Saviors or Sellouts: The Promise and Peril of Black Conservatism, from Booker T. Washington to Condoleezza Rice (Hardcover)

Book Description

The first book by an African American liberal about black conservatism and its growing appeal among African Americans today



What exactly is a black conservative, and why would anyone choose to be one? wonders Professor Christopher Bracey, an African American, a liberal, and a Democrat. While the recent midterm elections have buoyed liberals, Democrats have been losing ground with their African American base. In 1972, fewer than 10 percent of African Americans identified as conservative; today nearly 30 percent or 11.2 million African Americans do.

Though black conservatives are quickly becoming the most visible and prominent voices within African American politics and culture, few of us realize that the black conservative tradition pre-dates the Civil War and is an intellectual movement with deep historical roots. While tracing this tradition, Bracey reveals the influence of conservatism upon various black social and political movements, including those typically regarded as being outside of the conservative tradition. He also examines the tradeoffs made by conservatives, many of which raise serious questions as to whether modern conservatives are effectively protecting the interests of blacks. Saviors or Sellouts is an original and penetrating account of a puzzling phenomenon in American culture and politics.



About the Author Christopher Alan Bracey is Associate Professor of Law and Associate Professor of African & African American Studies at Washington University in St. Louis, where he teaches and researches in the areas of the constitutional law, civil rights, and the history of American race relations.