The African-American Studies Shelf

The State of Black America
W. B. Allen, editor
Encounter Books
900 Broadway, Suite 601, New York, NY 10003
www.encounterbooks.com
9781641772662, $31.99, HC, 352pp

https://www.amazon.com/State-Black-America-Progress-Pitfalls/dp/1641772662

Synopsis: In a nation that is tearing itself apart over race, trying to spe=
ak honestly about the state of black America is a perilous task. Candor and=
thoughtfulness are often drowned by hysteria, expediency, and sentimentali= sm. With the publication of "The State of Black America: Progress, Pitfalls=
, and the Promise of the Republic", compiled and edited by Professor W. B. = Allen, seeks to restore these sorely needed virtues to the present discours=
e, assembling a company of scholars who confront our nation's troubled raci=
al history even as they bear witness to the promise the American heritage c= ontains for blacks.

Collectively, the eight erudite essays comprising "The State of Black Ameri= ca" bring clarity to the murky darkness of America's race debates, reviewin=
g and building upon the latest scholarship on the character, shape, and ten= dencies of life for black Americans. Together, they tell a story of black A= merica's astounding success in integrating into mainstream American culture=
and propose that black patriotism is the key to overcoming what problems r= emain.

Featuring contributions from W. B. Allen, Mikael Rose Good, Edward J. Erler=
, Robert D. Bland, Glenn C. Loury, Ian V. Rowe, Precious D. Hall, Daphne Co= oper, Star Parker, and Robert Borens each of whome were drawn from a variet=
y of disciplines, including history, economics, social science, and politic=
al philosophy, "The State of Black America" offers to the world a kind of "= toolbox" of intellectual resources to aid careful and sound thinking on one=
of the most fraught issues of our time.

Critique: A timely and significant contribution to our present national dia= logue concerning race relations in contemporary America, "The State of Blac=
k America: Progress, Pitfalls, and the Promise of the Republic" is especial=
ly and unreservedly recommended for personal, professional, community, coll= ege, and university library Political and Race Relations collections. It sh= ould be noted for the personal reading lists of students, academia, politic=
al activist, governmental policy makers, and non-specialist general readers=
with an interest in the subject that "The State of Black America: Progress=
, Pitfalls, and the Promise of the Republic" is also available in a digital=
book format (Kindle, $9.99).

Editorial Note: William B. Allen (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_B._= Allen) is a resident scholar and the former chief operating officer of the = Center for Urban Renewal and Education in Washington, D.C. He is also an Em= eritus Professor of Political Philosophy in the Department of Political Sci= ence and an Emeritus Dean of James Madison College at Michigan State Univer= sity. In 2018 - 20 he was senior scholar in residence at the University of = Colorado Boulder. He served previously on the United States National Counci=
l for the Humanities and as chairman and member of the United States Commis= sion on Civil Rights. Recognized for excellence in liberal education on the=
1997 Templeton Honor Roll (individually and institutionally), he also has = been a Kellogg National Fellow, received the international Prix Montesquieu=
, and was the 2014 Salvatori Award winner. He has published extensively, in= cluding George Washington: A Collection (Liberty Fund, Inc.), Rethinking Un= cle Tom: The Political Philosophy of H. B. Stowe (Lexington Books), and Geo= rge Washington: America's First Progressive (Peter Lang, Inc.).

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Midwest Book Review

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