Fear of a Black America

"Fear of a "Black" America" demonstrates the historical connections between multiculturalism and African Americans. Although multiculturalism has many supporters, cultural equality remains a tough pill for highbrow American culture, mainstream Americans, and many elite African Americans to swallow. "Fear of a "Black" America"'s other theme centers on the recent battles over multiculturalism among African Americans and in the mainstream public arena. The main story is how the media worked in concert with conservatives to label multiculturalism as "Black," "evil," and "divisive." These forces killed multiculturalism in the American public discourse, even as employers, school districts, and universities used the idea to address their increasingly diverse workforces and classrooms. Multiculturalism is similar to a ghost, neither fully dead nor alive, but in need of a resting place within America's multicultural future.