Liberal Racism

A political journalist reflects on the liberal policies that deal with race, arguing that the liberal view of race is outdated and that these views promote a country divided by racial resentment. Tour.

Anyone who can resist the temptation to dismiss this book as another conservative-in-liberal's-clothing attack on the legacy of the civil rights movement will find it disturbing and well worth reading. Veteran journalist Sleeper (The Closest of Strangers: Liberalism and the Politics of Race in New York, 1990) argues that liberals have shifted from the laudable goal of a race-blind society to a ``racialist'' mindset that segments society along racial lines. In their ``puzzling'' attachment to race, they defer to ``race hustlers, ideologues, and opportunists'' (read figures like William Kunstler and Al Sharpton) in ``the name of `diversity' '' instead of welcoming the prospect of a society that transcends race. But Sleeper is not an apologist for past and present racism. He shrilly condemns liberals who have lost sight of the importance of individualism and universal values, yet sets himself apart from conservative critics by recognizing the reality of discrimination and genuinely seeking a society in which race does not matter. This not only places him directly at odds with proponents of identity politics, it imposes a burden that he does not directly confront: If your goal is racelessness but you refuse to pretend that it already exists, some method of achieving that goal is required. Avoiding this tricky problem is excusable--public policy is not the focus here--but there is a more troubling matter to consider. Although Sleeper proceeds in a journalistic style by introducing us to a series of people, throughout he tends to lump ``liberals'' into a monolithic bloc and attack them as one. This not only suggests the presence of a straw man, it seems to be the kind of arbitrary grouping that Sleeper objects to when the commonality is race. Nevertheless, anyone with the courage to address such a loaded issue and to raise uncomfortable but undeniable concerns in an honest manner must be applauded. (Author tour) -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Sleeper argues that liberals who once pushed America to think beyond color have of late gravitated toward ideas and policies that are essentially racist. Sleeper maintains that liberals make many destructive racial assumptions, including the notion that color itself determines an individual's destiny. Similarly, they frequently have lower expectations for people of color, notably in the area of crime, where they like to see African American criminals as victims. Such thinking, he believes, diverts us from the reality of crime and its causes. The media also come under Sleeper's keen eye, including the New York Times, which, in his view, regularly "gets race wrong" by accepting the above myths. Sleeper's analysis is hard nosed and penetrating, but his aim isn't to tear down. Just the opposite, as he hopes to direct progressive ideology and its practitioners back toward truly liberating traditions. Brian McCombie