In the United States today, one of the fiercest debates on the Left concerns the relationship between race and class. On one side, it seems, are those who deny the independent relevance of racial inequality to the case against capitalism. People on this side are interpreted to be arguing that racial oppression is, in fact, just class oppression in disguise. On the other side are those who argue that class inequality cannot explain the specific injustices of racial oppression, and that racial inequality is thus a distinct problem that requires a distinct political strategy.

For an egalitarian today, deciding which side to take in these “race vs. class” wars is one of the hardest and most fraught tasks they will face. It must often seem to them that they are not being asked simply to answer an important strategic question, but also to declare whom and what they care about, and thus whom and what they disregard.

Our aim in this essay is to address egalitarians in this predicament. We think it is no surprise that so many are confused, since we think that the race vs. class debate has often been a confused one thus far. This is for at least two reasons.