Racial and Ethnic Inequality

Abstract

This study tests the hypothesis that socialist systems have provided significantly greater political and economic equality for their ethnic and racial minorities than have liberal-capitalist societies. The method used herein is a comparison of the relative status of, and changes over time in the status of, minority groups in four socialist states (the USSR, Czechoslovakia, Romania, Yugoslavia), with the same attributes of approximately similar groups in capitalist societies. Comparisons are made with respect to the distribution of political power, income, education, and health care. The hypothesis is not supported. Instead, the relative status of minorities is remarkably similar in both socialist and capitalist societies. The validity of this finding is tested against the experience of the more recent Chinese and Cuban revolutions, which thus far have been no more successful in eradicating inegalitarianism along ethnic lines. Sources of these persisting cleavages in socialist societies are considered in conclusion. It is suggested that, in addition to structural constraints, socialist elites have not given high priority to policies aimed at reducing racial and ethnic inequalities.