posted by Josiah Neiderbach

on May 26, 2006

I found a few interesting occupations - a woman who was forelady in a mill, several actresses, etc. I also found many strippers, but I think they're stripping paint and chemicals and not anything that comtemporary strippers strip. And I discovered where all the famous Black caterers are - The 1800 block of Addison is just crawling with them! I'm interested in pursuing further the occupations and the occupational mismatch with education. I found that Blacks with professional occupations were the most likely to be unemployed whereas White professionals were the least likely. What I found interesting in reviewing the microfilm (about 3000 individuals covered so far) is that I have yet to find a Black person over the age of 6 who can't read or write! Almost all of the Whites can read and write as well. I also am intrigued by the historical analysis of the city and the incarceration rates DuBois discussed. He talked about how in the 1840s, Blacks only made up 1/33rd of the city (smallest rate in history), but more than half of incarcerated people, which shows the continuity of this trend (The majority of my personal research is based on institutional racism and disparities in the penal and judicial system).