Where We Stand: Class Matters

hooks examines the historical and modern relationship between race and class within Black communities, arguing that class distinctions among African Americans have long been overlooked. While Black solidarity has often been emphasized, there have always been internal class hierarchies, with free Black individuals and enslaved individuals occupying different positions even before the Civil War.

In the early 20th century, racial solidarity often superseded class divisions as Black communities faced intensified oppression. Figures like W.E.B. DuBois initially believed that a “talented tenth” of the Black elite could uplift the race, but by 1948, he critiqued this view, acknowledging that many in his privileged class had become self-serving. This shift in perspective reflects hooks’s broader argument that class mobility does not inherently lead to communal uplift.

The civil rights movement, though rooted in the fight against racism, was also a class-based struggle that ultimately benefitted those who were already upwardly mobile. Integration allowed the Black middle and upper class to assimilate into white society, but at the cost of abandoning poorer Black communities. hooks notes that ”privileged black individuals began to leave the underprivileged behind” (92). This exodus, along with the decline of Black-owned businesses, led to increasing economic isolation for poor and working-class Black Americans.

hooks critiques the modern Black elite for perpetuating individualistic success narratives while ignoring systemic inequality. Many high-profile Black figures present Black capitalism as self-determination, masking the reality that their success does little to uplift the masses. This commodification of race serves mainstream interests while maintaining economic disparity within Black communities.

Moreover, hooks highlights how privileged Black individuals use class to shield themselves from racism in ways that the poor cannot. While racism still impacts Black individuals of all classes, economic privilege mediates its effects, offering the wealthy an illusion of safety. However, instead of challenging the growing class divide, many in the Black elite dismiss critiques as jealousy or attacks on racial unity.

hooks argues for a radical restructuring of Black solidarity, one that acknowledges and actively confronts class inequality, writing, “Racial solidarity in anti-racist struggles can, sometimes does, and must coexist with a recognition of the importance of ending class elitism” (99). She calls for progressive Black elites to challenge the status quo and reinvest in communal uplift, rejecting capitalist individualism in favor of collective liberation.

hooks critiques the evolution of feminism, arguing that class struggle has been sidelined in favor of reformist goals that primarily benefit privileged women. From the start, feminism was divided between those who sought fundamental structural change and those who simply wanted equal access to class power. Much like the Black liberation movement, radical feminist demands were dismissed once privileged women—mostly white and well-educated—gained access to higher-paying jobs and social status.

Early feminist discourse, dominated by upper-class white women, framed gender oppression in ways that excluded working-class and poor women. Betty Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique described middle- and upper-class housewives feeling trapped in domestic life, yet ignored the fact that most women, especially women of color, had always worked—”It was not gender discrimination or sexist oppression that had kept privileged women from working outside the home; it was the face that the work open to them would have been the same low-paid unskilled labor open to all working women” (102). This reformist approach obscured class struggle, positioning feminism as a movement for affluent women seeking workplace equality, rather than for all women facing systemic exploitation.

Radical feminists, particularly lesbians and working-class women, were among the first to challenge classism within the movement. They emphasized that class is not just about money, but about behavior, expectations, and access to power. However, many feminist leaders dismissed these concerns, reinforcing the idea that women’s liberation meant climbing the class hierarchy rather than dismantling it.

By the 1980s and 90s, privileged women had largely abandoned discussions of class, instead focusing on their individual advancement. With white women becoming the primary beneficiaries of affirmative action, Black and working-class women were further marginalized. Feminist rhetoric increasingly celebrated the success of affluent women while ignoring the continued exploitation of working-class women. hooks argues that this shift represents a betrayal of feminist ideals, as privileged women colluded with patriarchal capitalism to maintain their advantages. In the end, feminism became a tool for reinforcing class divisions rather than dismantling them.

To reclaim radical feminism, hooks calls for a renewed focus on working-class and poor women, prioritizing self-sufficiency and community-based solutions. She advocates for initiatives like low-income housing co-ops and workfare programs (in which welfare recipients participate in job training to receive benefits) that empower rather than exploit. Without such efforts, feminism will remain a tool of the elite, offering “liberation” only to those already privileged enough to benefit.

Where We Stand examines the historical and modern realities of white poverty, arguing that poor whites have long been manipulated into maintaining racial divisions rather than recognizing shared class struggles with Black Americans. While race privilege ensures that even the poorest whites hold social power over Black people, they are simultaneously scorned by wealthier whites, who uses terms like “white trash” to separate themselves from the lower classes. hooks writes that ”white trash were different because they flaunted their poverty, reveled in it, and were not ashamed,” implicitly leveraging their racial privilege (113).

Despite their economic struggles, poor whites consistently align with white supremacy rather than advocating for class solidarity. hooks recalls how Black children in her community were taught to fear poor whites because they often expressed their racial resentment through violence. However, even wealthier white individuals who condemned this violence would not publicly oppose it, as doing so would mean betraying white supremacy.

hooks notes that the invisibility of white poverty has been a deliberate tool of class control. While Black poverty has been widely represented in media, poor whites have remained largely hidden, maintaining the illusion that white supremacy benefits all white people. The truth, however, is that white poverty is widespread—many poor whites live in rural areas and trailer parks, outside of the urban centers where Black poverty is more visible.

Though racism persists, hooks notes the ways modern economic shifts have altered poor white perspectives. Many now recognize that ruling-class greed is the real source of their oppression rather than Black advancement. However, racial integration in housing and workplaces has not entirely eliminated white racial resentment—many now direct their frustrations toward immigrants, believing them to be responsible for job loss rather than systemic economic policies.

hooks argues that building class solidarity between poor Black and white communities is essential for real economic justice. While divisions remain, she notes increasing instances of cross-racial unity in working-class communities, particularly among younger generations. Unlike previous generations, many now realize that poverty transcends race, and uniting against economic oppression has the potential to ignite the most powerful civil rights movement yet.