Top Down

The Ford Foundation, Black Power, and the Reinvention of Racial Liberalism

Nonfiction, Social & Cultural Studies, Political Science, Politics, Civil Rights, History, Americas, United States, 20th Century
Cover of the book Top Down by Karen Ferguson, University of Pennsylvania Press, Inc.
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Karen Ferguson ISBN: 9780812209037
Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press, Inc. Publication: June 13, 2013
Imprint: University of Pennsylvania Press Language: English
Author: Karen Ferguson
ISBN: 9780812209037
Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press, Inc.
Publication: June 13, 2013
Imprint: University of Pennsylvania Press
Language: English

At first glance, the Ford Foundation and the black power movement would make an unlikely partnership. After the Second World War, the renowned Foundation was the largest philanthropic organization in the United States and was dedicated to projects of liberal reform. Black power ideology, which promoted self-determination over color-blind assimilation, was often characterized as radical and divisive. But Foundation president McGeorge Bundy chose to engage rather than confront black power's challenge to racial liberalism through an ambitious, long-term strategy to foster the "social development" of racial minorities. The Ford Foundation not only bankrolled but originated many of the black power era's hallmark legacies: community control of public schools, ghetto-based economic development initiatives, and race-specific arts and cultural organizations.

In Top Down, Karen Ferguson explores the consequences of this counterintuitive and unequal relationship between the liberal establishment and black activists and their ideas. In essence, the white liberal effort to reforge a national consensus on race had the effect of remaking racial liberalism from the top down—a domestication of black power ideology that still flourishes in current racial politics. Ultimately, this new racial liberalism would help foster a black leadership class—including Barack Obama—while accommodating the intractable inequality that first drew the Ford Foundation to address the "race problem."

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

At first glance, the Ford Foundation and the black power movement would make an unlikely partnership. After the Second World War, the renowned Foundation was the largest philanthropic organization in the United States and was dedicated to projects of liberal reform. Black power ideology, which promoted self-determination over color-blind assimilation, was often characterized as radical and divisive. But Foundation president McGeorge Bundy chose to engage rather than confront black power's challenge to racial liberalism through an ambitious, long-term strategy to foster the "social development" of racial minorities. The Ford Foundation not only bankrolled but originated many of the black power era's hallmark legacies: community control of public schools, ghetto-based economic development initiatives, and race-specific arts and cultural organizations.

In Top Down, Karen Ferguson explores the consequences of this counterintuitive and unequal relationship between the liberal establishment and black activists and their ideas. In essence, the white liberal effort to reforge a national consensus on race had the effect of remaking racial liberalism from the top down—a domestication of black power ideology that still flourishes in current racial politics. Ultimately, this new racial liberalism would help foster a black leadership class—including Barack Obama—while accommodating the intractable inequality that first drew the Ford Foundation to address the "race problem."

More books from University of Pennsylvania Press, Inc.

Cover of the book Ceramics by Karen Ferguson
Cover of the book The Poetics of Piracy by Karen Ferguson
Cover of the book How to Accept German Reparations by Karen Ferguson
Cover of the book The Arabic Role in Medieval Literary History by Karen Ferguson
Cover of the book Healing Secular Life by Karen Ferguson
Cover of the book Rude Awakening by Karen Ferguson
Cover of the book Faces of Moderation by Karen Ferguson
Cover of the book The Brandywine by Karen Ferguson
Cover of the book Public Education Under Siege by Karen Ferguson
Cover of the book To Read My Heart by Karen Ferguson
Cover of the book Novels in the Time of Democratic Writing by Karen Ferguson
Cover of the book Billy Graham and the Rise of the Republican South by Karen Ferguson
Cover of the book Parades and the Politics of the Street by Karen Ferguson
Cover of the book Race and Practice in Archaeological Interpretation by Karen Ferguson
Cover of the book Battle Lines by Karen Ferguson
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy