The social construct of respectability in contemporary America is one that is focused on the increased value of time. As long-term growth and achievement take a back seat to short-term returns in the new capitalism, time becomes more valuable. Consequently, organizations have adapted and stability for workers has diminished. Relationships between employees and the companies that employ them have shifted from one that is based on mutual respect through mutual dependency to one in which past experiences merit less and respect must be earned in the present. The struggle to achieve respectability is now constrained by a time frame that depreciates skill and emphasizes potential ability. This new approach has left many groups of people without the
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Sennett argues that “potential ability cuts a larger cultural swath; it is a damaging measure of talent” (115). Because the judgment of potential ability is vulnerable to “prejudices of race, class, and gender, society may not tap into the talents of all its members” (Sennett, 116). Michelle Alexander would agree with Richard Sennett when he “equates the discovery of potential ability with justice” (116). Elaborating on this, the misjudgment and overlooking of potential ability that arises from subjectivity is a form of injustice. In the context of Michelle Alexander’s The New Jim Crow, the prejudices that Sennett describes are already in play for black people seeking achievement. Alexander argues that the image of the “criminalblackman” has already been formed through the media as a systematic prejudice through the conflation of blackness and crime in public consciousness (Alexander, 107). She goes on to state that within law enforcement, “much racial bias [operates] unconsciously and automatically” (107). This is also undoubtedly true in the new capitalism. She explains that “as long as you ‘look like’ or ‘seem like’ a criminal, you are treated with the same suspicion and contempt, not just by police, security guards, or hall monitors at your school, but also by the woman who crosses the street to avoid you and by the store employees who follow you through the aisles (162). For black people seeking opportunities, their potential ability can only be considered after they are viewed as not the
Sennett argues that “potential ability cuts a larger cultural swath; it is a damaging measure of talent” (115). Because the judgment of potential ability is vulnerable to “prejudices of race, class, and gender, society may not tap into the talents of all its members” (Sennett, 116). Michelle Alexander would agree with Richard Sennett when he “equates the discovery of potential ability with justice” (116). Elaborating on this, the misjudgment and overlooking of potential ability that arises from subjectivity is a form of injustice. In the context of Michelle Alexander’s The New Jim Crow, the prejudices that Sennett describes are already in play for black people seeking achievement. Alexander argues that the image of the “criminalblackman” has already been formed through the media as a systematic prejudice through the conflation of blackness and crime in public consciousness (Alexander, 107). She goes on to state that within law enforcement, “much racial bias [operates] unconsciously and automatically” (107). This is also undoubtedly true in the new capitalism. She explains that “as long as you ‘look like’ or ‘seem like’ a criminal, you are treated with the same suspicion and contempt, not just by police, security guards, or hall monitors at your school, but also by the woman who crosses the street to avoid you and by the store employees who follow you through the aisles (162). For black people seeking opportunities, their potential ability can only be considered after they are viewed as not the