Black Faces, Black Interests: The Representation of African Americans in Congress [Hardcover]

Carol M. Swain (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1993

In this incisive book Carol Swain explores what strategies are most likely to lead to greater representation of black political interests. She studies the constituency relations and roll-call voting of black members of Congress from a variety of districts--historically black, newly black, heterogeneous, and primarily white--and of white members from districts with either a black majority or a significant black minority. She challenges the proposition that only African Americans can represent black interests effectively, and argues that blacks must form coalitions with white representatives to serve black needs. Swain has updated this edition with a new chapter entitled "Black Congressional Representation since 1992."

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

This study by Swain, an African American political scientist at Princeton University, is invaluable because it works on several levels. For those interested in black politics, her book presents insights into the activities of black congressional representatives on the Hill and in their districts. In this context, it is much like William L. Clay's Just Permanent Interests ( LJ 2/1/93). But while Clay's book tends to be impressionistic and anecdotal, Swain utilizes the methods of social science, including interviews, field observations, and analysis of voting records. However, Swain also attempts to solve the riddle of whether black interests are adequately represented and who can best represent them. She compares the behavior of black and white representatives serving historically black, newly created black, and heterogeneous districts and also considers blacks who serve majority-white districts. Her major conclusions, among them that whites can effectively represent black interests and that blacks must form coalitions with white representatives to serve black needs, will surprise many, for they challenge a number of prevailing assumptions about the appropriate ways of representing black interests. Strongly recommended for academic and large public political science collections.
- Thomas J. Baldino, Wilkes Univ., Wilkes-Barre, Pa.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

Swain's commendable book raises fundamental questions...This is impressive work. (Lee A. Daniels Washington Post Book World )

[Swain's] book offers a critical counterpoint to the traditional arguments of voting rights advocates. (Political Science Quarterly )

An important analysis in an area of growing scholarly debate and political controversy. (American Politics Review )

Black Faces, Black Interests is an interesting and timely examination of African-American representation in the United States Congress...This is a significant book that boldly broaches issues that have seriously divided the black community. Not only does it draw our attention to an overlooked topic in political science (the representational styles of African-American members of Congress), it also challenges the orthodox view that black political interests can best be represented by the creation of heavily packed, racial gerrymandered districts likely, if not certain, to elect minority MCs. Swain rejects this conclusion, arguing forcefully and optimistically not only that black interests can be represented well by white legislators, but also that black politicians can be elected from and serve well majority white districts. (L. Marvin Overby Public Choice )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 275 pages
• Publisher: Harvard University Press (March 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 067407615X
• ISBN-13: 978-0674076150
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.4 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,307,754 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

From high school dropout and teenage mother to esteemed Vanderbilt University law professor, Carol M. Swain is passionate about empowering others to confidently raise their conservative voices in the public square. Dr. Swain's education and experiences make her a credible and powerful force for change in today's social and political climate where conservatives are intimidated to champion an often-unpopular message.

Carol Swain's own courageous voice for conservative causes is expressed among a variety of popular media. She's a frequent guest on Hannity's: Great American Panel on Fox News and appeared regularly on CNN's Lou Dobbs Tonight.

She has also appeared on BBC Radio, NPR, CNN's AC360 (with Anderson Cooper), Fox News Live, PBS's NewsHour (with Jim Lehrer), C-SPAN's Washington Journal, and ABC's Headline News.

Dr. Swain's published works have achieved many accolades. Her highly acclaimed book, Black Faces, Black Interests: The Representation of African Americans in Congress, has received numerous awards, including:

One of seven Outstanding Academic Books of 1994 by Choice (American Library Association)

Woodrow Wilson Foundation Award in 1994 (sponsored by the Woodrow Wilson Foundation at Princeton University for the best book published on government, politics or international affairs)

D.B. Hardeman Prize for best book focused on U.S. Congress during 1994-1995
V.O. Key Award (co-recipient) for an outstanding book on southern politics

Black Faces was cited by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy in Johnson v. DeGrandy (1994) and by Justice Sandra Day O'Connor in Georgia V. Ashcroft (2003).

Debating Immigration, a collection of 18 essays by Swain and other scholars, explores the nuances of contemporary immigration and citizenship in the U.S. and Europe. She has also written and co-authored books on race relations and white nationalism. She is currently working on a new book titled Broken Vows, Banished Virtues: Reclaiming America's Promise.

Her opinion pieces have been published online at The Huffington Post and in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Times, and USA Today.

A widely recognized expert on race relations, immigration, black leadership and evangelical politics, Carol Swain is a member of the Tennessee Advisory Committee to the U.S. Civil Rights Commission and serves on the advisory board of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Before joining Vanderbilt in 1999, Dr. Swain was a tenured associate professor of politics and public policy at Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. She is a foundation member of the Virginia Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Faceless, August 22, 2000

By 

Clifford Lamar II (Nashville, TN United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Black Faces, Black Interests: The Representation of African Americans in Congress (Paperback)

Professor Swain wrote an incredible account of both black and white representatives of African-Americans (both minority and majority districts) in the US Congress. She examines the history of blacks in Congress, the definition of "black interests," and the difference between black descriptive and substantive representation. The book was originally written between the 1990 general election and the 1992 Presidential election. Although this may seem to make the book out of date, Dr. Swain updated her manuscript with an addendum to the first edition. This chapter covers the Republican Sweep of the 1994 general election and discusses its consequences to black descriptive and substantive representation. 'Black Faces, Black Interests' can be highly relevent to the historically minded, as the facts of the past shape the future. In this end, the author can have the most impact by educating readers, thus possibly touching the future representatives of African-Americans.