“I can't help it, I'm black.” “Why can't people accept me as I am?” “Do you want me to go hang myself?” Surprised that someone still says these things in this century, well don't be because race will always be there. These are the things that were said by a roommate of mine named Shelly. She's so nice but she's always angry because this guy named Mike makes comments about her and she can't say or do anything to change her feelings. She got drunk last night and told Mike everything on her mind and he just walked away. The reason I told you about Shelly is because she's just one of those many people who gets torched by other people. I thought what Mike was doing to Shelly was unfair because she and her family worked so hard to get to where they are today. As far as I know, Shelly's parents are probably middle class and fit into society. On the other hand, Mike's parents are high class and I think that's why he acts the way he does towards blacks. He once told me that he has never lived in the same area as a black family. William Julius Wilson determines life chances and important social class factors. He is a black man from Harvard University. He wrote a book called “The Decline of the Meaning of Race.” Wilson has many arguments, he argues that the city has low-skilled people with low income, while the suburbs have more upper class opportunities and therefore the suburbs have more upper class people. He also argues that addressing the needs of the underclass cannot be based on race alone, but instead states, “it is quite clear to me that we will have to revisit the discussion about the need for WPA-style jobs. Only these more structurally based programs, open to all who need them, will be able to garner mainstream political support and address the deeply rooted problems that changes in the global economy have caused” (Time, June 17, 1996:57).