But we have to try. Or we will keep making the same mistakes that have helped foster the
populist, anti-establishment anger that welled up in the 2016 election. A good place to
start is with the common working-class phrase: “Born on third base; thinks he hit a
triple.” Elites often pride ourselves on merit, and point out we work very hard. But so do
hotel housekeepers. Let’s not forget that.
Does renewed attention to the white working class mean we should shift away from
identity politics in favor of a “post-identity liberalism”?^8 That’s a silly idea: politics is
always about identity, no less so for Donald Trump than Jesse Jackson. One of the goals
of this book is to help broaden the conversation of identity to more deftly include class.
I’ve arranged the book around the kinds of questions people tend to ask me, in blunt,
private moments. Questions like, “Why doesn’t the working class get with it and go to
college?” and “Why don’t they just move to where the jobs are?”
This book stems from a Harvard Business Review essay I started on election night when I
realized that Trump was about to win the presidency. That essay, parts of which have
been woven into this book, has now been read millions of times, and I’ve received
hundreds of comments and emails about it, many from people who had never written an
author before. It was positively received by policymakers both on the left and on the
right. Some of what they shared with me I’ve quoted in this book.† I have heard from
people in Sweden, Australia, Germany, the Netherlands, the UK, Canada, Ireland, and
Chile telling me that my comments about the U.S. white working class also describe
something going on in their countries.
A friend wrote, “My working-class family expected Trump to win and for the most part,
are quite hopeful about his presidency. My professional-class in-laws have written
several emails about their immense grief over Clinton’s loss.... I have found the
difference in reactions astounding—and I think your article explains the reasons for it
perfectly.” I hope this book will help, too.
†Comments from the HBR website have a star (*). All comments are attributed using the
handles used online. Quotations without citations are from personal emails or from
conversations in which the person asked not to be identified. All quotations are used with
permission.
- Why Talk About Class?