Black Faces, Black Interests: The Representation of African Americans in Congress

By Carol M. Swain

Book Overview

Winner of the Woodrow Wilson Foundation Award from the American Political Science Association; the D.B. Hardeman Prize for the best scholarly work on Congress from the Lyndon Baines Johnson Foundation; and co-winner of the V.O. Key Award from the Southern Political Science Association; Selected by Library Choice Journal as one of seven "Outstanding Academic Books of 1994"

Through analysis of both black and white members of Congress, Black Faces, Black Interests challenges the proposition that only African Americans can represent black interests effectively and argues for black and white representatives to form coalitions to better serve their constituents. Since its publication in 1993, this book has been cited three times by the U.S. Supreme Court and has spawned numerous studies of minority representation. This enlarged edition features a new chapter entitled "Black Congressional Representation since 1992."

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0761834079
• ISBN13: 9780761834076
• Release Date: April 2006
• Publisher: University Press of America
• Length: 310 Pages
• Weight: 1.04 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.4" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Faceless

Professor Swain wrote an incredible account of both black and white representatives of African-Americans (both minority and majority districts) in the US Congress. She examines the history of blacks in Congress, the definition of "black interests," and the difference between black descriptive and substantive representation. The book was originally written between the 1990 general election and the 1992 Presidential election. Although this may seem to make the book out of date, Dr. Swain updated her manuscript with an addendum to the first edition. This chapter covers the Republican Sweep of the 1994 general election and discusses its consequences to black descriptive and substantive representation. 'Black Faces, Black Interests' can be highly relevent to the historically minded, as the facts of the past shape the future. In this end, the author can have the most impact by educating readers, thus possibly touching the future representatives of African-Americans.