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Since the creation of the Louisiana Legislative Black Caucus in 1977, the number of black lawmakers in the Louisiana legislature has increased; however, many of the socioeconomic indicators show that the condition of their constituents has failed to improve. In The Louisiana Legislative Black Caucus, Jas M. Sullivan and Jonathan Winburn analyze the evolution of the LLBC and raise critical questions as to the effectiveness and limitations of this body of minority legislators. Sullivan and Winburn ask why the LLBC, composed entirely of Democrats, had the lowest bill-passage rate among all the groups in the legislature at the same time the Democratic Party held the majority. The inability of the LLBC to form coalitions across party lines, and even inside its own party, limits its effectiveness, the authors contend. Though LLBC members vote together more often than any other group in the legislature, their bills rarely receive support from outside the caucus. The issues faced by the LLBC's constituents often fail to garner enough support from white Democrats, a group more closely aligned with their Republican colleagues. Based on years of research and extensive interviews with caucus members, The Louisiana Legislative Black Caucus offers a deft analysis of minority representation in Louisiana that helps explain why, four decades after the LLBC was established, blacks continue to lag behind whites in key social and economic areas in the Pelican State.
Since the creation of the Louisiana Legislative Black Caucus in 1977, the number of black lawmakers in the Louisiana legislature has increased; however, many of the socioeconomic indicators show that the condition of their constituents has failed to improve. In The Louisiana Legislative Black Caucus, Jas M. Sullivan and Jonathan Winburn analyze the evolution of the LLBC and raise critical questions as to the effectiveness and limitations of this body of minority legislators. Sullivan and Winburn ask why the LLBC, composed entirely of Democrats, had the lowest bill-passage rate among all the groups in the legislature at the same time the Democratic Party held the majority. The inability of the LLBC to form coalitions across party lines, and even inside its own party, limits its effectiveness, the authors contend. Though LLBC members vote together more often than any other group in the legislature, their bills rarely receive support from outside the caucus. The issues faced by the LLBC's constituents often fail to garner enough support from white Democrats, a group more closely aligned with their Republican colleagues. Based on years of research and extensive interviews with caucus members, The Louisiana Legislative Black Caucus offers a deft analysis of minority representation in Louisiana that helps explain why, four decades after the LLBC was established, blacks continue to lag behind whites in key social and economic areas in the Pelican State.
Scholars studying the causes and consequences of political representation, particularly in terms of gender and race, often turn to a concept called descriptive representation. Descriptive representation tells us the degree to which elected officials resemble their constituents, and whether such a resemblance has a bearing on the way they legislate. In other words, do people vote for candidates of their same racial/ethnic background or gender? If they do, does this affect the type of policies an elected official pursues? Further, if citizens see people who look like them in office, does it have an effect on their political attitudes and participation? In this book, Christopher J. Clark argues that descriptive representation is a more multi-faceted phenomenon than previously shown, particularly when observed at the state level. He contends that black political involvement, political attitudes, and public opinion are contingent on more than being represented by a single black elected official. Rather, they hinge on the proportion of African Americans making up a state legislature--what Clark terms "black seat share"--as well as the degree to which that proportion reflects the demographic makeup of the state. As well, Clark pinpoints the critical mass of African American legislators necessary to initiate the creation of black caucuses, an important institution for minority representation. Clark bases his study on an examination of black representation in state legislatures between 1966 and 2010, looking particularly at black political opinion and involvement in the development of welfare and education policy.
This book tests the effectiveness of political control and neutral rules on limiting partisan gerrymandering in state legislative redistricting. Specifically, the book examines the 2000 redistricting process in eight states_Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Texas, and Washington.
The deliberate devaluation of Blacks and their communities has had very real, far-reaching, and negative economic and social effects. An enduring white supremacist myth claims brutal conditions in Black communities are mainly the result of Black people's collective choices and moral failings. “That's just how they are” or “there's really no excuse”: we've all heard those not so subtle digs. But there is nothing wrong with Black people that ending racism can't solve. We haven't known how much the country will gain by properly valuing homes and businesses, family structures, voters, and school districts in Black neighborhoods. And we need to know. Noted educator, journalist, and scholar Andre Perry takes readers on a tour of six Black-majority cities whose assets and strengths are undervalued. Perry begins in his hometown of Wilkinsburg, a small city east of Pittsburgh that, unlike its much larger neighbor, is struggling and failing to attract new jobs and industry. Bringing his own personal story of growing up in Black-majority Wilkinsburg, Perry also spotlights five others where he has deep connections: Detroit, Birmingham, New Orleans, Atlanta, and Washington, D.C. He provides an intimate look at the assets that should be of greater value to residents—and that can be if they demand it. Perry provides a new means of determining the value of Black communities. Rejecting policies shaped by flawed perspectives of the past and present, it gives fresh insights on the historical effects of racism and provides a new value paradigm to limit them in the future. Know Your Price demonstrates the worth of Black people's intrinsic personal strengths, real property, and traditional institutions. These assets are a means of empowerment and, as Perry argues in this provocative and very personal book, are what we need to know and understand to build Black prosperity.
A multidimensional perspective captures the complexities of African American racial identity. While the dynamics of racial oppression limit the range of attitudes blacks may construct and hold, their basic humanity introduces additional attitudinal variance that is nearly boundless. Rather than claim it is possible to conceptualize and measure every iteration of blackness, modern social theorists such as Robert Sellers and William Cross Jr. contend that one should systematically “sample” the unmanageable range of different identity frames found among blacks. In Dimensions of Blackness, the authors suggest there is no single, solitary way to express black racial identity. They move away from blackness as binary and instead reveal what happens when black racial identity is conceptualized with “difference of opinion.” Using a multidimensional perspective this book explores whether black racial identity differences among blacks influence political attitudes and behavior.