On pages 300-301, the course textbook mentions that many immigrants in the mid-1800s saw black Americans as scapegoats, whom they blamed for their own economic depression. Yet, as the textbook suggests, it was the economic system itself that produced this. Explain how the economic system, not black Americans, caused the economic depression and explain why black men and women were seen as the cause by these white working class groups. In your discussion, consider how the upper class might have encouraged white working class men and women to scapegoat black men and women. Explain why the upper class would want the white working class to blame black Americans rather than the economic system. Also, think about how this might relate to contemporary racial, ethnic, and social class divisions in American society. Describe an example in which this kind of scapegoating occurs in the United States today.
