Invisible Enemy

This highly accessible account of the evolution of American racism outlines how 'colorblind' approaches to discrimination ensured the perpetuation of racial inequality in the United States well beyond the 1960s. A highly accessible account of the evolution of American racism, its perpetuation, and black people's struggles for equality in the post-civil rights era Guides students to a better understanding of the experiences of black Americans and their ongoing struggles for justice, by highlighting the interconnectedness of African American history with that of the nation as a whole Highlights the economic and political functions that racism has served throughout the nation's history Discusses the continuation of the freedom movement beyond the 1960s to provide a comprehensive new historiography of racial equality and social justice

Acknowledgments vi Introduction 1 1 The Never Ending Story: American Racism from Slavery to the Civil Rights Movement 7 2 From the Freedom Movement to Free Markets: Racializing the War on Poverty and Colorblinding Jim Crow 30 3 A System without Signs: The Invisible Racism of the Post-Civil Rights Era 53 4 Fighting Jim Crow’s Shadow: Struggles for Racial Equality after 1965 76 5 To See or Not to See: Debates over Affirmative Action 100 6 Is This America? Electoral Politics after the Voting Rights Act 124 7 Fir$t Cla$$ Citizen$hip: Struggles for Economic Justice 147 8 All Around the World: The Freedom Struggle in a Global Context 169 Notes 194 Index 230