Lecture Notes: Richard Wolff on Capitalism and Racism

Introduction

• Speaker: Richard Wolff, Democracy at Work
• Topic: Relationship between capitalism and racism, especially in the context of the United States.
• Question Origin: Ask Prof Wolff question from Michelle B., Patreon community.

Capitalism's Drive to Reduce Labor Costs

• Economizing on Labor Costs: Capitalism aims to minimize costs, including labor costs.
• Methods of Reducing Labor Costs:
  • Child Labor: Historically significant, children paid less than adults.
  • Women’s Labor: Women often paid less than men, historically and currently.
  • Automation: Replacing workers with machines to reduce costs.
  • Relocating Production: Moving production to places with lower wages.
  • Immigration and Labor: Bringing in workers willing to accept lower wages.

Racism as a Tool for Economizing

• Creating Second-Class Citizens:
  • Immigrants often assigned second-class status.
  • African Americans, forced as slaves, historically treated as second-class.
  • Discrimination persists in wages, hiring, education, and healthcare.

Capitalism's Need for Scapegoats

• Business Cycles: Frequent downturns, recessions every 4-7 years.
  • Results in unemployment, business closures, and reduced tax revenue.
• Scapegoating: Racism is used to make minority groups the shock absorbers for economic instability.
  • African Americans often first fired, last hired during cycles.
  • Helps prevent widespread anxiety and potential revolution against capitalism.

Racism's Role in Stabilizing Capitalism

• Functionality of Racism: Serves to stabilize capitalism by absorbing its instabilities.
• Conclusion: Overcoming racism requires moving beyond capitalism.

Conclusion

• Final Thoughts: To eliminate racial discrimination, a systemic change beyond capitalism is implied.
• Richard Wolff concludes that understanding the role of racism in capitalism is crucial to addressing both.