Matthew Desmond's Evicted: An Analysis

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Recommended: The social construction of race

But why are minority communities targeted more than their white counterparts? The social construction of race frequently includes framing racial minorities as responsible for (and therefore deserving of) higher poverty and incarceration rates. Many may argue that racial minorities lack appropriate ethics, intellect, motivation, and abilities to succeed. By simply blaming minorities for their own disadvantages, stereotypes suggesting that their disadvantages stem from “presumed lack of education, work ethic, substance abuse, problematic role models, weakened families, etc” persist, rather than stereotypes due to race, racism, or discrimination. (Eastman, 2015). The US was founded on the idea that the white race has an innate “goodness” …show more content…

In almost all of the character’s stories mentioned in Evicted, nearly all of them (or a family member) have interactions with the criminal justice system. For instance, the story of Lamar and his children feature some conversations of law enforcement in the area. They discuss being stopped by the Milwaukee PD as being part of a routine, with one of Lamar’s sons stating, “The police ain’t protecting us” (p. 21). One of his sons even suggests that trying to change things is not worth it, as he has been arrested himself for his “slick mouth”. Clearly, they have a lack of faith in the police and feel that fighting any injustices only worsen their struggles. It is clear in this interaction that Lamar and his children have a tense relationship with the police and do not trust them with the protection of their neighborhood. In one of Desmond’s most profound statements, he states “If incarceration had come to define the lives of men from impoverished black neighborhoods, eviction was shaping the lives of women. Poor black men were locked up. Poor black woman were locked out” (p. 98). While Evicted focused on the issues of eviction, namely for poor black woman, it is clear from this statement that mass incarceration is responsible for defining the lives of black men in the inner city. As stated before, the incarceration of one person can have detrimental effects on the financial and residential stability of an entire

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