Cory Booker makes the working class pitch Democrats need

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(Image credit: Photo by DNCC via Getty Images)

It fell to Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) to make a pitch for the working class on Thursday night during the Democratic National Convention.

You notice I didn't say "white working class," that subset of Donald Trump voters that campaign strategists and the media obsessed over in the aftermath of the president's surprise 2016 victory. By telling the story of how his grandfather moved to Detroit and got a job working on an assembly line during World War II, Booker signaled that the working class is important to Democrats — and that it is far from monochromatic.

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But of course, the working class — like America itself — isn't so white anymore. In most states, members of the labor force without a four-year college degree are more diverse than the overall population; in eight states, workers of color make up the bulk of the working class. That's a trend that will only continue: One study predicts that people of color will comprise a majority of the American working class in 2031 — 11 years before the country itself is projected to become "majority minority." This matters because nearly a third of Americans describe themselves as working class, a sizable chunk of the electorate.

All of this means that — despite ample fretting by Democrats after Hillary Clinton's loss — politicians don't have to choose between appealing to minorities or working class voters. As Booker suggested on Thursday, the two groups are often one and the same.

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Joel Mathis, The Week US

Joel Mathis is a writer with 30 years of newspaper and online journalism experience. His work also regularly appears in National Geographic and The Kansas City Star. His awards include best online commentary at the Online News Association and (twice) at the City and Regional Magazine Association.