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Replace "black men from rich families" with "second-generation Italian-Americans from rich families" and you get the same result.

This is not about race, this is about belonging to a small network of Brahmin aristocracy in the US. For example, some people in New England will never invest in your startup (no matter how good it is), if your name does not look like "Landon Jefferson Bayard, III", or some such.

Even if you are white.

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>Replace "black men from rich families" with "second-generation Italian-Americans from rich families" and you get the same result.

I highly doubt it.

There has been racism against lots of minority groups in the US, but few rise to the hundreds of years long legacy that exists to this day that is racism against African Americans.

Additionally, there’s the question of passing: it’s much easier to blend in with a higher status group with similar melanin levels - pick up some clothes, learn some cultural signifiers, etc. That’s just not possible for someone with the disfavored skin color. Even a black kid raised by adoptive parents can’t avoid things like worrying every time they see a police officer.

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