The System Is Not Broken

“Every system is perfectly designed to get the results it gets.” E.Deming

This pandemic has brought to the surface the seismic faults that have been previously at the sub-surface of the United States’ social structure. Previously these faults might have been manifested by periodic tremors that rippled through our society, but now, it seems, that these inequities in the our societal systems have manifested like a quake of epic magnitude.

A little history might point us to the origins of these inequities. The Doctrine of Discovery established a spiritual, political, and legal justification for colonization and seizure of land not inhabited by Christians. It has been invoked since Pope Alexander VI issued the Papal Bull “Inter Caetera” in 1493. The Papal decree aimed to justify Christian European explorers’ claims on land and waterways they allegedly discovered, and promote Christian domination and superiority. This claim gave England large tracts of land in what is now the eastern US. As you might recall, the early colonies resulted as grants of land from kings to a patron or a company. As labor was needed to work this land, indentured servants were contracted; they worked the land for four to seven years in exchange for passage, room, and board.

In Virginia, a feud arose between the Governor and Nathaniel Bacon. Bacon wanted to remove all of the Natives from Virginia in retaliation for a series of fights resulting from broken trade deals. The Governor, fearful of uniting all the tribes against the settlers, did not agree. Eventually, Bacon led an uprising against the Governor. Bacon’s militia included both indentured servants and slaves. Bacon’s group prevailed, burning Jamestown. However, troops arrived from England and eventually squashed the rebellion.

The result of this civil war was that the wealth merchants became fearful of the combined power of the poor. After Bacon’s Rebellion, Virginia’s lawmakers began to make legal distinctions between “white” and “black” inhabitants. By permanently enslaving Virginians of African descent and giving poor white indentured servants and farmers some new rights and status, they hoped to separate the two groups and make it less likely that they would unite again in rebellion. This additional “freedom” given to indentured white servants meant that black slaves became the better economic investment.

These provisions that forced servitude and slavery conditions became embedded in the foundations of the legal, educational, and financial systems. Although the thirteenth amendment eliminated slavery, the reason for the racial division remained. President Johnson explained it perfectly when he said,  “I’ll tell you what’s at the bottom of it,” he said. “If you can convince the lowest white man he’s better than the best colored man, he won’t notice you’re picking his pocket. Hell, give him somebody to look down on, and he’ll empty his pockets for you.”

Since the arrival of the first slaves in 1619 and the indentured servants before that, the welfare of the elite depended on cheap labor provided by the rest. Bacon’s Rebellion showed the power of a united front of the poor and soon thereafter, systems were established to ensure that they would not unite again. Criminal law, including the provision of the thirteenth amendment, bail bond, and availability of lawyers,was written that the poor could be well controlled. In the 1830, police forces were established to control the “unruly”, often workers who disagreed with their employers. Educational systems were funded based on locality, the well off receiving access to better public education. Banking regulations allowed easy foreclosures. Into the early 1900’s, debtor could be taken to the “poor homes”.

The 1950s-70’s saw some reform in the US. Civil Rights pressed forward. Banking regulations were re-written. The strength of unions grew, leading to the development of a strong middle class. The Federal government provided robust educational funding to poverty stricken areas. However, the ship that was benefiting from the rising tide soon was sunk. MLK was assassinated the in Memphis immediately after he spoke out for the economic rights of workers there. Reagan effectively killed the unions put in place the structures that limited other opportunities for the working poor; racism effectively kept the poor whites and the poor blacks apart, fulfilling the 400 year old legacy started by the aristocracy of Virginia.

I believe that what we are seeing today is that the collective poor and their allies are finding their voice. A look at the BLM protests shows something different- a large percentage of white allies. People who are calling for structural economic change (not just relief) include the young professional burdened with debt rather that buoyed with hope. We are seeing first hand the heavy handed nature of the criminal justice system as it reacts to both individuals and groups who stand against injustice.

This essay has taken the long route toward supporting Deming’s thesis that what we see in America is not a product of a broken system but rather systems that are doing their job, perfectly. Systemic change is never easy because the second law of systems is that they are designed to perpetuate themselves. The system will allow small, band aid type acts – take down statues, bar the choke hold, give $1200 relief checks- in hopes that the moment will pass. It is my hope that this seismic event created by Covid-19 shakes the system to its core and forces us to create a “new normal.”