Race, Class and ‘The Harmony of Dispositions’

This response piece is informed by recent public discussions concerning the BBC ‘Great British Class Calculator’ – a survey which seeks to rethink traditional ways of categorising class for the 21st century. This article focuses on how individuals feel about, and respond to, their class location. Drawing on data from a two-year study about the black middle classes, it is argued that class identity cannot be fully understood without taking account of the intersecting role of race. Specifically, exposing how white identity and white racial knowledge work to inform and protect the boundaries of middle class and elite class positions (to the disadvantage of minoritised groups) remains central to advancing race equity and genuine social mobility.