The Problem With Thomas Sowell's “Black Rednecks” Thesis

Thomas Sowell is one of the thinkers I have recommended for years, particularly for his criticism of simplistic explanations for racial disparities. But I think one of the central arguments in Black Rednecks and White Liberals does not hold up as well as many conservatives assume.

In this reaction, I respond to Hunter Matz's discussion of Sowell's thesis on the Joe Rogan Experience and examine the argument that Southern “redneck” culture was largely responsible for the cultural problems of black Americans.

I look at the West Indies comparison, the distinction between Appalachian and Southern plantation culture, the influence of the planter class, the history of slavery and Reconstruction, Northern education, Booker T. Washington, the Great Society, and the cultural changes that followed.

My argument is not that culture does not matter. Quite the opposite. Culture matters enormously. But history is complicated, and I do not think we can explain modern black American problems by simply pointing to Southern rednecks.

As I say toward the end of the video, I have not argued that anything is in anyone's DNA or blamed one group of white people for everything. I am arguing that the history is more complicated than this particular explanation allows.

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00:00 – Why I Am Reacting to Joe Rogan

02:43 – Thomas Sowell's “Black Rednecks” Thesis

04:00 – The Problem With the West Indies Comparison

06:35 – Are Ghettos and Black Culture Unique to America?

08:33 – Did Black Americans Simply Adopt “Redneck Culture”?

10:00 – The Cornwall and Ebonics Argument

12:10 – Who Actually Lived in the Southern Black Belt?

15:35 – Why Eugene Genovese Matters

16:58 – Reconstruction, Education, and Booker T. Washington

20:50 – The Great Society, Northern Influence, and Who Is Responsible?

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