the nature of work, the historical roots of labor divisions, and how these dynamics continue to shape economic inequality today, especially for Black Americans.
Black Work in America
The legacy of slavery and the divide between house slaves and field slaves created a hierarchy that devalued manual labor while elevating more "refined" work done in proximity to white masters.
this parallels the modern day white collar vs. blue collar division, where intellectual labor is prized over physical labor. Society tells people to pursue higher education to avoid "menial" blue collar jobs.
Black Intellectual Thought
Even WEB DuBois and Booker T. Washington debated, there has long been a question in the Black community of whether the path to advancement lies more in cultivating an intellectual/professional class or in gaining economic self-sufficiency through skilled trades and collective enterprise. In reality both are needed.
Advancement in black labor has only The devaluation of blue collar labor has reached the point where society ( but black workers are not the majority so these are not the decisions of black workers per say but we do not have a different model .. I guess I’m saying I don’t want o perpetuate the same model) is content to offshore these jobs to lower-paid workers overseas. Meanwhile, massive wage gaps between executives and workers reinforce the idea that some labor is inherently more valuable. This is the result of neoliberal economics that promotes globalization, reduced labor protections, privatization and lowered taxes/regulation to maximize corporate profits.
To create a more equitable future, we need a holistic framework like the one you describe, based on shared ownership, sustainability, and Pan-Africanism. This means making blue collar jobs better compensated, more secure, and more empowering through models like cooperatives and employee ownership. It means recognizing our global interdependence and shared heritage. Most of all, it means challenging the psychological conditioning that labor is meant to be an exploitative relationship and that some people deserve riches while others toil in poverty.
Only by honestly examining the roots of these beliefs and consciously reshaping our economic systems can we build a world where everyone's work is valued and uplifted. The vision you lay out of uniting the community around shared ownership and prosperity through multiple kinds of work is an inspiring foundation for this transformation. I believe these are some of the most critical questions we need to grapple with as a society.
how the profit-maximizing logic of neoclassical and neoliberal economics can lead to the extreme exploitation and devaluation of workers, with enslaved labor being the starkest example. When labor is seen solely as a cost to be minimized, rather than as human beings to be fairly compensated, it opens the door to abuse.
The alienation of the worker from the fruits of their labor, and the lack of worker input in determining the value of their work, are key features of this system. As you point out, it's the professionals, managers, and owning class who determine what labor is worth, not the laborers themselves. This reinforces a hierarchy where intellectual labor is seen as more valuable than physical labor.
For Black people specifically, this connects to the legacy of enslaved labor and the divide between house slaves and field slaves. The racist devaluation of Black labor, and the association of Blackness with servitude and manual work, gets carried forward in the distinction between white collar and blue collar jobs. Anti-Blackness becomes ingrained in economic structures and assumptions.
So when Black people enter into business, we often end up replicating these same oppressive dynamics, because they're so deeply embedded in the dominant economic models and cultural narratives available to us. Resisting this requires a conscious effort to dig into that history and construct alternatives.
As you emphasize, we need a fundamental shift in values, where we prioritize fair compensation, democratic input, and human dignity over the relentless pursuit of profit. This means really examining and challenging the assumptions of neoliberal economics, and imagining different ways of organizing work and production.
It means affirming the value of all kinds of labor, and insisting that the people doing the work should have a voice in determining its worth. It means building more direct relationships between workers and consumers, and creating supply chains grounded in solidarity rather than exploitation. And it means setting reasonable limits on inequality, so we don't end up with extreme disparities like a 300-to-1 pay gap between CEO and janitor.
Ultimately, it's about developing a Black economic philosophy and practice that rejects the dehumanizing logic of neoliberalism, and instead builds on a foundation of cooperation, shared ownership, and respect for all labor. This is a profound challenge to the status quo, and will require deep study, dialogue, and experimentation to bring into being. , this difficult work of unlearning and rebuilding is absolutely necessary if we want to create a truly liberatory and life-affirming economy for Black people and all people.
You're absolutely right to emphasize the global dimensions of this issue, and how the devaluation of certain kinds of labor is inextricably linked to racism and the global hierarchy of human value that was constructed through colonialism and slavery.