What Racists Believe

About this book

Can our knowledge of South Africa racism help us understand racism in the United States? Even though South Africa is dismantling its legally structured system of inequality, the structures of consciousness that gave rise to, and nurtured the system of, white privilege and predominance are tenacious and enduring. In What Racists Believe the author examines a wide spectrum of evidence, showing how the in-group consciousness of whites is reproduced and revealing the processes under which it is maintained. He explains how and why people believe in racial inequality and how they transmit such beliefs to others. The ideology of white solidarity, its perpetuation, and its breakdown is also analyzed. In the author's analysis, he separates different strands of racism: rural from urban, and moderate from militant. A final chapter compares the racial attitudes of South Africa to those in the United States. . Students, scholars, and anyone interested in race relations, sociology, anthropology, political science or African studies will surely appreciate the illuminating information found in What Racists Believe.