Ethnic studies / Ethnicity Books

Book SynopsisThis moving autobiography of a Berber woman from the village of Tizi-Hibel in the Kabilie Mountains of Algeria is unique on a number of levels. Illegitimate, Fadhma Amrouche would have been killed with her mother to preserve the honour of the family, but for the intervention of the French authorities. Because of this, she received an education and eventually married a Christian convert, although they remained closely linked to their families of origin. Her account of battling poverty, illness and exile is a gripping story. Fadhma's fight for an education in a world of almost universal female illiteracy was nothing short of heroic. She and her children moved from the harsh, fixed hierarchies of a traditional Berber village with archaic means of production to become cosmopolitan Parisians. The journey was filled with heartbreak, and Fadhma never overcame her nostalgia for what she had lost, but never doubted that the journey had to be made. Her unassuming narrative throws an unforgettable light on Berber life, women's position in traditional societies and the tensions between governed and governors in the colonial world.Trade Review'Written in an intimate and frank voice [it] weaves personal memories with the sagas of family members, important family events and details of traditional village life. With excellent introductions on the Berbers, Christianity in the Kabylie, and the Amrouche family.' Kay Hardy Campbell, Saudi Aramco World

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Book SynopsisThe Tuareg (Kel Tamasheq) are an ancient nomadic people who have inhabited the Sahara, one of the most extreme environments in the world, for millennia. In what ways have the lives of the Tuareg changed, and what roles do they have, in a modern and increasingly globalized world? Here, leading scholars explore the many facets of contemporary Tuareg existence: from transnational identity to international politics, from economy to social structure, from music to beauty, from mobility to slavery. This book provides a comprehensive portrait of Saharan life in transition, presenting an important new theoretical approach to the anthropology and history of the region. Dealing with issues of mobility, cosmopolitanism, and transnational movements, this is essential reading for students and scholars of the history, culture and society of the Tuareg, of nomadic peoples, and of North Africa more widely. This book is the first comprehensive study of the Tuareg today, exploring the ways in which the Tuareg themselves are moving global.Trade Review'[This] is a book that comes at the right time, when the need to rethink Tuareg culture - and other African cultures - in their wider (now 'global') context has become widely and deeply felt in African Studies. It embodies vast amounts of first-class fieldwork and deploys insightful conceptual frames in the exploration of the empirical evidence. - I believe it will appeal not only to established academics, but also to students - and not only to those specialising in the study of the Tuareg.' - Dr P.F. de Moraes Farias, Honorary Senior Fellow, Centre of West African Studies, University of Birmingham; 'By focusing on the transitions of Tuareg societies whose 'classical' delimitations by ethnographers and anthropologists become more and more doubtful - [this book] actually takes into account the contemporary reality of the Tuareg who live in the borderlands between Mali, Niger, Algeria and Libya. In this context they want to explore the consequences of the various aspects of globalisation, and, the various ways the Tuareg respond to and cope with growing influences from the outside.' - Dr Georg Klute, Professor of Social Anthropology, University of BayreuthTable of Contents1. Tuareg Moving Global: An Introduction Ines Kohl and Anja Fischer PART I: WHERE IS SAHARAN ANTHROPOLOGY GOING? 2. Research and Nomads in the Age of Globalization Anja Fischer 3. Tuareg Networks: An Integrated Approach to Mobility and Stasis Alessandra Giuffrida 4. Tuareg City Blues: Cultural Capital in a Global Cosmopole Baz Lecocq PART II: FROM PAST TO PRESENT: ONGOING DISCOURSES 5. Foreign Cloth and Kel Ewey Identity Gerd Spittler 6. Genesis and Change in the Socio-political Structure of the Tuareg Dida Badi 7. Tuareg Trajectories of Slavery: Preliminary Reflections on a Changing Field Benedetta Rossi PART III: DIVERSIFIED NORMS AND VALUES 8. The Price of Marriage: Shifting Boundaries, Compromised Agency and the Effects of Globalization on Iklan Marriages Annemarie Bouman 9. Debating Beauties: Contested and Changing Female Bodily Aesthetics of Fatness among the Tuareg Susan Rasmussen 10. Libya, the ‘Europe of Ishumar’: Between Losing and Reinventing Tradition Ines Kohl 11. The Ishumar Guitar: Emergence, Circulation and Evolution, from the Diasporic Performances to the World Scene Nadia Belalimat 12. Between the Worlds: Tuareg as Entrepreneurs in Tourism Marko Scholze PART IV: SAHARA: GLOBAL PLAYGROUND 13. Ambiguous Meanings of Ikufar and their Role in Development Projects Sarah Lunacek 14. Resisting Imperialism: Tuareg Threaten US, Chinese and Other Foreign Interests Jeremy Keenan

