Postethnic America: Beyond Multiculturalism [Paperback]

David A. Hollinger (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0465059929 | ISBN-13: 978-0465059928 | Publication Date: June 13, 1996 | Edition: Revised and Updated

Sympathetic with the new ethnic consciousness, Hollinger argues that the conventional liberal toleration of all established ethnic groups no longer works because it leaves unchallenged the prevailing imbalance of power. Yet the multiculturalist alternative does nothing to stop the fragmenting of American society into competing ethnic enclaves, each concerned primarily with its own well-being. Hollinger argues instead for a new cosmopolitanism, an appreciation of multiple identities—new cross-cultural affiliations based not on the biologically given but on consent, on the right to emphasize or diminish the significance of one’s ethnoracial affiliation. Postethnic America is a bracing reminder of America’s universalist promise as a haven for all peoples. While recognizing the Eurocentric narrowness of that older universalism, Hollinger makes a stirring call for a new nationalism. He urges that a democratic nation-state like ours must help bridge the gap between our common fellowship as human beings and the great variety of ethnic and racial groups represented within the United States.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Defenders of cultural diversity must move beyond multiculturalism, avows UC Berkeley historian Hollinger in this thoughtful, challenging but mainly theoretical essay. He posits a "postethnic" perspective that emphasizes civic nationalism and builds on the strain of multiculturalism that favors voluntary affiliations over fixed identities. He tartly critiques the assumptions in the "ethno-racial pentagon"?the five ethnic categories provided on most official forms?arguing that they are no proxy for diverse cultures and histories. Hollinger fears that some multiculturalists too easily disparage nationalist "cultural adhesives" such as E.D. Hirsch's "cultural literacy" project and suggests that common ground is needed to heal our nation. Thus he warns that if we don't ameliorate poverty, we will foster "ethno-racial particularism." Still, he could have said more about how his ideas might play out in such applications as educational policy.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Publisher

A bold proposal to heal our nation's ethnic divisions by one of America's foremost intellectual historians. This classic title was reprinted in 2000 with an added chapter from the author, "Postscript 2000," that updates Hollinger's book and makes its perspectives on multiculturalism even more relevant to contemporary society.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Basic Books; Revised and Updated edition (June 13, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0465059929
• ISBN-13: 978-0465059928
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,426,490 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A very original outlook on cultural diversity, August 28, 1998

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[e-mail] (Paris, France) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Postethnic America: Beyond Multiculturalism (Paperback)

David Hollinger's Post-Ethnic America: Beyond Multiculturalism, is a fundamental contribution to the literature on cultural diversity in U.S. society. Hollinger, an intellectual historian, is familiar with the debate which has taken place in the U.S. since the 19th century on how the nation should manage its diversity. He takes a bold stand against standard, garden-variety "multiculturalism", suggesting that the struggle for a more equal society cannot be waged through "identity politics" alone: a common ground must be found (or forged) among all ethnic and racial groups, based on common citizenship and a common aspiration for justice, not just a tolerance for each group's particularities. This very stimulating essay expresses a most original viewpoint in the debate over "multiculturalism".

13 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wise Thoughts on a Crucial Subject, May 19, 2001

By 

Lawrence A. Schenbeck (Atlanta, GA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Postethnic America: Beyond Multiculturalism (Paperback)

In 1903 W. E. B. Du Bois famously wrote, "The problem of the 20th century is the problem of the color line." Yet as the 21st century gets underway, there are signs everywhere that the color line is, if not permanently disabled, at least a less predictably oppressive factor in American life. David Hollinger, a professor at Cal Berkeley, traces the history of thought about America's varied makeup, from the Eurocentric "melting-pot" ideal of the early 1900's down to the identity politics and multiculturalism of the present. All this provides context for Hollinger's vision of a future America in which ethno-racial identity becomes more of a voluntary affiliation made by individuals, less of an involuntary designation--enforced from without and within--visited on every member of a group. Hollinger argues that the spread of a "postethnic" sensibility would benefit nearly everyone. It would mean a real end to use of physical markers called "race" to identify, and hold back, members of certain communities. Those markers might not be used to reward certain communities either. But they could actually gain strength in being recast as groups of converts, not conscripts.

The notion of postethnicity will be challenged by all sorts of interests. Hollinger anticipates and answers many of those challenges. His work is reasonable, fair-minded, and optimistic about our prospects. Those qualities alone set it off from much of what's being tossed around today by social critics. Anthony Appiah has praised Hollinger's "wonderful lucidity and intense moral seriousness," i.e., he has something worth saying, and he says it without resorting to academic doublespeak. This relatively short book is not always an easy read, but that's because it addresses very complex issues in an intelligent way. If you're at all concerned about cultural politics in America, you need to know Hollinger.

22 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars on the limits of affiliation, February 17, 2005

By 

MP Grier "MPG1120" (Durham, NC United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Postethnic America: Beyond Multiculturalism (Paperback)

In Hollnger's well-intentioned book, the heroes of the story are the multi-racial citizens pushing for designations outside what he calls "the ethno-racial pentagon." They are, for him, harbingers of a civic nationalism that can mediate between arrogant ethnic groups and a diverse globe. In other words, his ideal America will be a multiethnic nation whose true, uniting ethnicity is located in the ideals enshrined in our founding documents. With those universal sentiments in hand, we can also help end racist injustice in the undemocratic world and bring about human progress toward democracy.

This happy picture of the multi-racial, humanitarian nation, however, does not investigate the long history of *passing* for white, nor the current profitability of Michael Jackson's pop-culture descendants -- the Vin Diesels who refuse to divulge their racial identity and the Jennifer Lopezes who claim an ethnic/minority identity while hewing close to white looks and tastes. The trend of passing shows that people of color have long benefited by distancing themselves from their despised origins, by playing against a type that remains in place despite their success and precisely to burnish their success. The trend of the multi-ethnic or crossover star indicates that white skin may not be the only skin color that opens social and economic doors. To it we may now add indeterminate or boldly ethnic skin that may be read as exotic, as white, or, at the least, within the reach of whites' desires as consumers.

This brings me to my last point. Hollinger suggests that we should be able to choose racial identities by our affiliations, not by our genetics. Again, his accounting of history (other than intellectual history) is incomplete. The cosmopolitan familiarity with all peoples he proposes seems a wonderful example until we realize he has not accounted for the ways in which class position allows for such a sampling. Whether through travel, education, exposure to public art, or the purchase of entertainment commodities, a cosmopolitan famiiliarity with the world's goods comes at a price. So, the rich get richer... and the rich person with cosmo aspirations gets more cosmo, too. Because of the various privileges granted to white families in terms of financial credit, home loans, and other subtle and unsubtle handouts, whites are in a better position to take advantage, as a collective, of cosmopolitanism. Thus, cosmopolitanism does not upset racial hierarchy.

While I can't disagree with the *aim* of Hollinger's book, I also cannot suggest that his analysis is sound nor his project tenable.