I think it is difficult to achieve a meaningful political coalition if you have race-based programs that divide members of the coalition. The problem I have, however, is that white people assume an either/or position: Either we have race-based programs… — William Julius Wilson Copy Share Image
Liberals were intimidated by the Reagan administration and did not want to appear naive by talking about programs that called for government support. I just said, 'The hell with that. I'm out there.' — William Julius Wilson Copy Share Image
My research clearly reveals that if we want to put inner-city workers to work immediately, we just can't rely on the private sector. They… — William Julius Wilson Copy Share Image
If you're talking about the narrow issue of public assistance, I would like to see us move to a more healthy system. But until we come up with certain guarantees - for example, guaranteed jobs where mothers move off welfare - I support welfare very strongly. The worst thing we could do is impose time limits and then expect people… — William Julius Wilson Copy Share
The middle class has just fallen further and further behind the rich. — William Julius Wilson Copy Share Image
If you're going to compare a middle-income black kid with a middle- income white kid, and, say, you control for family background, family education, and family income, and if this middle-income black kid doesn't score as well as the white kid on the test, then I say, look, you haven't taken into consideration the cumulative effect of living in a… — William Julius Wilson Copy Share
Prior to 1940, the affluent and the middle class began to converge, but after 1979, the economic gap between the middle class and affluent widened significantly. — William Julius Wilson Copy Share Image
But the person who scored well on an SAT will not necessarily be the best doctor or the best lawyer or the best businessman.… — William Julius Wilson Copy Share Image
Black employers are just as negative as the white employers concerning inner-city workers. — William Julius Wilson Copy Share Image
I think it is difficult to achieve a meaningful political coalition if you have race-based programs that divide members of the coalition. The problem… — William Julius Wilson Copy Share Image
Unemployment is higher in Europe than in the United States and primarily concentrated in immigrant minority populations, so people are worried about what's going… — William Julius Wilson Copy Share Image
A lot of joblessness in the black community doesn't seem to be reachable through fiscal and monetary policies. People have not been drawn into… — William Julius Wilson Copy Share Image
I don't think we should stop emphasizing race because I think, you know, race is still very, very important, and we have to recognize… — William Julius Wilson Copy Share Image
During the Great Depression, African Americans were faced with problems that were not unlike those experienced by the most disadvantaged groups in society. The… — William Julius Wilson Copy Share Image
