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A distinguished Stanford law professor examines the steep decline in marriage rates among the African American middle class, and offers a paradoxical-nearly incendiary-solution.
Black women are three times as likely as white women to never marry.
That sobering statistic reflects a broader reality: African Americans are the most unmarried people in our nation, and contrary to public perception the racial gap in marriage is not confined to women or the poor. Black men, particularly the most successful and affluent, are less likely to marry than their white counterparts. College educated black women are twice as likely as their white peers never to marry.
Is Marriage for White People? is the first book to illuminate the many facets of the African American marriage decline and its implications for American society. The book explains the social and economic forces that have undermined marriage for African Americans and that shape everyone's lives. It distills the best available research to trace the black marriage decline's far reaching consequences, including the disproportionate likelihood of abortion, sexually transmitted diseases, single parenthood, same sex relationships, polygamous relationships, and celibacy among black women.
This book centers on the experiences not of men or of the poor but of those black women who have surged ahead, even as black men have fallen behind. Theirs is a story that has not been told. Empirical evidence documents its social significance, but its meaning emerges through stories drawn from the lives of women across the nation. Is Marriage for White People? frames the stark predicament that millions of black women now face: marry down or marry out. At the core of the inquiry is a paradox substantiated by evidence and experience alike: If more black women married white men, then more black men and women would marry each other.
This book not only sits at the intersection of two large and well- established markets-race and marriage-it responds to yearnings that are widespread and deep in American society. The African American marriage decline is a secret in plain view about which people want to know more, intertwining as it does two of the most vexing issues in contemporary society. The fact that the most prominent family in our nation is now an African American couple only intensifies the interest, and the market. A book that entertains as it informs, Is Marriage for White People? will be the definitive guide to one of the most monumental social developments of the past half century.
A scholarly account of African-Americans' encounters with the marriage gap.
In his debut (Law/Stanford Law School), Banks explores the marriage gap between African-Americans and whites, concluding that fewer African-Americans marry and stay married due to "the changing conception of marriage, and the changing educational and economic positions of men and women." Add to this the "numbers imbalance" between the wide array of eligible African-American females and an African-American male population in short supply—an unevenness Banks attributes to incarceration, interracial marriage and a lack of economic opportunities for black men. Banks argues that while many African-American women seek out highly educated African-American men, these same men are statistically more likely to date women outside their own race, prompting the pool of prospective suitors to dwindle further. As a result of this imbalance, many African-American men find little incentive to engage in a monogamous relationship: "Why cash in when you can continue to play?" The author writes that "[b]lack men maintain nonexclusive relationships for the same reason as other men: because they can." Banks tempers his statistically driven arguments by weaving in intriguing personal interviews. This technique, both quantitative and qualitative in its approach, provides the groundwork for a brave and convincing argument—one that reveals a startling trend in the decline of African-American marriages.
A triumphant work that demystifies the intersection between compatibility and color.
Introduction 1
Chapter 1 The Marriage Decline 5
Chapter 2 What has become of Marriage? 17
Chapter 3 The Man Shortage 29
Chapter 4 The Market 49
Chapter 5 What About the Children? 68
Chapter 6 Power Wives 83
Chapter 7 Mixed Marriages 103
Chapter 8 Beyond Race? 115
Chapter 9 Desire 129
Chapter 10 Fear 143
Chapter 11 Saving Black Marriage 170
Afterword 183
Acknowledgments 191
Partial Bibliography 197
Notes 245
Index 279
I know I have given it at high rating and some people are already questioning why, because of my headline. Although sad and depressing the book was well written and very informative. I am a lover of facts and honesty. And this book may be a hard pill to swallow, even for me as a black women, but it did educate me and inform me none the less. That's what controversial books are suppossed to do, whether positve or negative it certainly has us reading and thinking.
3 out of 4 people found this review helpful.
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Posted September 21, 2011
This title disturbs me to the core. It seems to be only to grab attention. I read through some of this book in store and it is pathetic. Don't waste your money. If you are really curious just read it in the store. Obviously there are issues with family, why does it always have to be divided by race? I'm sure black men love to be blamed for the root of black marriage issues. It's shallow to seek blame based on race or sex. I for one am sick of the racial divide and book titles like this perpetuate this issue. Let's all move forward.
3 out of 13 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted November 1, 2011
It is refreshing to finally have an open discussion on a taboo subject - Black women dating outside of the race. It is time that we take a strong look at our perceptions about loyalty, race and love. I don't want my daughter buying into outdated rules. It's time that women liberate themselves when it comes to choosing who to love. This is a well-written , honest introduction to the conversation that needs to take place. I strongly recommend this book.
2 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.*Enlightening. *Informative. *Insightful. **An eye-opener for readers to some very sensitive concerns within the African American community about marriage. *Relates some thoughts of African Americans about marriage as well as why marriage does not seem to "attract" as many people as in decades before.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted January 23, 2012
Unfortuately true but enlightening
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted January 1, 2012
This book is a easy read. I was a little depressing after reading the first few chapters because the African-American community is facing an epidemic of unwed upper, middle & lower class women. I, myself fall into the statistics the author discussed. The affects of the lack relationships among Africam-American men & women is far-reaching & will ultimately effect American society as a whole. It is time for real, honest discussions to address issues that touch us all.
I recommend this to ALL African-American women & men.
1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
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Posted October 17, 2011
As a black woman in her late 20's I find this book to be totally discouraging! This book is factual but will leave the reader feeling hopeless(if you are a black woman) I guess I will just settle on being a spinster because it will be impossible to enter a monogamous relationship as a black woman, being that for some odd reason black women are not considered marriable.
1 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
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Posted October 1, 2011
This book should never have been written, furthermore, the title is just ignorant. I'm beginning to believe that certain authors, artists, and many media people want to make a money-making "industry" out of making black folk look worse than they "are". This book actually insinuates that white men are better than black men at relationships, and that sentiment is both ludicrous and dangerous. Shaking my head at this book.
1 out of 5 people found this review helpful.
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Posted October 5, 2011
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Overview
A distinguished Stanford law professor examines the steep decline in marriage rates among the African American middle class, and offers a paradoxical-nearly incendiary-solution.
Black women are three times as likely as white women to never marry.
That sobering statistic reflects a broader reality: African Americans are the most unmarried people in our nation, and contrary to public perception the racial gap in marriage is not confined to women ...