The discrimination gap is the persistent difference in economic opportunities as quantified by the difference in indicators such as white and black unemployment, white and black home ownership, male versus female income disparities, etc. The difference revealed by the disparity in these comparison statistics is “The Discrimination Gap”. What “The Discrimination Gap” does is give a concrete numbers to the level of economic discrimination regarding the different disadvantaged groups.

For example, if white unemployment is 6%, and black unemployment is 11%, then “The Discrimination Gap” is 5%. The black unemployed is more likely to be discriminated for employment by at least 5%. This may not sound like a great number, but the ramifications are profoundly significant.

The Discrimination Gap is not only limited to race and genre, but also, confirmed by available statistics, their is discrimination based on gender, religion, age, culture, and even class. These inequities are not only unfair and harmful to the subject group being discriminated against, but it is harmful to cohesiveness of our society, and the profitability of our businesses. For example, when ever the most qualified, or talented individual, is not selected for a job, or elected to a political office, etc., we all suffer economically and socially.

If you are a white male from a middle class, or better, background, in the prime of your working years, then the world is probably your oyster. You are probably the least discriminated segment of our population. If you are a young black male, from a lower income household, with little prospects of gaining higher education, then you may have the greatest barriers, in terms of economic discrimination, to finding economic success in America.

It is time we confronted these inequities and disparities in our American cultural, which are based on our history and cultural differences among the various ethnic and social groups. If we can agree on these premises, then we might be able to agree that the solution must be culturally based. That is to say, that we have to exercise extra efforts to bring about greater understanding and to educate people to eliminate cultural prejudices and biases based on history, cultural differences and myths. The persistence of the disparity of these number, and statistics, of “The Discrimination Gap”, reveals that the American cultural struggle to eliminate discrimination in our society is extremely difficult to accomplish. Additionally, it obviously is better to attack these disparities in our American culture peacefully, through systematic efforts, then through violence, but until we do the obvious tensions will exist, if not increase until the disparities are lessoned.