A Theory of Middleman Minorities: The White Working-Class is Fearful

 

In "A Theory of Middleman Minorities" by Edna Bonacich, Bonacich proposes the theory of the middleman minorities: the middlemen are ethnic groups in the U.S. that have some economic success but have social groups both above and below them. The essential cause of the middleman position is the hostility of the host country -- specifically, both upper and lower-class white people. Host country hostility towards the middlemen causes tensions that manifest in efforts to cut off the means of middleman lives. 

The photo above is from an article titled "On immigration, the white working class is fearful." The picture depicts white voters who identify as working class at a Trump rally. You can see in the photo the enthusiasm these people have for Trump, as they believe he will help the white working class. Donald Trump has been a leader in the anti-immigrant movement -- heightening racial tensions in America. According to Bonacich's theory, the main cause of this tension is that middlemen often hire another middleman of the same ethnic group. For the middlemen, this preserves their culture and creates a community; however, this threatens the host country. Many people, like the people pictured above, view this "self-segregation" as monopolizing and, thus, are “fearful.”

Bonacich states that "In middleman-host conflicts, the host society does not usually have a united set of interests" (Boonacich 1973: 589), I.e., particular host groups are hostile for different reasons. According to "On immigration, the white working class is fearful," published by the Brookings Institution, 62% of white working-class voters believe that immigrants weaken the U.S. by taking jobs, housing, and health care. Further, 71% of working-class whites think that immigrants mostly hurt the economy by driving down wages -- a belief that college-educated whites do not hold. 

The white-working class just above the middlemen are clearly threatened due to fear of losing their jobs to the middlemen -- or having their wages lowered; but how about the white working class in a lower social and economic position than the middlemen? Their position is quite different than the whites above them -- they are frustrated by the middlemen because they want to work with them. They believe that if they join forces with the middlemen, they can battle the upper class with more strength. However, the middlemen have no interest in fighting, rioting, or pushing for change; thus, no interest in joining forces with the lower-class whites. The middlemen want to work, earn a living, and support their families -- not "cause trouble."

Bonacich, Edna. 1973. “A Theory of Middleman Minorities.” American Sociological Review 38(5):583–594. (https://doi.org/10.2307/2094409)

William, Galston. June, 24, 2016. “On immigration, the white working class is fearful.” From Brookings Institution. Retrieved February 1, 2023 (https://www.brookings.edu/blog/fixgov/2016/06/24/on-immigration-the-white-working-class-is-fearful/).