The book explores the transportation advantages of Sunbelt cities like Atlanta, Charlotte, and Miami, highlighting Charlotte's strategic investments in infrastructure and civic initiatives. It examines the evolution of leadership in Charlotte throughout the twentieth century, focusing on a pro-growth coalition that influenced the city's development in areas such as ambience, race relations, and economic decisions. The interplay of local policies and external funding is analyzed to understand how these factors positioned Charlotte competitively on a global scale.
Examining the media's influence, this book delves into how public perceptions of David Dinkins' tenure as mayor were crafted and transformed. It highlights the dynamics between media portrayal and political leadership, revealing the complexities of Dinkins' administration and the societal implications of media narratives. Through analysis of coverage and public discourse, the work offers insights into the intersection of race, politics, and media in urban governance.
In a provocative and controversial analysis, Wilbur C. Rich’s The Post-Racial Society is Here conclusively demonstrates that nation is in midst of a post-racial society. Yet many Americans are skeptical of this fundamental social transformation. The failure of recognition is related to the remnants of the previous race-based society. Recognizing the advent of a post-racial society is not to gainsay recurrent racial incidents or a denial of the socio-economic gap between the races. Using the findings of historians and social scientists, this book outlines why the construction and deconstruction of the race-based society was such a difficult and daunting enterprise. Starting from the nation’s inception, Rich examines how the nation elites used racial language, separate schools, and the media to divide Americans. After World War II, the nation used U.S. Supreme Court rulings and the Congressional passage of Civil Rights laws to dismantle the institutional support for racial segregation and discrimination. The black Civil Rights Movement facilitated and consolidated the movement toward socio-political inclusion of African Americans. Rich alerts the reader to the unprecedented progress made and why the forces of the new global economy demand that we move faster to make society more inclusive. This thought-provocking book should interest scholars of sociology, Africana Studies, American studies and African American politics.
