Uneasy alliance: The participation of African Americans in conservative social, political, and intellectual movements

• Main Author: Prisock, Louis G
• Language: ENG
• Published: ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst 2007
• Subjects: American studies|Black studies|Political science|Social structure|African American Studies
• Online Access: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations/AAI3275813

A “one-size fits all” approach often characterizes discussions of conservatism amongst African-Americans. The purpose of this study is twofold: first, to provide a more nuanced account of black conservatism in the United States by examining how it is articulated within three distinct contexts, the intellectual, the political and the social. Second, this study focuses on challenges African-American conservatives face in each of the three spheres as they operate within a larger white conservative movement that purports to adhere to the principle of “colorblindness.” The dissertation not only makes clear the fallacy of that principle, but also, demonstrates how conservatism falls prey to what is termed here, the “inescapability of race.