White Supremacy and Racism in the Post-Civil Rights Era [Paperback]

Eduardo Bonilla-Silva (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Though many laws have been put in place to insure the rights of minorities in the United States, there are still questions about whether the beliefs of the white-majority population regarding minorities have changed. Has the push for political correctness encouraged people to rethink their beliefs? This book shows that in many cases the white majority still holds negative stereotypes about minorities and that many still believe that whites are better. Using extensive research and interviews, Bonilla-Silva (sociology, Texas A&M Univ.) discusses the history of discrimination in the United States and how in many cases beliefs have not changed but have just been moved underground. He also shows that institutional racism still plays a role in society. With its extensive bibliography and end notes, this book will find a home in academic libraries. Danna Bell-Russel, Library of Congress
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Bonilla-Silva explores the modern structure of American racism with subtleties that make it less obvious, but no less pernicious, than the racism of the slavery and Jim Crow eras. The prime objective of maintaining racial privilege and advantage for whites remains intact for the prototypical "color-blind" racist who avoids racially charged terminology, espouses race-neutral concepts, and may even adapt a liberal veneer. Bonilla-Silva reviews current literature on racial attitudes and analyzes his own surveys on race. Typical narrative responses--the past is past; I never owned slaves; my friend or relative didn't get a job because a black person got it--reveal underlying racial ideology that justifies and maintains the status quo. Unfortunately, according to Bonilla-Silva, most typical studies and popular notions of racism are centered on individual pathologies and don't recognize the ingrained and institutionalized manifestations of racial injustice. However, American public policy and popular opinion ignore the interconnection between disparate results and racial ideology. This is an insightful look at racial politics that will appeal to readers interested in racial issues. Vernon Ford
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 220 pages
• Publisher: Lynne Rienner Pub (August 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1588260321
• ISBN-13: 978-1588260321
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #209,954 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Provocative, Innovative, and Insightful Book, October 17, 2001

By 

Cedric Herring (Illinois, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: White Supremacy and Racism in the Post-Civil Rights Era (Hardcover)

Professor Eduardo Bonilla-Silva has written a provocative, innovative, and insightful book that will add much to our understanding of racism in the 21st Century. White Supremacy and Racism in the Post-Civil Rights Era is well-written, conceptually sound, and convincing. The study is well documented with quantitative data, in-depth interviews, and qualitative research on race relations. The book does an excellent job of discussing, summarizing, and critiquing several prominent works that minimize the prevalence and impact of racism. Because it offers comprehensive coverage of the "anything but racism" literature, it can serve as an excellent sourcebook. The book also offers new theoretical breakthroughs and powerful typologies that shed a great deal of light on how and why blacks, whites and others think about racial policy and racial inequality. Generally, it is written in a manner that is accessible to undergraduates and a general audience, but it is based on solid social science research that will meet the expectations of professional social scientists. I believe that no person interested in racial inequality , race relations and the changing nature of racial discourse in America should fail to read this work. Overall, this book, written by a scholar whose star is on the rise, makes important contributions to the growing social science literature on contemporary racism. It will be important reading for those concerned with how this issue will continue to manifest itself in the 21st Century.

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Co-Winner of 2002 ASA Oliver C. Cox Award, January 5, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: White Supremacy and Racism in the Post-Civil Rights Era (Paperback)

This book was the co-winner of the 2002 Oliver C. Cox award given by the American Sociological Association. The book combines powerful theoretical chapters with substantive chapters describing the subtle and slippery yet effective post-civil rights' racial structure (he labels it "the new racism) and racial ideology (color blind racism) of the United States. This is a solid contribution to the area of race and ethnicity and an excellent choice for courses on racial and ethnic matters in the United States. Professors searching for a challenging book on the nature of contemporary racial discourse need not look elsewhere.

5 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Racism in the new era, September 22, 2001

By 

"jadembrick" (Washington, D.C.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: White Supremacy and Racism in the Post-Civil Rights Era (Paperback)

This book presents us with a "smack you in the face" conceptualization of race and white supremacy in the U.S. Although uncomfortable for some, it sums up very accurately the way that racism has been transformed over time and how it continues to plague America.