From: johnson@offroad.chem.wisc.edu (Arthur Johnson)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.african.american
Subject: Franklin and Statistics ( was Re: Clinton's Disrespect For Jessee Jackson)
Date: 13 Aug 92 20:42:34 GMT
Distribution: usa
Organization: Physical Sciences Lab, UW-Madison

In article <1992Aug13.161956.27833@seq.uncwil.edu> frankli@seq.uncwil.edu  
(william carter franklin) writes:
> 
> Blah Blah Blah, I checked and found out the answer to all of this
> BULLSHIT about welfare being mostly white; and IRONICALLY fifty
                                                            ^^^^^
> percent of welfare claims are Black people. And one third of the total
  ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^      ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

> aid (Social Security, welfare, and WICS combined) go to black people.
  ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
> Black people make up almost 12 PERCENT of the total U.S. population.
> 
>
Then, in article <1992Aug13.162612.28243@seq.uncwil.edu>  
franklin@seq.uncwil.edu (william carter franklin) writes:
>
> ONE HALF of welfare goes to black people. One third of all aid goes to
> black people. They are less than one eighth of the population.

     WCF is totally confused. First he says that 50% of welfare _claims_  
are made by black Americans, and then he says that 50% of _welfare_ goes  
to black Americans. WCF, welfare and welfare claims are two different  
things. Anyone may file a _claim_ for welfare, but that does not mean that  
that person _gets_ welfare. Moving on, WCF says that 33% of _total aid_  
(which WCF defines as FICA, welfare, and WICS combined) goes to black  
Americans. He then says that 33% of _all aid_ goes to black Americans.  
WCF, total aid (= FICA + welfare + WICS) and all aid are two different  
things. _All aid_ includes any and every possible subsidy offered by the  
Federal Government, e.g. farm price subsidies, morgage interest  
deductions, small business tax credits, scientific research grants, etc.,  
in addition to those things encompassed in your definition of total aid.  
_Total aid_ only includes those three things you mentioned. Black  
Americans most certainly do not receive 33% of all aid.
To continue. WCF claims that black Americans make up almost 12% of the  
U.S. population. He then says that black Americans are less than  
one-eighth of the population. WCF, while you have not contradicted  
yourself here, you still are confused. According to the U.S. Census  
Bureau, the final 1990 Census figures, adjusted for undercount, show that  
non-hispanic black Americans make up 12.5% of the U.S. population, which  
is exactly one-eighth. In addition, 4.75% of the U.S. population is  
composed of hispanic blacks. Thus, black people (defined as anyone who can  
trace their ancestry to one of the "indigenous" peoples of Africa)  
actually make up 17.25% of the total U.S. population, which is greater  
than one-sixth (16.67%) but less than one-fifth (20%) of the total. I  
have, of course, not included the 20%-25% of "white" Americans who, in  
fact, have indigenous African ancestors, but who, for their own reasons,  
choose to try and "pass" for white. If those people were classified as  
black by the Census Bureau (as they really should be), then black people  
would make up between 32.25% and 35.95% of the current U.S. population, or  
about one-third of the total.

Arthur Johnson
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Department of Chemistry
johnson@offroad.chem.wisc.edu