My class analysis of the United States

[CAleftist]

So I have made a rough class analysis of the United States of America.

In America, race and class are inseparable. In my analysis, I have divided the proletariat into white and non white because they are divided by social power, and there are privileges that white members of the proletariat have that non white members don't have.

The classes are:

The upper bourgeoisie: Billionaires and millionaires, they are the true ruling class in the US. They own the means of production, labor power, and have complete political freedom. Politically, they are imperialist,

The middle bourgeoisie: A much larger group than the upper one, they own the rest of the means of production and labor power-enough to identify and be identified with the ruling class, but not enough to have full power. A few are likely to become upper bourgeoisie. Businessmen, bankers, and professionals like high-paid lawyers, doctors, and the like are included in this class. Politically, many liberals and conservatives can be identified with this group.

The petty bourgeoisie: Those who own their own labor but not their own means of production, or those who are economically in between bourgeoisie and proletariat. Self-employed small businessmen, small-town professionals, teachers, professors, and students could be considered part of this category. Politically, they tend to be the "activists", and are often reactionary.

The white proletariat: A very large class that includes most "blue-collar" occupations and many agricultural, forestry, mining, and fishing occupations. They are distinguished by the paradox of racial privilege and economic disadvantage. This tension lends itself to reactionary right-wing politics often, but it can also lend itself to active left-wing politics, depending on conditions. Organized religion often plays a large role in this group's culture.

The non-white proletariat: Another very large class that includes the bulk of racial and immigrant minorities in America. Same occupations as the white proletariat. They are receptive to left-wing politics, but just as the white proletariat can be persuaded into following conservatives (Republicans), this class can be persuaded into following liberals (Democrats). Organized religion also plays a big role in this group's culture.

[scarletghoul]

Your definition of petty bourgeoisie is wrong.. 'middle class' workers, or what lenin called the 'semiproletarait' should be added as a separate class. Race in the US is indeed inseparable from class, but we should do more than just divide them into white and non-white proletariats. I think the term proletariat is efficient for most low-paid workers.. Undocumented (illegal immigrant) workers maybe could be categorised separately, as they're so downtrodden and do not have any of the rights accorded to other workers. The lumpenproletariat is a mixed bag but generally can be understood as those who live outside the official economy (but this itself can be divided with pimps, prostitutes, petty thieves, drug lords, drug dealers, etc having clear class relations). I would say the prison population forms a distinct class too, as they're subject to slave labour and so on, though they are mostly of lumpen or proletarian origin. There's also the unemployed who often are somewhere between proletarian and lumpen (semilumpen maybe), or those who live off handouts and foodstamps. The lower class catergories are of course heavily affected by race, with a lot of inner city blacks being lumpen due to racism for example (1 in 4 blacks in new york is employed..) but the races themselves dont form separate class divisions.

[CAleftist]

Your definition of petty bourgeoisie is wrong.. 'middle class' workers, or what lenin called the 'semiproletarait' should be added as a separate class. Race in the US is indeed inseparable from class, but we should do more than just divide them into white and non-white proletariats. I think the term proletariat is efficient for most low-paid workers.. Undocumented (illegal immigrant) workers maybe could be categorised separately, as they're so downtrodden and do not have any of the rights accorded to other workers. The lumpenproletariat is a mixed bag but generally can be understood as those who live outside the official economy (but this itself can be divided with pimps, prostitutes, petty thieves, drug lords, drug dealers, etc having clear class relations). I would say the prison population forms a distinct class too, as they're subject to slave labour and so on, though they are mostly of lumpen or proletarian origin. The lower class catergories are of course heavily affected by race, with a lot of inner city blacks being lumpen due to racism (1 in 4 blacks in new york is employed..) but the races themselves dont form separate class divisions.

Thanks for correcting and clarifying those things. Yes, the prison population is its own class.

So is race just a social construct, and not a meaningful class division?

[CAleftist]

Though this is the official ruling class ideology, I don't think this is true in reality as both "white" and "non-white" workers face exploitation from the bourgeoisie by producing surplus value for them like all workers everywhere in capitalist society, thus making them the revolutionary class, and so it would seem that race based division is more of a ruling class construct that should be subjected to criticism and the unity of the working class as a whole should be upheld irrespective of race or ideology instead of propagating these factors by incorporating them into our "analysis".

This so called left-wing politics cannot exist outside of the working class itself and be injected into the class as an alien force, but should be something that develops out of the class and so instead of workers lending themselves or being receptive to so called left-wing politics, such politics should develop from the class itself.

You are correct on all counts.

