What is the founding political philosophy in America and how does it contribute to the under-privileged status of African (and other minority) Americans, according to Barker and Jones (1994)?

What is the founding political philosophy in America and how does it contribute to the under-privileged status of African (and other minority) Americans, according to Barker and Jones (1994)?

Answer: The founding political philosophy in America is Liberalism. Liberalism touts the importance of the individual, deregulating the market, democracy, etc. The effect of these ideals has been unregulated predatory business practices, large scale unemployment, unprotected workers, and racial segregation. Liberalism values equality, but inequality and economic immobility are both realities of the United States. Income inequality is a huge issue, where a small segment of the population holds a disproportionate amount of the wealth of the country. Beyond this, it is seen that economic deprivation is a necessity for economic growth in the theory of Liberalism (the idea that those who are disadvantaged are such because they did not work hard enough, not because there is something wrong with the system). The liberal system supposedly creates the perfect environment for success by deregulating the market and equating hard work to success. The view that deprivation is a failure of an individual or group informs the connotation surrounding policy discussions that minorities (particularly African Americans) are in the predicament they are in because of the aforementioned failures.