Race, Self-Employment, and Upward Mobility An Illusive American Dream

In this text, the author finds that self-employment and upward mobility are open to those who are highly educated and skilled, often possessing significant personal financial resources. Asian immigrants are prominent in low-profit, high-risk small-scale inner-city retailing, Bates explains, because they are often pushed into it by poor English language skills and problems of credentialling - when they can secure other employment, they do so. African-Americans, in contrast, who have the education, capital and inclination to become better entrepreneurs, find better-paying opportunities and avoid ghetto shopkeeping.;Bates compares black and Asian self-employment. He reviews who becomes self-employed, what factors encourage continuing self-employment, and how people escape unsuccessful self-employment. He addresses the place of entrepreneurship in upward mobility among disadvantaged persons and the role of government in assisting them. Bate's analysis is based largely on the Characteristics of Business Owners survey compiled by the US Census Bureau, which provides nationwide information on small business success and survival patterns.