"It is really worth a read..." -- Former Vice President Joe Biden,
interviewed on Pod Save America
Now in paperback with a new Foreword by Mark Cuban and a new Preface by
the author, White Working Class explains why so much of the elite's
analysis of the white working class is misguided, rooted in class
cluelessness.
Joan C. Williams, described as having "something approaching rock star
status" by the New York Times, explains that many people have
conflated "working class" with "poor"--but the working class is, in
fact, the elusive, purportedly disappearing middle class. They often
resent the poor and the professionals alike. But they don't resent the
truly rich, nor are they particularly bothered by income inequality.
Their dream is not to join the upper middle class, with its different
culture, but to stay true to their own values in their own
communities--just with more money. While white working-class motivations
are often dismissed as racist or xenophobic, Williams shows that they
have their own class consciousness.
White Working Class is a blunt, bracing narrative that sketches a
nuanced portrait of millions of people who have proven to be a potent
political force. For anyone stunned by the rise of populist, nationalist
movements, wondering why so many would seemingly vote against their own
economic interests, or simply feeling like a stranger in their own
country, White Working Class will be a convincing primer on how to
connect with a crucial set of workers--and voters.