SPECIAL FEATURE WHAT WE FACE Framing Problems in the Black Community 1 Nicole Arlette Hirsch Department of Sociology, Harvard University Anthony Abraham Jack 2 Department of Sociology, Harvard University Abstract While many sociological studies analyze the causes, conditions, and mechanisms perpetuating American racial inequality, the literature on how African Americans understand and explain these inequalities is less developed. Drawing on 150 interviews with middle-class and working-class African American men and women, this paper analyzes inductively how respondents define and conceptualize the most pressing obstacles facing their group when probed on this question. We find that middle- and working-class respondents alike identify the problem of racism as the most salient obstacle facing African Americans. Class differences appear with respect to what other obstacles are singled out as salient: while middle-class respondents focus on lack of racial solidarity among Blacks and economic problems (in this order), working-class respondents are more concerned with the fragility of the Black family followed by the lack of racial solidarity. This analysis discusses the relevance of considering how groups make sense of obstacles, and of racism and discrimination in particular, for the study of destigmatization and antiracist strategies of stigmatized minorities. Keywords: African Americans, Social Problems, Racism, Solidarity, Economics, Black Family INTRODUCTION The growing literature on responses to stigmatization begins with the premise that racism, discrimination, exclusion, and other forms of stigmatization are critical prob- lems in the everyday experiences of members of stigmatized groups. While countless studies document the persistence of racial inequalities, racial discrimination, and negative attitudes towards Blacks and other minority groups ~Carter 2003; Charles 2006; Conley 1999; Feagin 1991; Kirshenman and Neckerman, 1991; Lacy 2007; Lamont 2000; Massey and Denton, 1993; Pager 2007; Pettit and Western, 2004; Du Bois Review, 9:1 (2012) 133–148. © 2012 W. E. B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research 1742-058X012 $15.00 doi:10.10170S1742058X12000185 133