I believe many people would consider DuBois’s wish for the “talented tenth” to be “missionaries of culture” to their black counterparts indicative of his now antiquated, respectability-based theory of change. However, when contemplating this term, I became interested in the DuBois’s ideas about the relationship between culture, race, and class. Apparently, he believed that wealthy and educated black people should share their culture with poorer, less educated black people. And although, some readers might disagree with DuBois in this case as a matter of anti-assimilationist politics, I question whether spreading a culture throughout a racial group is even a modern sociological possibility.
When Du Bois was writing in 1903, the legal, economic, and educational systems made clear racial distinctions. Sociological racial boundaries were reinforced or influenced by these public distinctions. With a relatively rigid racial boundary in which to shape a group identity, it might make sense that black elites would have enough social capital to be effective “missionaries of culture” to the general black population. Today, however, we think of “The Declining Significance of Race” and how wealthy and well-education black Americans lives are so distant from the experiences of poorer and less educated black people. Insofar as socioeconomic class relates to racial identity, I would venture to say that some poorer and less educated black Americans might see the black elite as totally–maybe even racially–separate from them (i.e. “He might as well be white”). And to appease Frazier’s characterization of wealthy black people, many members of the black elite might see themselves as totally, culturally separate from other black people. So would such a culturally distinct black elite have enough social capital among the general black population, particularly poorer black Americans, to be “missionaries of culture”?
Interesting question Miles!
I think there are many ways to approach and evaluate this.
The concept “missionaries of culture” brings to mind the work of missionizing and proselytizing to a lowly people; I wonder though, might the term cultural ambassadors be the new role of Du Bois’s Talented Tenth? That is, “representatives of the race” who are of the highest rank, who may not necessarily missionize actively but whose positions represent aspiration. For example, elite black cultural ambassadors (both literally and figuratively) could include The Obamas as one prime example. I would argue that even lower income blacks don’t view them as “might as well be white,” but rather they serve as representatives, something to aspire to, “the best of the race” (to use Du Bois’s antiquated language).
It’s interesting to consider what elements of status and class among the black middle class are aspirational versus alienating. From Lacy’s text she argues that middle class blacks make distinctions among themselves pertaining to racial identity and the “might as well be white” was not as related to economic success and being middle-class itself but whether or not one was raised around other blacks and was familiar with the cultural repertoire. Lacy argues that the black world isn’t just spatial but is an interpretive community wherein even middle class blacks, who live predominantly among whites, can choose to actively cultivate. She points to one respondent Michael who says he can identify blacks who did not grow up around other blacks and how he can tell because they’re “missing an ingredient” and are essentially unaware of the cultural cues and meanings which draw the boundaries of what is considered the black world. Thinking through that, it might mean that the Talented Tenth are cultural ambassadors who are in aspirational positions but who are also well versed in the cultural repertoire of the “black world” so are not alienating?