Ethcaste: PanAfrican Communalism and the Black Middleclass

by Douglas V. Davidson

Overview

Ethcaste is a theoretical analysis and interpretation of one of the most complex and controversial groups in U.S. society—the black middle class. While this group has received accolades from the liberal journalistic press as well as academia, it has also been highly criticized and oftentimes ridiculed by radical black political activists and intellectuals. This analysis represents an effort to clarify the larger black community as an oppressed group constrained by the capitalist racial dynamics of the dominant white society. In so doing, it summarizes and critiques the major theoretical approaches to the study of social class in U.S. sociology as well as the dominant theories of race and ethnic relations. Noting that most of this preceding scholarship has studied the black community from the perspective that blacks constitute a racial (thus non-cultural) group as opposed to an ethnic (distinct cultural) group, the author presents compelling evidence of the vitality of black American culture and argues persuasively that any analysis of the black middle class must locate it within the cultural dynamics of the larger black community. The core argument in the text is that the so-called racial struggle must be re-defined as a cultural struggle where the core values, norms, and beliefs of the black community have been and continue to be in an intense struggle for dominance with the core values, norms, and beliefs of the white community. In essence, the book offers an alternative model for describing and interpreting the historical and contemporary racial dynamics between the black and white communities.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780761819158
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	03/14/2001
Edition description:	ANN
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	5.54(w) x 8.80(h) x 0.78(d)

About the Author

Douglas V. Davidson is an Associate Professor of Sociology at Western Michigan University.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 Dedication
Chapter 2 Acknowledgements
Chapter 3 Introduction
Chapter 4 The Problem
Chapter 5 Analysis of Controversial Issues Surrounding the Black Ethcaste Elite
Chapter 6 Critical Review of Selected Sociological Class Theories
Chapter 7 Critical Review of Theories
Chapter 8 American Sociological Class Theory and Democratic Capitalist Culture
Chapter 9 Class, Caste and Race
Chapter 10 Internal Colonialism and Black Culture- The PanAfrican Continuum
Chapter 11 Ethcaste and Sociocultural Diversity Among the Black Middleclass
Chapter 12 Ethcaste and the Political Economy of the African American Middleclass
Chapter 13 Conclusion
Chapter 14 Chapter Notes
Chapter 15 Index

Editorial Reviews

The author studies the position of the Black middle class in an effort to expose the biases inherent in contemporary sociological models. He also proposes a model intended to more accurately describe the dynamics of race, class, and culture. To this end, he analyzes the controversial issues surrounding the Black Ethcaste elite and critically reviews sociological class theories, including those of Marx, Weber, and the structural-functionalists. An alternative account is proposed, based on the sociocultural diversity and political economy of the Black middle class. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

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