America in Denial: How Race-Fair Policies Reinforce Racial Inequality in America (SUNY series in African American Studies)

In America in Denial Lori Latrice Martin examines the myth of a race-fair America by reviewing and offering alternatives to universal, race-neutral programs and policies as well as other allegedly race-neutral initiates. By considering policies and programs related to wealth, health, education, and criminal justice, while presenting themselves as race-neutral, Martin reveals that black scholars and politicians, in particular, seemingly capitulate and have become proponents of these programs and policies that perpetuate the myth of a race-fair America. This (mis)use provides cover for elected officials and presidential hopefuls needed to garner the support and authenticity required to increase public support for their initiatives. These issues must be unpacked and debunked, and the material and nonmaterial harm historically done to black people, and still felt today, must be acknowledged. The idea that programs available to all people will benefit black people is demonstratively untrue, and the alternatives presented in America in Denial will generate much-needed conversations. Contents Acknowledgments Introduction Culture versus Structure Cultural Explanations Structural Explanations Cultural and Structural Arguments Combined Washington v. Davis Takao Ozawa v. United States Whiteness and the Myth of a Postracial Society Chapter One The Road to a Race-Fair America: How America Lost Its Way Color Consciousness and Colorblind Rhetoric in America American Civil Religion Why White Backlash Chapter Two Wealth, Inclusivity, and Exclusion Wealth Inequality in America Racial Wealth Inequality Causes and Consequences of Persistent Racial Wealth Inequality Narrowing the Gap Social Impact Bonds Child and Individual Development Accounts Baby Bonds Race and Violent Financial Instruments in America Where Do We Go from Here: Fear versus Fairness Conclusion: Fear or Fairness Chapter Three From Compulsory Education to Universal Disappointment History of Race and Education Baton Rouge and the Formation of the City of St. George Conclusion Chapter Four The Color of Justice History of Race and Crime Chapter Five Resistance and Racial Progress: Kaepernick and the Practice of Leadership Racial Uplift and a Policy of Submission Du Bois and Social Justice The Politics of Respectability Racial Realism and the Myth of Racial Equality Afro-Pessimism and Modern-Day Slavery Resistance and Free Agency: From Abe Hawkins to Colin Kaepernick Adaptive Leadership and New Social Movements Conclusion Conclusion Changing Course: Race-Transcendent Prophets Must Lead the Way Race Fairness, Race Consciousness, and the Belief in American Civil Religion: A Matter of Intensity References Index In America in Denial Lori Latrice Martin examines the myth of a race-fair America by reviewing and offering alternatives to universal, race-neutral programs and policies as well as other programs related to wealth, health, education, and criminal justice, while presenting themselves as race-neutral, Martin reveals that black scholars and politicians, in particular, seemingly capitulate and have become proponents of these programs and policies that perpetuate the myth of race-fair America. This (mis)use provides cover for elected officials and presidential hopefuls needed to garner the support and authenticity required to increase public support for their initiatives. These issues must be unpacked and debunked, and the material and nonmaterial harm historically done to black people, and still felt today, must be acknowledged. The idea that programs available to all people will benefit black people is demonstratively untrue, and the alternatives presented in America in Denial will generate much-needed conversations--back cover