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Book SynopsisIn the space of a generation, Cyprus - the island of Aphrodite, goddess of beauty and love - has experienced an anti-colonial struggle, post-colonial chaos, internecine fighting and hatred, civil war, invasion, population displacements and physical partition. The narrative of Cyprus' recent history has created numerous attitudes and prejudices which run deep but which have never before been explored on a human level. Now for the first time Yiannis Papadakis, firmly planted in the Greek Cypriot world, sets out to discover 'The Other' - the much maligned Turks. Papadakis decided with some trepidation to travek to Constantinople (to his Greek worldview it was still Constantinople) to learn Turkish. There he discovered that actually it is Istanbul, and that Turkey is not the place of his once imagined demonology. Armed with new insights he returned to Cyprus and delved into the two communities, locked in their mutually contemptuous embrace, to explore their common humanity and to understand what has divided them. He focused on Nicosia where the people who used to live together in one neighbourhood found themselves separated by a 'Dead Zone', two armies and a UN force. His was a journey to the various sides of the Dead Zone and to the various zones of the dead, the realms of memory and history. This book is the moving, sometimes humorous and always fascinating account of that journey.Trade Review'Packed with historical information. It also contains moving personal testimonies from the kind of ordinary people whose voices are not usually heard above the drum beating din of history. What makes it really memorable though, is its wry humour.' - Irish Times 'He [Papadakis] can also be seen as shedding new light on old wounds - and doing his compatriots an enormous (an enormously healing) favour in the process.' - Irish Times 'Papadakis combines his excellent scholarly skills and personal background to explore the issues of identity, perceptions and narratives in Cyprus... The book is virtually free of academic terminology; stylistically, it is more like a travel book. It is humorous, moving and disturbing.' - Journal of Peace Research 'This bold book could be a cornerstone not simply in the literature, but in the resolution of the Cyprus conflict.' - Global Dialogue 'A poignant account of the ways in which collective identities surface in official and unofficial historical registers... a brave attempt to reappraise the past looking for disciples in anthropology and beyond.' - Rodanthi Tzanelli, Ethnic and Racial Studies 'Papadakis' text stands out as providing a much-needed anthropological and humanist insight into a conflict on which so much has been repeatedly and derivatively published over the years.'- Cyprus Review 'If we do not develop new ways of understanding such conflict, they may well endlessly replicate themselves. Papadakis' superb study makes this point all too clear.' - Cyprus Review Canadian Journal of Sociology Online July- August 2006 'Papadakis, has written a unique book that is a pleasure to read. It should be on the bookshelf of anyone interested in understanding the people of Cyprus and their recent unhappy history.' - Tozun Bahcheli. Postcolonial Studies, Vol. 9, No 3. 2006 'Remarkable'. -Christopher Connery and Vanita Seth. Ethnic and racial studies vol.29 No. 3 May 2006 Book Reviews 'The book is a poignant account of the ways in which collective identities surface in official and unofficial historical registers.' - Rodanthi Tzanelli. Journal of Peace Research Vol 42. 2005. 'A captivating book'. - Malte Pehl. Global Dialogue: Vol 7. 2005. ' The compelling tale of one man's voyage of discovery to 'the other side' is the superscript on the cover of this book, announcing at once its ambivalent location in the genres of both novel-writing and academic monograph, its highly reflexive approach, and its author's charming self-mocking humour.' -Olga Demetriou.

