, hiring and treatment during employment 'ha!e access to space !ia
hiring, but /538/03*/ in space not addressed. /he policy was +ust about you ;getting<
to the +ob, but nothing about treatment. 8ccess !s. treatment debate(, enforcement
K. 3qual 4ay 8ct 1KF-
1KF- L:N
;4rohibits discrimination on account of sex of wage payment in commerce 'bi)Beconomic
transactions(.< *otice this doesn#t say G3*35, but S3P.
348 section -: executi!e order that becomes policy, and becomes enforced 'role of
enforcement agencies(. /his is a broad definition, has many qualifiers or exceptions: 1(
seniority system 'often reproduces gender inequality system(@ %( merit system@ -( system
measuring earnings by quantityBquality of production@ 7( differential based on any other
factor other than sex.
1H. 1KF7 &i!il 5ights 8ct
uring .yndon Daines Lohnson '.DL( presidency
0a+or act when tal$ing about 331& and their enforcement of &i!il 5ights act
itle !II: 3qual employment opp
/argets employers with %CQ employees: implications? 8re policies rele!ant in modern
period? 6f you loo$ at business ownership data, you#ll see companies don#t employ more
than 1>% people. /hus, this 8ct does not target a huge number of businesses. Spea$s about
economic impact: bigger companies targeted because they#re seen as ha!ing more
economic impact 'more +obs, tax re!enue(. 6f you lay off 1HHH people, affect multiple
le!els of industry.
Sex is added to categories
8ge is not a protected category but is mentionedin 331& data, see age>related
complaints.
3stablishes 3qual 3mployment 1pp &ommission '331&(. "as in!estigatory powers
o "ow much !alue does president put on 331&? Lustice &larence !s. something
conflict. Doth $nown as conser!ati!es, not pro>affirmati!e action.

11. Section JH- of 1KF7 &i!il 5ights 8ct

Sex is added to equation. Sociological concepts of +ob segregation: do you get hired, but
then get segregated within +ob in a way that ma$es it difficult for you to wor$ your way
upwards?
,ho disproportionately uses employment agencies? 6mmigrants, people without college
education. 4eople apply to +obs using multiple resources. /hose using employment
agencies don#t ha!e preexisting networ$s 'former felons, minorityBexcluded groups, etc.(.
4eople are being $ept out of informational networ$s. 3mployment agencies ha!e access to
+ob ads you might not $now about. /here must be enforcement within employment
agencies because they discriminate against groups that see$ to use them.
.abor unions and racial discrimination: labor unions refuse to hire minority groups, refuse
to allow them to become part of labor union.
1%. JH- of 1KF7, cont. 'd(
&ompetition in access to collegesBuni!ersities. /o be certified as master plumberBetc, you
often had to get apprenticeship, paying union dues, but might not be able to get the right
training in ,15N6*G>&.8SS industries 'not e!en white>collar?(, you need federal
inter!ention against discrimination
1-. 'e(
;bona fide occupational qualification reasonably necessary to the normal operation<
0ur$y phrases become loopholes for businesses to defend practices claimed as
discriminatory
%( &atholic uni!ersities, etc@ does this apply to these institutions?
17. 'h(
Edifferent standards of compensation, diff terms, conditions, pri!ileges of employment
pursuant to a bona fide seniority or merit system, or system which measures earnings by
quantity or quality of production or to employees who wor$ in diff locationsE
Sex discrimination and wage discrimination might be A8.6 based on merit. 8re there
+obs that require a man to do it? ,hat criteria decide this: biological? Strength?
1C. '+(
Pre"erential treatment term: used interchangeably with affirmati!e action, but it#s
6::353*/ legally.
1F. Section JHF
,hat#s the appropriate approachBaction to ta$e against discrimination?
;by informal methods of conference, conciliation, and persuasion.<
6n &i!il 5ights mo!ement, sometimes ha!e demands that 8frican>8mericans be ;patient<
in regards to discrimination policy. /his is a philosophical approach. ,e#ll try to get
discriminatory party to see error of their ways, persuade them to do otherwise.
incremental social c#ange approach. oes this fa!or the dominant group?
1J. 'g(
&ourt may order ;affirmati!e action as may be appropriateE<
"ere, it#s an action ta$en in response to 3*:15&303*/. *ow, see it as preempti!e
measure ta$en to a!oid discrimination. 8ffirmati!e action seen as redress here, repair.
6ssue of intent: how do you pro!e intent? oes intent matter if 12/&103S are unequal?
4erson filing complaint expected to pro!ide e!idence of intent