The Economics of Why Some People Understand that Black Lives Matter and Others Don’t
White people have privilege. What will it take for them to see it?
Black lives are at risk; Black Lives Matter. Economics, in its purest form, is the study of how people make choices and so can be used to provide some explanation why there are people who do not understand the sheer importance of this movement and why people say all lives matter *eye roll*.
In an attempt to explain the economics of why Black Lives Matter, we must first recognise that we cannot live the same life as anyone else. Everything from our experiences to our perceptions to our privilege varies and for those that are not black, these disparities can be as different as water is to air.
White people have privilege. There lies an innate supremacy in the colour of skin which has been cultivated from centuries of seeing colour as a factor of power that comes with the unfortunate consequence of masking history, obfuscating agents of domination, and removing the actions that make it clear who is doing what to whom.
Let’s look at economics to help understand why some people cannot comprehend why Black Lives Matter. The fundamental situation is one known in economics as asymmetric information (where there is a lack of equal information between two parties). We also need to understand how empathy is a shared affect that helps determine how one can be sensitive and responsive to expressive or situational affective cues. Moreover, there is a special set of issues that are part of Black people’s lived experiences, which many people seek not to understand. Hence, there is an identified imbalance in the level of information a non-Black person can have of the life experiences of a Black person.
The discussion of empathy as shared affect suggests that one can be sensitive and responsive to affective cues—be they expressive or situational. For instance, developmental psychologists show that children are highly sensitive to the emotions of others. Similarly, adults are said to react emotionally to the distress of another. The cognitive dimension of empathy, on the other hand, refers to the understanding of another person’s feelings or characteristics. Here, behavioural economists insist on the skills in detection as well as the use of situational information, thus suggesting that situational determinants of empathic dispositions are not negligible.
It has also been observed that similarities between ourselves and others foster empathetic understanding. When there are no perceivable similarities between a non-Black person and a Black person, empathy diminishes. More to the point, there is a clear gap in the level of knowledge (asymmetry of information) one has of others experiences and views which in turn, creates an ‘empathy gap’. Hence, what is a valid response to the Black Lives Matter movement (protesting, riots or simply expressing strong feelings) by a Black individual, can be seen as irrational or exaggerated behaviour by those that cannot walk in the shoes of a Black person. It should be noted that white people who understand their privilege and have empathy do NOT see these behaviours as irrational or exaggerated at all. They join the protests and take decided action to help.
We cannot use any of this to excuse ourselves from providing as much support as possible to the Black Lives Matter movement. Being a target of discrimination based on one’s skin colour is not understood by all, but that should not mean that racial discrimination should be tolerated by those who do not understand because of their fortunate lack of experience with this severe form of prejudice. Empathy is the key to bridging the divide and to open our eyes to the realities of the injustices within our world for black people. Empathy begins with education and a true desire to understand.
