Synopses & Reviews
“This provocative, ambitious, and important book rewrites U.S. history, placing foundational leaders, unheralded prophets, insurgent social movements, pivotal judicial decisions, and central cultural values within an unfolding story of ongoing appeals to interracial mixing as a positive good. Deeply researched, deftly argued, and impressively able to move beyond the two categories of black and white, The United States of the United Races makes the mixed race movements of the recent past resonate with their many antecedents, showing the complex ways in which an emphasis on mixture has both deployed and destabilized racial categories.” —David Roediger, co-author of The Production of Difference Barack Obamas historic presidency has re-inserted mixed race into the national conversation. While the troubled and pejorative history of racial amalgamation throughout U.S. history is a familiar story, The United States of the United Races reconsiders an understudied optimist tradition, one which has praised mixture as a means to create a new people, bring equality to all, and fulfill an American destiny. In this genealogy, Greg Carter re-envisions racial mixture as a vehicle for pride and a way for citizens to examine mixed America as a better America. Tracing the centuries-long conversation that began with Hector St. John de Crevecoeurs Letters of an American Farmer in the 1780s through to the Mulitracial Movement of the 1990s and the debates surrounding racial categories on the U.S. Census in the twenty-first century, Greg Carter explores a broad range of documents and moments, unearthing a new narrative that locates hope in racial mixture. Carter traces the reception of the concept as it has evolved over the years, from and decade to decade and century to century, wherein even minor changes in individual attitudes have paved the way for major changes in public response. The United States of the United Races sweeps away an ugly element of U.S. history, replacing it with a new understanding of race in America. Greg Carter is Assistant Professor of History at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
Review
“This provocative, ambitious, and important book rewrites U.S. history, placing foundational leaders, unheralded prophets, insurgent social movements, pivotal judicial decisions, and central cultural values within an unfolding story of ongoing appeals to interracialmixing as a positive good. Deeply researched, deftly argued, and impressively able to move beyond the two categories of black and white, The United States of the United Races makes the mixed race movements of the recent past resonate with their many antecedents, showing the complex ways in which an emphasis on mixture has both deployed and destabilized racial categories.”-David Roediger,co-author of The Production of Difference
Review
"Carter's provocative work examines both demons and heroes in the face of America's variable heritages, reviewing optimism about the nation's inclusive possibilities of racial progress and harmony while warning that prophecy and promise about racial mixing have never been enough alone to achieve racial equality. Recommended for readers interested in the U.S. past, present, or future."-Library Journal,
Synopsis
Barack Obama s historic presidency has re-inserted mixed race into the national conversation. While the troubled and pejorative history of racial amalgamation throughout U.S. history is a familiar story, The United States of the United Racesreconsiders an understudied optimist tradition, one which has praised mixture as a means to create a new people, bring equality to all, and fulfill an American destiny. In this genealogy, Greg Carter re-envisions racial mixture as a vehicle for pride and a way for citizens to examine mixed America as a better America.Tracing the centuries-long conversation that began with Hector St. John de Crevecoeur sLetters of an American Farmerin the 1780s through to the Mulitracial Movement of the 1990s and the debates surrounding racial categories on the U.S. Census in the twenty-first century, Greg Carter explores a broad range of documents and moments, unearthing a new narrative that locates hope in racial mixture. Carter traces the reception of the concept as it has evolved over the years, from and decade to decade and century to century, wherein even minor changes in individual attitudes have paved the way for major changes in public response.The United States of the United Racessweeps away an ugly element of U.S. history, replacing it with a new understanding of race in America."
About the Author
Greg Carter is Assistant Professor of History at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments viiIntroduction 11 Thomas Jeffersons Challengers 192 Wendell Phillips, Unapologetic Abolitionist, Unreformed Amalgamationist 453 Plessy v. Racism 774 The Color Line, the Melting Pot, and the Stomach 1085 Say It Loud, Im One Drop and Im Proud 1446 The End of Race as We Know It 1617 Praising Ambiguity, Preferring Certainty 192Conclusion 217Notes 229Index 259About the Author 265