October 5–12, 2000

city beat

No Black Talk

Compiling the Data: (From left) Douglas Massey and Garvey Lundy study their study. photo: Daryl Gale

by Daryl Gale

You don’t have to show somebody the color of your skin to be discriminated against.

According to a study conducted by Dr. Douglas Massey, chair of the University of Pennsylvania Sociology Department, just being identified as black on the basis of your telephone voice significantly reduces your chances for access to rental housing.

The soon-to-be-published study, titled "Use of Black English and Racial Discrimination in Urban Housing Markets: New Methods and Findings" was conducted in 1999 and is being used by Massey and his partner, post-doctorate fellow Garvey Lundy, as classroom instruction in their course, Studying Racial Discrimination.

Massey had his student researchers call 90 rental agents in the Philadelphia market looking for a one-bedroom apartment. The students were female and male, and spoke in voices accented to sound like white middle-class English, black middle-class English, and a black-lower class English vernacular, something along the lines of, "Ah’m innarested inda ’partment in Fo’ Rent magazine, Yo?"

The results of the study were extraordinary. Of those who reached an agent on the first call, 76 percent of those identifiable as white males were told there was an available apartment, while only 38 percent of females using the black vernacular or ‘Ebonics’ accent were told of an opening. 60 percent of white females got an affirmative answer, as did 63 percent of those identified as middle-class black males. Black males who spoke Ebonics got 44 percent positive response.

Massey says he’s not surprised by the results.

"I’ve been working in the field for 20 years, so those numbers were pretty close to what I expected. I must say, however, that the majority of the white students were shocked at the findings. They didn’t expect to find a clear racial dynamic at work, especially over the phone, where you can’t judge someone based on looks. But the black students were less surprised, since they suspected something like this all along. There is clearly a difference between the principle of fairness and diversity, which most people espouse, and the practice of fairness. Whites are still fairly uncomfortable sharing their housing environment with minorities, which denotes a good deal of hypocrisy on the part of white Americans, who endlessly tout the merits of a color-blind society, but shy away from the reality. Most whites are still uncomfortable in situations where they’re in the midst of a significant number of blacks or other minorities."

Massey, who has taught at Penn on and off for 11 years and chaired the Sociology Department since 1996, says the subject deserves further study. He says English fluency often determines labor outcomes for immigrants, and if black vernacular English is deconstructed as a lower-class or "ghetto," it too could determine where you live or work.

Frank Jacovini is president of the Greater Philadelphia Association of Realtors, and bristled when told of Massey’s study and its conclusions.

"Discrimination in our industry still exists, but there are increasing mechanisms to deal with it," Jacovini says. "That kind of behavior is not just frowned upon, it’s not tolerated. And when an agent is found to be guilty of discrimination, the penalties are swift and severe, ranging from stiff fines to suspension or loss of their license. Which is fine by us, because those agents are stupid and a black eye to the industry. We can afford to lose them, we can’t afford to lose good customers. But there’s a lot of continuing education in our industry, and we’re constantly kept abreast of laws and regulations regarding fairness. The industry is aware that there’s still a problem, but we are dealing with it."

Massey’s research partner Garvey Lundy, an African-American scholar with a massive vocabulary who speaks impeccable English, took part in the study playing the part of an English-challenged Ebonics speaker. It’s not such a stretch, he admits. Like most successful middle-class blacks, he can switch back and forth between dialects as the situation dictates.

"We constantly give out language ‘clues’ that cause people to label us," Lundy says. "I find it fascinating. I’ve deliberately introduced Ebonics into a conversation at times just to gauge people’s reactions. And depending upon the time of day and who I’m speaking to, you may hear me use some form of Ebonics."

On the subject of the level of discomfort some whites feel when they themselves are in the minority, Lundy says it works both ways.

"We find that many African-Americans are uncomfortable in those situations too, it’s just that we seem better able to tolerate a certain amount of discomfort in order to gain access," he says.

Massey elaborates. "Our society is structured in such a way that makes true racial interaction difficult," he says. "Whites tend to be very limited in their day-to-day associations with minorities. That’s usually not intentional, just a fact of our society."

Massey goes on to say that in situations where true interaction between races is the norm, like the military for instance, barriers are easily broken down and fear of the unknown is replaced by mutual respect.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is the federal agency assigned the task of rooting out housing discrimination, and slapping the wrists of the guilty. So local HUD Director of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity Wanda Nieves wasn’t surprised to hear of Massey’s study, or his conclusions. She sees it every day.

"Unfortunately, discrimination has not been eradicated in our society," Nieves says in her Hispanic accent. "Being identified racially over the phone and then denied access to housing or employment is something that still happens. Some people interpret an accent or dialect as a synonym for incompetence or inferiority, mostly out of fear and ignorance. We’re working every day to change that reality."

Nieves is quick to add that if you believe you’ve been the victim of housing discrimination, however subtle, call the HUD hotline at (800) 669-9777, or log on to their website, www.hud.gov.