Routledge Black Politics in Transition: Immigration, Suburbanization, and Gentrification (Race, Ethnicity, and Gender in Politics and Policy)

Black Politics in Transition considers the impact of three transformative forces―immigration, suburbanization, and gentrification―on Black politics today. Demographic changes resulting from immigration and ethnic blending are dramatically affecting the character and identity of Black populations throughout the US. Black Americans are becoming more ethnically diverse at the same time that they are sharing space with newcomers from near and far. In addition, the movement of Black populations out of the cities to which they migrated a generation ago―a reverse migration to the American South, in some cases, and in other cases a movement from cities to suburbs shifts the locus of Black politics. At the same time, middle class and white populations are returning to cities, displacing low income Blacks and immigrants alike in a renewal of gentrification. All this makes for an important laboratory of discovery among social scientists, including the diverse range of authors represented here. Drawing on a wide array of disciplinary perspectives and methodological strategies, original chapters analyze the geography of opportunity for Black Americans and Black politics in accessible, jargon-free language. Moving beyond the Black–white binary, this book explores the tri-part relationship among Blacks, whites, and Latinos as well. Some of the most important developments in Black politics are happening at state and local levels today, and this book captures that for students, scholars, and citizens engaged in this dynamic milieu. Review Candis Smith and Christina Greer have filled a significant void. This is the first book to examine how Black migratory patterns within metropolitan regions, urban neighborhoods, and across state boundaries―combined with the influx of Blacks from Africa and the Caribbean―have transformed Black Politics. Black Politics in Transition adds new insights and theories about African American political life. Marion Orr, Frederick Lippitt Professor of Public Policy & Professor of Political Science, Brown University, author of Black Social Capital Transitions are exciting, intimidating, hopeful, sad―and transformative. This book’s focus on immigration, suburbanization, and gentrification is right on the front edge of scholarship, racial and ethnic politics, and individual choice or constraint. It sets us up for the next few decades of research on race in America. Jennifer Hochschild, Henry LaBarre Jayne Professor of Government, and Professor of African and African American Studies, Harvard University About the Author Candis Watts Smith is Assistant Professor of Public Policy at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. She also has affiliations with the Department of African and African American Diaspora Studies and Department of Political Science. Christina M. Greer is Associate Professor of Political Science and American Studies at Fordham University. She also has affiliations with the Urban Studies Program and American Studies Department.