Oak Parkers are concerned about equity. The online 2020 U.S. Census data shows the median income of 93 ethnic groups. If you list all of the incomes of a group, the middle of the list is the median.
Indian-Americans (#1)* top the list with $127,000. White income is surpassed by 21 non-EuroAmerican groups. Nigerian-American (#55) and Ghanaian-American (#57) median income is $69,000 while white (#61) income is $66,000. Five Caribbean ethnic groups have higher median incomes than African-Americans (#87) at $44,000.
Why are people from Nigeria and Ghana not affected by the presumed Black disadvantage?
Two common theories of achievement are the self-fulfilling prophecy and rising to meet expectations. Yale professors Amy Chu and Jed Rubenfeld noticed various cultural groups doing well in the Ivy League, and they studied the differences in ethnic groups success. Their book, The Triple Package, states a three-element theory of ethnic group achievement: impulse control along with a simultaneous superiority complex and insecurity.
Even with our problems, about 150 million more people would like to immigrate to the USA, including 37 million Latinx (Gallup – 2017).
Robert Sullivan, Oak Park