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Book SynopsisVillage people in the Punjab have lived with the terror of the conflict between Sikh militants and Indian security forces since the attack on the Sikh Golden Temple in 1984. In this remarkable book, a courageous anthropologist who knows the region intimately presents a very human portrait of the struggle. She argues that, despite its apparent defeat, it can only be in abeyance while the root causes, which have prompted so many young Sikhs to take up arms and fight for an independent Khalistan, remain unaddressed. Through the skilful use of interviews, Dr Pettigrew takes us into the worlds of Punjabi farmers, Sikh militants, and the police commanders responsible for containing a vicious conflict whose ramifications have spilled beyond the Punjab into wider Indian politics.Trade Review'No other scholar in the West as the knowledge, the analytical skill, or the sympathy to present a study of the Punjab during the violent confrontation of 1984 to 1992.'Paul R. Brass, University of WashingtonTable of Contents Map Preface Acknowledgements Glossary Abbreviations Part I: The Sikhs of Punjab: Place and People since 1984 1. State Terror 2. The Rise of Resistance, Political and Militant 3. The Guerrilla Movement 4. History and Organisation of the Khalistan Commando Force 5. Police, Guerrillas and Local Populations Part II: Children of Waheguru 6. Introduction 7. Profiles of Khalistan Commando Force Guerrillas: 'Sparrows into Hawks' 8. Concluding Remarks Appendices Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisFrom the zoot suit and Black dandy through to Rastafarianism and beyond, Black style has had a profound influence on the history of dress in the twentieth century. Yet despite this high profile, the dress styles worn by men and women of the African diaspora have received scant attention, even though the culture itself has been widely documented from historical, sociological and political perspectives. Focusing on counter - and sub-cultural contexts, this book investigates the role of dress in the creation and assertion of Black identity. From the home-dressmaking of Jamaican women, through to the Harlem Renaissance and contemporary streetstyles such as Hip-Hop and Raggamuffin, Black Britons, African Americans and Jamaicans have been at the forefront of establishing a variety of Black identities. In their search for a self-image that expresses their diaspora experience, members of these groups have embraced the cultural shapers of modernity and postmodernity in their dress. Drawing on materials from the United States, Britain and Jamaica, this book fills a gap in both the history of Black culture and the history of dress, which has until recently focused on high fashion in Europe. Because dress can both initiate and confirm change, it provides an especially useful tool for analyzing identity and resistance.Trade ReviewAn amazing new celebration of black style, from Billie Holiday to Malcolm X … the product of a lifetime’s research. * The Observer *Readers/researchers interested in understanding the style practices of the African diaspora, or looking for ways to understand the field from a position that allows for a richer and more complicated ways of observing dress history [will] certainly get something from this book. * The Journal of Dress History *In this engaging book, Tulloch (Univ. of the Arts, London) expands on her work on the ‘styled black body’…She uses an image or object—of the 2006 Stoned Cherrie Steve Biko T-shirt, say—and discusses its cultural weight and significance, presents readings and ‘wonderings’ (from her colleague Mona Choo), and then offers her own ‘alternative reading.’ The end result is a winsome mix of approaches to her subjects, backed up by serious scholarship. Summing up: Recommended. * CHOICE *The Birth of Cool makes a unique contribution to studies of dress and culture, as well as to black studies and diaspora studies. Tulloch deconstructs and reconstructs black aesthetics to open new pathways for understanding the lives and social histories of figures like Billie Holiday and Malcolm X. It is one of the most impressive works I have read in years. * D. Soyini Madison, Northwestern University, USA *The Birth of Cool offers a passionate reflexive analysis of transnational black glamour as an expression of undeniable presence, knowledge, and agency. As a foundational text, this book offers readers a deeper and more historical understanding of contemporary 'cool response' activism perhaps most famously practiced by Barack Obama, but visibly evident across the entire African diaspora. * Annette Lynch, University of Northern Iowa, USA *Table of ContentsPROVISIONAL Introduction Angel in the Market Place: The African-Jamaican Higgler 'All of Me': Billie Holiday Lasting Impressions: Harlem, Portraiture and Newness Strawberries and Cream: Dress, Migration and the Quintessence of Englishness My Man Let Me Pull Your Coat to Something: Malcolm X Beyond the Frame: Hair, Headwraps and Identity