[syndicat]

you don't have the capitalist class right. this class is divided into two by the amount of capital, and thus power, they have. capital ownership in late capitalism tends to be highly concentrated so the top 2 percent are really the top class, i call them the plutocracy.

below them are two "classes in between" them and the working class. there is the bureaucratic class, who you ignore. this includes people who have power over workers day to day in both the public an private sector...supervisors, divisional directors, corporate lawyers, top accountants, industiral engineers who define work flows and people's jobs, cops, military officers, judges, etc. this class are not capitalists because their class position isn't based on ownership of capital assets. it's based on their organizational authority and expertise, their power in the organizations that run the economy & society.

and then there are the capitalists who have smaller amounts of capital so that they have to do more hands on management of workers. this is the small business class. the plutocracy don't manage workers directly, they are insulated from the working class by layers of managers and professionals (the bureaucratic class).

within the working class, males have advantages in relation to females in terms of things like how much they are paid, women are more likely to be concentrated in female job ghettos, excluded from higher paying blue collar jobs. they also do much more housework than men do. they suffer the "double shift".

and, yes, white workers do have some advantages compared to workers of color, especially black workers, and to a lesser extent also in relation to other workers of color. this includes things like being subject to hiring discrimination, discrimination in lending, in housing.

i would not say that white workers are "privileged" however. that implies membership in one of the elite classes. they are also dominated and exploited. the whole working class is an oppressed group. but everyone within the working class does not have an equal situation.

there is another layer that we have to consider: lower level professionals, such as programmers, school teachers, librarians, ordinary newspaper reporters, RNs. these folks don't usually have power over other workers or participate in management. they are, however, more likely to have college degrees, receive higher pay, and are more likely to identify as "middle class" than the core working class who work in less skilled jobs. some people consider this layer to be part of the "middle class." I think they are part of the skilled section of the working class, along with airplane mechanics and electricians and maintenance machinists and the like.

[BIG BROTHER]

So I have made a rough class analysis of the United States of America.

In America, race and class are inseparable. In my analysis, I have divided the proletariat into white and non white because they are divided by social power, and there are privileges that white members of the proletariat have that non white members don't have.

The classes are:

The upper bourgeoisie: Billionaires and millionaires, they are the true ruling class in the US. They own the means of production, labor power, and have complete political freedom. Politically, they are imperialist,

The middle bourgeoisie: A much larger group than the upper one, they own the rest of the means of production and labor power-enough to identify and be identified with the ruling class, but not enough to have full power. A few are likely to become upper bourgeoisie. Businessmen, bankers, and professionals like high-paid lawyers, doctors, and the like are included in this class. Politically, many liberals and conservatives can be identified with this group.

The petty bourgeoisie: Those who own their own labor but not their own means of production, or those who are economically in between bourgeoisie and proletariat. Self-employed small businessmen, small-town professionals, teachers, professors, and students could be considered part of this category. Politically, they tend to be the "activists", and are often reactionary.

The white proletariat: A very large class that includes most "blue-collar" occupations and many agricultural, forestry, mining, and fishing occupations. They are distinguished by the paradox of racial privilege and economic disadvantage. This tension lends itself to reactionary right-wing politics often, but it can also lend itself to active left-wing politics, depending on conditions. Organized religion often plays a large role in this group's culture.

The non-white proletariat: Another very large class that includes the bulk of racial and immigrant minorities in America. Same occupations as the white proletariat. They are receptive to left-wing politics, but just as the white proletariat can be persuaded into following conservatives (Republicans), this class can be persuaded into following liberals (Democrats). Organized religion also plays a big role in this group's culture.

I would include teachers in the proletariats section. The more privatization reaches the public school system the more and more proletarianized that teachers become.

Students I think are a wild card on the class struggle, the great majority I say are petty-bourgeoisie and proletariat but during their time as students they are somewhat independent from their class and thus is possible to see petty-bourgeoisie students even being part of radical movements.

However in my experience of organizing against the privatization of the school system the struggle to fight against that, has come from the working class students and students of color.

I also would lump managers, high paid lawyers, professionals, etc as petty bourgeoisie The difference however is that within this class, there is different casts. A house cleaner who works on her own for example is petty-bourgoisie but is more alinged with the proletariat, while a lawyer with his own firm is more oriented toward the bourgoisie.

Regarding race divisions in the US proletariat.

As other comrades have point out the White workers are indeed exploited and oppressed.

However as you correctly recognized there still race divisions withing the working class in the form of racism which gives certain privilege to the white working class, although this hurts in the long run of course because racism prevents the working class from fighting back efficiently.

I think then its important to recognize that Blacks and Chicanos are two major oppressed sectors of the working class, that suffer from racism and many times they have manifested themselves also as oppressed nationalities.

Undocumented immigrants are currently in my opinion the most exploited sector of the US proletariat. I think it wouldn't make sense to put them as a different class, but it is important not to ignore their special role as criminalized proletariat.

Also yea with the growing unemployment, the gangs and prison population is important to recognize the lumpen proletariat which is mainly people of color too.