at their ability to achieve these physical goods of lifewas being compromised by the discriminatory practices of whites. Power values are those that determine the extent to which men caninfluence the actions of others and avoid unwanted interference by others intheir own actions (Gurr, Why Men Rebel, p. 25). The blacks in Detroit felthopeless in their attempts to influence whites and to quell the discriminationthat was taking place. The blacks felt they had reached a point where violencewas their only option and their only recourse. They saw discrimination andpolice brutality as directly hampering their ability to succeed and to acquire thebasic necessities in life. Interpersonal values are the psychological satisfactions we seek innonauthoritative interactions with other individuals and groups. At this time inthe 60’s, blacks felt as if they had little or no rights to interact with whites andalthough this feeling was even more prevalent in the south, the blacks in thenorth felt the same way.One paragraph from Gurr typifies the sentiment felt among blacks:The dissonance and RD concepts neither compromise norsubsume one another but overlap. RD is perceived withreference to individuals welfare, power and interpersonalvalue expectations; dissonance can obtain amount any set ofcognitive elements, not only those that relate to valued goodsand conditions of life. Moreover only some perceptions ofdeprivation entail dissonance in its original sense ofcontradiction among cognitive elements. Most blackAmericans know very well that their expectations ofeconomic and social equality will be only grudgingly andgradually satisfied, if at all; the failure of the political systemto take massive remedial action is “dissonant” only for thoseNegroes who at one time thought that it would. For the greatmajority the lack of action merely confirms prior cognitionsof the system and intensifies discontent. In my opinion, that paragraph is an a...