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Book SynopsisWhat does it mean to be young in a changing world? How are migration, settlement and new urban cultures shaping young lives? And in particular, are race, place and class still meaningful to contemporary youth cultures? This path-breaking book shows how young people are responding differently to recent social, economic and cultural transformations. From the spirit of white localism deployed by de-industrialized football supporters, to the hybrid multicultural exchanges displayed by urban youth, young people are finding new ways of wrestling with questions of race and ethnicity. Through globalization is whiteness now being displaced by black culture -- in fashion, music and slang -- and if so, what impact is this having on race politics? Moreover, what happens to those people and places that are left behind by changes in late modernity? By developing a unique brand of spatial cultural studies, this book explores complex formations of race and class as they arise in the subtle textures of whiteness, respectability and youth subjectivity. This is the first book to look specifically at young ethnicities through the prism of local-global change. Eloquently written, its riveting ethnographic case studies and insider accounts will ensure that this book becomes a benchmark publication for writing on race in years to come.Trade Review'Race, Place and Globalization is a critical ethnography of the construction of young white masculinities in North-East England. It provides a locally grounded understanding of the experience of globalization from the perspective of those at its cutting edge. The Real Geordies, Charver Kids, Wiggers and Wannabees who we encounter in the course of this most engaging book are no ciphers of some abstract social theory. In Anoop Nayaks skilful narrative, they emerge as real, live, embodied and contradictory identities. The author combines a geographical interest in the dynamics of place, space and location with a wider perspective on the cultural politics of race, class and gender. It makes compelling reading and deserves a wide audience.'Peter Jackson, University of Sheffield 'Cross-racial identifications among young people of various racial backgrounds in England, but also racisms, are the topics of "Race, Place and Globalization: Youth Cultures in a Changing

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Book SynopsisThis is the first in a series of "Soundings" books. It brings together a collection of the best of recent work on race and identity in Soundings, and includes a new introductory essay. Themes covered include multiculturalism and segregation; young people and gun crime; British identity and melancholia; conviviality; identity and belonging; and, cosmopolitanism and institutional racism. Contributors include: Zygmunt Bauman, Farhad Dalal, Paul Gilroy, Bilkis Malek, Tariq Modood, Roshi Naidoo, Amir Saeed, George Shire, Ejos Ubiribo, Patrick Wright, and Nira Yuval-Davis.

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Table of ContentsI-IV -- General Editor's Preface -- Foreword -- Introduction -- SECTION ONE General Issues -- Fourfold Classifications of Society in the Himalayas -- Kinship and Culture in the Himalayan Region -- Cultural Implications of Tibetan History -- Homo hierarchicus Nepalensis: A Cultural Subspecies -- Hierarchy or Stratification? Two Case Studies from Nepal and East Africa -- Himalayan Research: What, Whither, and Whether -- SECTION TWO The South Asian Perspective -- Actual and Ideal Himalayas: Hindu Views of the Mountains -- Stratification and Religion in a Himalayan Society -- Changing Patterns of Multiethnic Interaction in the Western Himalayas -- An Additional Perspective on the Nepali Caste System -- Maiti-Ghar: The Dual Role of High Caste Women in Nepal -- Dhikurs: Rotating Credit Associations in Nepal -- The Role of the Priest in Sunuwar Society -- A New Rural Elite in Central Nepal -- Nepalis in Tibet -- Modernizing a Traditional Administrative System: Sikkim 1890-1973 -- Bureaucracy and Bureaucrats: A Few Themes Drawn from the Nepal Experience -- SECTION THREE The Central Asian Perspective -- The Retention of Pastoralism among the Kirghiz of the Afghan Pamirs -- Correlation of Contradictions: A Tibetan Semantic Device -- The White-Black Ones: The Sherpa View of Human Nature -- Tibetan Oracles -- Some Aspects of Pön -- Tibetan Bon Rites in China: A Case of Cultural Diffusion -- The Saintly Madman in Tibet -- Trans-Himalayan Traders in Transition -- Tibetan Communities of the High Valleys of Nepal: Life in an Exceptional Environment and Economy -- Tibetan Culture and Personality: Refugee Responses to a Culture-Bound TAT -- ?thnogenesis and Resource Competition among Tibetan Refugees in South India: A New Face to the Indo-Tibetan Interface -- The "Abominable Snowman": Himalayan Religion and Folklore from the Lepchas of Sikkim -- SECTION FOUR Perspectives Merged: The Newars -- Notes on the Origins of the Newars of the Kathmandu Valley of Nepal -- Symbolic Fields in Nepalese Religious Iconography: A Preliminary Investigation -- Intercaste Relations in a Newar Community -- The Role of the Priest in Newar Society -- Structure and Change of a Newari Festival Organization -- A Descriptive Analysis of the Content of Nepalese Buddhist P?j?s as a Medical-Cultural System with References to Tibetan Parallels -- Biographical Notes -- Index of Names -- Index of Subjects

