Colorblind Injustice

Minority Voting Rights and the Undoing of the Second Reconstruction

Nonfiction, Reference & Language, Law, Civil Rights, Social & Cultural Studies, Political Science, Politics, History, Americas, United States, 20th Century
Cover of the book Colorblind Injustice by J. Morgan Kousser, The University of North Carolina Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: J. Morgan Kousser ISBN: 9780807862650
Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press Publication: November 9, 2000
Imprint: The University of North Carolina Press Language: English
Author: J. Morgan Kousser
ISBN: 9780807862650
Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press
Publication: November 9, 2000
Imprint: The University of North Carolina Press
Language: English

Challenging recent trends both in historical scholarship and in Supreme Court decisions on civil rights, J. Morgan Kousser criticizes the Court's "postmodern equal protection" and demonstrates that legislative and judicial history still matter for public policy.
Offering an original interpretation of the failure of the First Reconstruction (after the Civil War) by comparing it with the relative success of the Second (after World War II), Kousser argues that institutions and institutional rules--not customs, ideas, attitudes, culture, or individual behavior--have been the primary forces shaping American race relations throughout the country's history. Using detailed case studies of redistricting decisions and the tailoring of electoral laws from Los Angeles to the Deep South, he documents how such rules were designed to discriminate against African Americans and Latinos.
Kousser contends that far from being colorblind, Shaw v. Reno (1993) and subsequent "racial gerrymandering" decisions of the Supreme Court are intensely color-conscious. Far from being conservative, he argues, the five majority justices and their academic supporters are unreconstructed radicals who twist history and ignore current realities. A more balanced view of that history, he insists, dictates a reversal of Shaw and a return to the promise of both Reconstructions.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Challenging recent trends both in historical scholarship and in Supreme Court decisions on civil rights, J. Morgan Kousser criticizes the Court's "postmodern equal protection" and demonstrates that legislative and judicial history still matter for public policy.
Offering an original interpretation of the failure of the First Reconstruction (after the Civil War) by comparing it with the relative success of the Second (after World War II), Kousser argues that institutions and institutional rules--not customs, ideas, attitudes, culture, or individual behavior--have been the primary forces shaping American race relations throughout the country's history. Using detailed case studies of redistricting decisions and the tailoring of electoral laws from Los Angeles to the Deep South, he documents how such rules were designed to discriminate against African Americans and Latinos.
Kousser contends that far from being colorblind, Shaw v. Reno (1993) and subsequent "racial gerrymandering" decisions of the Supreme Court are intensely color-conscious. Far from being conservative, he argues, the five majority justices and their academic supporters are unreconstructed radicals who twist history and ignore current realities. A more balanced view of that history, he insists, dictates a reversal of Shaw and a return to the promise of both Reconstructions.

More books from The University of North Carolina Press

Cover of the book Hitler and the Forgotten Nazis by J. Morgan Kousser
Cover of the book The Children of Chinatown by J. Morgan Kousser
Cover of the book The Battle of Peach Tree Creek by J. Morgan Kousser
Cover of the book Crimes against Children by J. Morgan Kousser
Cover of the book Learn to Cook 25 Southern Classics 3 Ways by J. Morgan Kousser
Cover of the book Bittersweet Legacy by J. Morgan Kousser
Cover of the book Black Firefighters and the FDNY by J. Morgan Kousser
Cover of the book The North Carolina Roots of African American Literature by J. Morgan Kousser
Cover of the book Day Sailing by J. Morgan Kousser
Cover of the book The Color of the Law by J. Morgan Kousser
Cover of the book Religion and the Racist Right by J. Morgan Kousser
Cover of the book Woodrow Wilson and a Revolutionary World, 1913-1921 by J. Morgan Kousser
Cover of the book Latinos at the Golden Gate by J. Morgan Kousser
Cover of the book Sold American by J. Morgan Kousser
Cover of the book Shenandoah 1862 by J. Morgan Kousser
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy