Class and Family Structure in the United States

[amessofpottage]

"Class?" - "families in poverty" would be a better description. Lack of ability to form stable reaktionships causes poverty in most cases. "Class" is a difficult concept that has a value judgement component, whereas "poverty" is easily defined and fact-based. Lack of ability to form relationships not only ends relationships. It causes people to quit school, quit jobs, quit their partners and abandon their kids. Lack of skills = poverty, not "class" = lack of skills.

[cornel10]

@amessofpottage I think you've missed something, children have nothing to say in this equation. It is not their fault that their parents are losers, but they will suffer from this cause, by lack of access to higher education. Thus, they have fewer opportunities in life.

[Thedarksecret1]

It's funny how white people are so quick to listen to a white man speak about this but when a black person speaks about the exact same thing he/she is largely ignored. I find this very disturbing indeed.

[Kang5030]

@Thedarksecret1

I could say the same about blacks. A white person saying something is a racist, or just ignored. A black person saying the same damn thing is a hero.

You know that yin-yang symbol with the black and white droplets? It goes in a circle both ways.

[Thedarksecret1]

@Kang5030 Whatever.

[CfdrBvgfnm]

Russian Lady needs to meet you ** leefoxnow.info **

[mykole84]

thats a good man.

[DrJulienArbor]

One question: were families years ago really any less complex than they are today? Could it be that appearances were often deceiving and that husbands and wives, while remaining together for many years, were often having affairs that resulted in the birth of children that were either adopted by the couple or raised by single mothers? Sexual behavior hasn't changed that much over time, although the perceptions of it has... and certainly a lot was going on during wartime while husbands were away!

[CukiCookietheMonk]

Bravo.

[flex2000i]

It is called personal responsibility...If the head of the household does not make intelligent decisions then the house will crumble.

[Antiks72]

@flex2000i You forgot the luck factor, and being poor is not the result of one's "personal responsibility". I'm tired of people using this excuse to bash people they don't even know. How the fuck can you blame people for their brain chemistry?

[beerhats]

LOL! Old white academic saying baby mama/baby daddy!

[ls1z28chris]

This guy is not a compelling speaker, that's why. I don't think the lack of stars is an indictment of the content.

[SteveSkatesCrummy]

speaking on the contrary, it definitely can be construed as an indictment of content. Simply put, a rating systems lets us rate based on various reasons. Its not qualitive but quantitive, so people will take the rating system as a general positive or negative opinion, not a detailed explanation like the guy is a compelling speaker, or the video quality is bad, etc etc. you get it.

[sillymom]

I work with African American & Hispanic middle school kids who come from relationships JUST like the professor is describing. Programs to help mothers & fathers work on their partnerships would save so much money in the long run.

[Szkeptik]

Is he really saying that people living in unstable relationships break up more often?

[ubuibiok]

define middle class.....

[LeafyBugProductions]

doodoo