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Book Synopsis The long-awaited, inspirational guide to life for a generation of black British women inspired to make lemonade out of lemons, and find success in every area of their lives. Trade Review‘So many young women are looking for guidance as they navigate their personal and professional lives. With Slay in Your Lane: The Black Girl's Bible, Elizabeth and Yomi offer wisdom and encouragement to a rising generation of Black female leaders, on everything from the basics of financial literacy to how to deal with micro-aggressions in the workplace. This book is a gift for anyone who wants to better understand what Black women and girls are up against—and the tremendous resources they draw upon as they make their way in the world’ Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook and founder of LeanIn.Org and OptionB.Org ‘A cultural landmark… This book is as much a rallying cry to black women across the British Isles as it is a solid foundation for serious discussions about modern race relations.’ Daily Telegraph ‘A prime example of how straightforward it should be to provide representation for young black girls’ Vice 'An essential read for black women who want their experiences validated and for young British teens to see the inspirational women who have come before them' Victoria Sanusi, iNews ‘Outspoken new role models for the next generation of black women … I imagine its intended audience will devour it whole. But it deserves to be widely read’ Janice Turner, The Times ‘An inspiring read’ Pheobe Hurst, The Pool ‘An inspirational guide to life for the modern British black woman’ Elle ‘SIYL is an extremely important piece in black British sisterhood, because no one can talk to black women like black women’ Black Ballad ‘This book is such a brilliant insight into being a black woman in Britain – buy it to help the young black women in your life – and if you’re white, buy it so you know what we have to go through every day, because ignorance is a form of complicity’ Otegha Uwagba, author of Little Black Book

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Book SynopsisUnlike the popular Uncle Remus stories of Joel Chandler Harris, Charles W. Chesnutt's tales probe psychological depths in black people unheard of before in Southern regional writing. They also expose the anguish of mixed-race men and women and the consequences of racial hatred, mob violence, and moral compromise. This important collection contains all the stories in his two published volumes, The Conjure Woman and The Wife of His Youth, along with two uncollected works: the tragic Dave's Neckliss and Baxter's Procustes, Chesnutt's parting shot at prejudice.For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary a

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Book SynopsisFifty years after she made history by refusing to give up her seat on a bus, Rosa Parks at last gets the major biography she deserves. The eminent historian Douglas Brinkley follows this thoughtful and devout woman from her childhood in Jim Crow Alabama through her early involvement in the NAACP to her epochal moment of courage and her afterlife as a beloved (and resented) icon of the civil rights movement. Well researched and written with sympathy and keen insight, the result is a moving, revelatory portrait of an American heroine and her tumultuous times.

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Book SynopsisIn the newest volume in the award-winning Penguin History of American Life series, James R. Barrett chronicles how a new urban American identity was forged in the streets, saloons, churches, and workplaces of the American city. This process of Americanization from the bottom up was deeply shaped, Barrett argues, by the Irish. From Lower Manhattan to the South Side of Chicago to Boston's North End, newer waves of immigrants and African Americans found it nearly impossible to avoid the Irish. While historians have emphasized the role of settlement houses and other mainstream institutions in Americanizing immigrants, Barrett makes the original case that the culture absorbed by newcomers upon reaching American shores had a distinctly Hibernian cast. By 1900, there were more people of Irish descent in New York City than in Dublin; more in the United States than in all of Ireland. But in the late nineteenth century, the sources of immigration began to shift, to southern and eastern Europe aTrade Review“Richly detailed, often fascinating . . . a very absorbing work of social history.” — The Wall Street Journal"A fast-paced tour." — The Boston Globe“The Irish Way will be of high interest to anyone who cherishes the old industrial cities of America and, of course, the Irish story.” — The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette“Barrett has written an excellent, bottom-up survey of the Irish experience over the past two centuries . . . he is most successful in describing the Americanization of policemen, teachers, nuns, and even gang leaders. This is a superior ethnic study that will have value for both scholars and general readers.” — Booklist“Portraying colorful characters like New York reformer politician boss Timothy Sullivan and showing how the blending of African-American and Irish dance resulted in tap dancing, Barrett gives us an authoritative, fact-filled analysis.” — Publishers Weekly

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Book SynopsisA comprehensive, illustrated history of African Americans from 1880 to the present. From Chapter 6 of the single volume edition.Trade Review"First rate.... Readable.... Guarantee[s] the book a rating as a primary reference."--The Richmond Times-Dispatch "Kelley and Lewis have provided us with what amounts to the first new interpretation of African-American history for the twenty-first century.... They have raised the bar for the production of new work on African Americans."--Journal of Southern History "Sweeping in scope, this invaluable survey charts the transformation of Blacks from Africans into African Americans."--Emerge "Provides an intelligent introduction to the history's intricacies, divisions and accomplishments."--Publishers Weekly

