The Racialization of Social Class

Rising economic inequality has created a stark division between the “haves” and “have nots.” Although the majority of Americans say they would prefer a more equitable distribution of economic resources (Norton & Ariely, 2011), policies aimed at reducing economic inequality remain unpopular. The current talk will interrogate the extent to which policy attitudes are related to beliefs about who is rich and who is poor. Specifically, I will discuss research investigating the psychological entanglement between race and social class, and how the racialization of social class may be associated with policy attitudes.