Introduction

Across history, elites protected wealth and influence by encouraging people with shared interests to see each other as rivals. In the U.S., this often meant elevating some groups of whites over others, stigmatizing the poor, and weaponizing race to stop cross-class, cross-racial coalitions that could demand fair wages, land, or representation.

The Divide-and-Rule Playbook

Goal: prevent a united majority from bargaining for better conditions. Method: create social wedges and legal barriers so working people focus on cultural conflicts rather than shared economic leverage.

When distrust grows between groups who would otherwise benefit from cooperation, the status quo at the top becomes easier to preserve.

Five Common Tools of Division

1) Law & Policy Design

Rules around voting, labor, land, and criminal justice can tilt the field. Some laws explicitly excluded people; others looked neutral but had predictable, unequal effects.

2) Racial Hierarchy as a Wedge

Constructing a privileged “whiteness” offered poor whites symbolic status even without material gains — discouraging solidarity with Black, immigrant, or Indigenous workers who shared similar economic struggles.

3) Economic Precarity

Systems like debt peonage, sharecropping, or low-wage industrial work kept people scrambling, leaving little time, safety, or resources to organize together.

4) Culture & Media Narratives

Newspapers, travel writing, and later mass media spread stereotypes and myths that naturalized inequality and blamed the poor for structural problems.

5) Patronage & Small Favors

Granting perks or status to select groups in exchange for loyalty created fractures within the broader working class.

A Simple Example

In a mill town, Black and poor white workers both earn low wages. Instead of organizing together, they are steered into cultural conflict. Poor whites are given small honors and told they are “above” others; Black workers face legal and social barriers. The result: no unified bargaining power — and wages stay low.

What Division Costs Us

• Weaker labor power — fragmented workers struggle to bargain effectively.
• Policy skew — tax, land, and labor rules tend to favor the top.
• Stalled mobility — inequality persists across generations.
• Polarization — identity fights overshadow shared economic interests.

Practical Paths Toward Unity

Cross-racial Organizing

Coalitions that welcome everyone impacted by low pay or high costs build durable power.

Shared Economic Agendas

Clear, near-term wins (wage floors, healthcare access, school funding) show common cause and build trust.

Narrative Change

Replace “blame the poor” or “us vs. them” with stories that spotlight rigged systems and shared solutions.

Institutional Reform

Protect voting rights, enable safe, fair organizing at work, and curb predatory practices that drain communities.

Closing Thought

The split between “top” and “bottom” has rarely been an accident. Recognizing the tools of division helps communities choose different tools — cooperation, fairness, and a focus on what most people need to thrive.