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Trade ReviewCristina Beltran's powerful book, The Trouble with Unity is timely for our age of Obama in which an ugly anti-immigrant spirit looms large. Don't miss it! * Cornel West, Princeton University *In her lucid account of the complexities of identity politics, Cristina Beltran analyzes U.S. Latino efforts to forge a unified political community, persuasively arguing that unity-based politics can provide spaces for meaningful political action but too often minimizes major differences. The Trouble with Unity is an informative, balanced, and unusually thoughtful contribution. * Rogers M. Smith, Christopher H. Browne Distinguished Professor of Political Science, University of Pennsylvania *Many have looked at the growth of Latino political identity from a purely empirical perspective. This work, however, tries to understand how Latino-ness is performed and understood in the public sphere, the growth and nature of pan-ethnic identity, and how disparate individuals come together to see themselves as a political interest. Cristina Beltran's book is a work of theory built off of a careful historical examination of practice and is a major contribution. * Gary Segura, Professor of Political Science and Chair of Chicana/o Studies, Stanford University *This book makes an original and centrally important contribution by using categories of political theory to analyze the ways in which 'Latinos' have thought about their political identities. It will become essential reading for those interested in how political theorists can contribute to the rethinking of race and ethnicity. * Joan Tronto, Professor of Political Theory, University of Minnesota *A sophisticated analysis of social justice in the Latino community.... useful for general readership and all undergraduate work on Latino studies in the US.... Recommended. * CHOICE *Table of ContentsINTRODUCTION; SLEEPING GIANTS AND DEMOGRAPHIC FLOODS: LATINOS AND THE POLITICS OF EMERGENCE; CONCLUSION; LATINO IS A VERB: DEMOCRACY, LATINIDAD, AND THE CREATION OF THE POLITICAL; NOTES; BIBLIOGRAPHY; INDEX

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Book SynopsisIt is hard to avoid seeing ethnicity, race, or nationality wherever one looks. Differences in education, income, and health are often patterned along ethnic or racial lines. But how do we disentangle discrimmation and preferences for certain groups from the everyday working of labor markets and educational institutions or privileging family members or those with similar educational backgrounds? Drawing on a boundary-making perspective first championed by anthropologist Fredrick Barth, Andreas Wimmer introduces a new comparative theory of ethnicity. It explains precisely how and why ethnicity matters in certain societies and contexts but not in others, and why it is sometimes associated with inequality and exclusion, with political and public debate, with closely-held identity, while in other cases ethnicity, race and nationhood do not structure the allocation of resources, invite little political passion, and represent secondary aspects of individual identity. Wimmer argues that when eTrade ReviewEthnic Boundary Making has the makings of a classic. The author takes on a vast and important topic, provides a bold and ambitious theoretical agenda, and engages in theory development by convincingly confronting his hypotheses with data of various kinds. As he goes along, Wimmer explains the implications of his findings for a wide range of theories and debates in sociology and beyond, engaging with the best and the brightest in the multi-disciplinary literatures on ethno-racial divisions, immigration and citizenship, and group formation. This ambitious book will surely leave its mark and be widely debated. * Michele Lamont, author of The Dignity of Working Men: Morality and the Boundaries of Race, Class, and Immigration *Table of ContentsIntroduction ; 1. Herder's Heritage ; 2. Strategies and Means ; 3. Conflict and Consensus ; 4. Categorization struggles ; 5. Network Boundaries ; 6. Culture and Closure ; Conclusions ; Acknowledgments ; Notes ; Bibliography ; Index

