Color-Blind: Seeing Beyond Race in a Race-Obsessed World

By Ellis Cose

Book Overview

At a time when Colin Powell is being discussed as a possible vice-presidential candidate for the Republican party, a growing segment of the population is asking whether racial prejudice has lost its power. But not so fast: In this startling, sharply insightful, and eye-opening book, Ellis Cose trains his practiced eye on the murky waters of race in America and looks at the acute differences, even hostility, in our perceptions of race exposed by the 0. J. Simpson trial, not to mention the controversial content of The Bell Curve. In doing so he addresses whether it is possible for the United States to simply wipe the racial slate clean and surmount its racist past, or if color blindness may be just another name for denial. In a world where it is often believed that lighter skin means higher status, money is the great equalizer, and education will set you free, Color-Blind brilliantly reveals why race may be a larger-and smaller-issue than many people think. With the keen observational powers of a professional journalist and the concrete solutions of a true visionary, Ellis Cose delivers his most powerful and important book to date.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0060174978
• ISBN13: 9780060174972
• Release Date: December 1996
• Publisher: Harper
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 1.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.8" x 1.3" x 6.5"

Customer Reviews

Should be mandatory reading all for black professionals

"Color-Blind: Seeing Beyond Race in a Race-Obsessed World) is a powerful piece of investigative journalism, which builds on, and should be read in conjunction with his earlier book, "The Rage of a Privileged Class".In Color-Blind, Cose analyzes the issue of race in America in ways that only someone who has felt the sting of discrimination could fully understand. Building on his earlier examination of race in America (and arguably, Canada), Cose looks at recent events, such as the OJ Simpson trial, and recent pubications, such as "The Bell Curve" and "The End of Racism" to acheve a dual purpose - to further illustrate the stereotypes and misconceptions that pervade American society, and to attempt to find solutions that will help blacks to fully reach their potential in contemporary American society.Cose starts by picking up where Martin Luther King left off - the dream of a colourblind world. Unfortunaltely, for those who are black, Cose argues that dreams of economic equality, particularly as it relates to discrimination in the workplace, have fallen far short of what Dr. King would have hoped for as we appoach the end of the century.However, Cose looks at a number of examples, at home and abroad, that illustrate how it is possible for blacks and other minorities to excel and achieve their full potential, and possibly overcome very pervasive and deep-seated stereotypes.In fact, there is an air of optimism in this book, that a colourblind society could be more than a figment of someone's overly-fertile imagination. Cose even suggests a ten-step plan for achieving this goal.Unfortunately, as a Human Resources Manager, I am still haunted by Cose' earlier expose, "The Rage of a Privileged Class", five years after its original publication. This book should be required reading for every Human Resources Manager, black professional and MBA student in North America - unfortunately it is now out of print at a time when its observations and anecdotes are more relevant than ever.As an expert in recruitment and selection, it is hard for me to believe that anyone would doubt, or be shocked by the painful, but all too real stories of successful black professionals in "Rage". However, having seen the dismantling of Employment Equity in Ontario, and the woeful under-representation of blacks and other visible minorities in managerial and executive positions, I can only hope that more that 60,000 copies of "Color-Blind" are sold, but I somehow doubt that it will.I cannot imagine a more important, intelligent and thorough examination of race and society being written in the near future. I applaud Ellis Cose for his vision and eloquence in attempting to shed light on the misconceptions of racial progress in our society.

Cose provokes his audience to really analyze critically.

"Cose was totally effective in documenting in print what many African-American professionals in the private sector experience, feel, and think, as well as, attempt to deny and suppress. I personally think that Ellis wrote this particular book to cleverly vent his frustrations and concerns as they relate to the obsession that people (i.e., whites as well as blacks, asians, hispanics, etc.) have with regard to institutional racism and prejudice. Thank you Mr. Cose for cleverly addressing numerous social issues that I have felt as an upper-middle class black professional male in not on American society, but also in South America and Europe."