The American racial order - the beliefs, institutions, and practices that organize relationships among the nation's races and ethnicities - is undergoing its greatest transformation since the 1960s. This book looks at the reasons behind this dramatic change, and considers how different groups of Americans are being affected.
"This is a wide-ranging exploration of how America looks, thinks, and lives in terms of race as we go into this new millennium. Bridging political science, sociology, and the burgeoning study of DNA, the authors show us that racial order remains one of the most reliable ways of organizing our past and present as Americans, even as that order is dynamic and indeed transformed over time."--Henry Louis Gates Jr., Harvard University
"It is not often that one reads a book that changes how we think the world works. Creating a New Racial Order is replete with original, and sometimes surprising, insights and evidence on the forces that are generating rising racial heterogeneity in the United States. The authors' compelling analysis of the ongoing transformation of America's racial order is a must-read."--William Julius Wilson, Harvard University
"Showing how historical trends have produced an unprecedented complexity and fluidity in racial meanings, classifications, and identities in the United States, this book argues that the American racial order is changing for the better and explains why this is happening. Bold and provocative, this book is a game changer."--Claire Jean Kim, University of California, Irvine
"With an in-depth analysis of changing definitions of race, this compelling and absorbing book presents evidence that the American racial order is in the middle of a historic transformation. It marshals a spectacular amount of research and sophisticated detail, and will stir considerable debate and discussion. In my reading in this subject area, I haven't encountered a book equal to this one."--Raphael J. Sonenshein, California State University, Fullerton
"Future historians may find that Hochschild, Weaver, and Burch got many things wrong, but I doubt they will fault them for lacking bold vision and intellectual courage. This important and timely book belongs not on the shelf but on the desk of every serious scholar of race, regardless of the discipline."
---Matt Wray, Journal of American History