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Book SynopsisThe last several decades have seen the emergence of a remarkable phenomenon: a Jewish rebirth that is occurring throughout Africa. A variety of different ethnic groups proclaim that they are returning to long-forgotten Jewish roots, and African clans trace their lineage to the Lost Tribes of Israel. Africans have encountered Jewish myths and traditions in multiple forms and various ways. The context and circumstances of these encounters have gradually led, within some African societies, to the elaboration of a new Jewish identity connected with that of the Diaspora. This book presents, one by one, the different groups of Black Jews in western, central, eastern, and southern Africa and the ways in which they have used and imagined their oral history and traditional customs to construct a distinct Jewish identity. It explores the ways in which Africans have interacted with the ancient mythological sub-strata of both western and African ideas of Judaism. It particularly seeks to identifyTrade Reviewshines a wide and revealing spotlight on these unrecognized groups and how they came to construct their Jewish identity ... Bruder's research provides a more vivid and complete picture of the practices and community life of present-day Judaizing groups in the many countries she investigates. * Journal of Religion in Africa *Table of ContentsINTRODUCTION; LOST TRIBES IN TWENTY-FIRST-CENTURY AFRICA; PART I: PREHISTORY; PART II: BLACK JUDAISM: GENESIS; PART III: AFRICA, JUDAISM, AND AFRICAN "JEWS"; EPILOGUE: ANCIENT MYTHS AND MODERN PHENOMENA; NOTES; BIBLIOGRAPHY; INDEX

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Book SynopsisIn an age where racial and ethnic identity intersect, intertwine, and interact in increasingly complex ways, Black Ethnics: Race, Immigration, and the Pursuit of the American Dream offers a superb and rigorous analysis of black politics and coalitions in the post-Civil Rights era. Using an original survey of a New York City labor population and multiple national data sources, author Christina M. Greer explores the political significance of ethnicity for new immigrant and native-born blacks. Black Ethnics concludes that racial and ethnic identities affect the ways in which black ethnic groups conceptualize their possibilities for advancement and placement within the American polity. The ethnic and racial dual identity for blacks leads to significant distinctions in political behavior, feelings of incorporation, and policy choices in ways not previously theorized. The steady immigration of black populations from Africa and the Caribbean over the past few decades has fundamentally changed the racial, ethnic, and political landscape in the U.S. An important question for social scientists is how these ''new'' blacks will behave politically in the US. Should we expect new black immigrants to orient themselves to politics in the same manner as native Blacks? Will the different histories of the new immigrants and native-born blacks lead to different political orientations and behavior, and perhaps to political tensions and conflict among black ethnic groups residing in America? And to what extent will this new population fracture the black coalition inside of the Democratic party? With increases in immigration of black ethnic populations in the U.S., the political, social, and economic integration processes of black immigrants does not completely echo that of native-born American blacks. The emergent complexity of black intra-racial identity and negotiations within the American polity raise new questions about black political incorporation, assimilation, acceptance, and fulfillment of the American Dream. By comparing Afro-Caribbean and African groups to native-born blacks, this book develops a more nuanced and accurate understanding of the ''new black America'' in the twenty-first century. Lastly, Black Ethnics explores how foreign-born blacks create new ways of defining and understanding black politics and coalitions in the post-Civil Rights era.Trade ReviewIf Black Ethnics had focused on only one of its two subjects - the racial and ethnic identities of foreign-born blacks in the United States, or the racial and political activities of an important public sector labor union - it would have been valuable and illuminating. Its gift to readers is attention to both of these subjects as well as the relationships connecting them. That makes it a stunning and original piece of research. We learn a great deal from Greer's empathetic and insightful study. * Jennifer Hochschild, Harvard University *Christina Greer's ambitious and persuasive book simultaneously engages scholarship in race and ethnicity, immigration, and public opinion; analyzes new data on black attitudes; and introduces a novel theory of black ethnic relations. Plus, it's a treat to read. An important and original contribution, Black Ethnics will be invaluable to scholars of Black studies, political science, sociology, and beyond. * Jane Junn, University of Southern California *This important and perceptive book is a major contribution to our understanding of the politics of black ethnic diversity. Greer skillfully mines data from a rare New York City survey as well as national polls to generate a series of nuanced political profiles of African Americans, Afro-Caribbean immigrants, and African immigrants. While revealing what is politically distinctive about each of these groups, she also identifies areas of political convergence and conflict among them. The result is an empirically rich and theoretically insightful account of the complexities of contemporary black politics and the challenges all blacks continue face in their pursuit of the American Dream. * Reuel Rogers, Northwestern University *Table of ContentsAcknowledgments ; Introduction ; 1 A Theory of Black Elevated Minority Status ; 2 <"Where did you come from and what should I call you?>" How a NYC Labor Union Explains Changing Demographics ; 3 Political Participation and the Socialization of Blacks into Unions and the Polity ; 4 <"You Win Some, You Lose Some>": Hard Work and the Black Pursuit of the American Dream ; 5 Union Leadership and Policy Choices: Trends in Neutral and Racial Government Policies ; Conclusion ; Appendices ; Bibliography ; Index

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