1st Edition

Race and U.S. Foreign Policy from 1900 Through World War II

Edited By E. Nathaniel Gates Copyright 1998

    Explores the concept of race
    The term race, which originally denoted genealogical or class identity, has in the comparatively brief span of 300 years taken on an entirely new meaning. In the wake of the Enlightenment it came to be applied to social groups. This ideological transformation coupled with a dogmatic insistence that the groups so designated were natural, and not socially created, gave birth to the modern notion of races as genetically distinct entities. The results of this view were the encoding of race and racial hierarchies in law, literature, and culture.

    How racial categories facilitate social control
    The articles in the series demonstrate that the classification of humans according to selected physical characteristics was an arbitrary decision that was not based on valid scientific method. They also examine the impact of colonialism on the propagation of the concept and note that racial categorization is a powerful social force that is often used to promote the interests of dominant social groups. Finally, the collection surveys how laws based on race have been enacted around the world to deny power to minority groups.

    A multidisciplinary resource
    This collection of outstanding articles brings multiple perspectives to bear on race theory and draws on a wider ranger of periodicals than even the largest library usually holds. Even if all the articles were available on campus, chances are that a student would have to track them down in several libraries and microfilm collections. Providing, of course, that no journals were reserved for graduate students, out for binding, or simply missing. This convenient set saves students substantial time and effort by making available all the key articles in one reliable source.

    Authoritative commentary
    The series editor has put together a balanced selection of the most significant works, accompanied by expert commentary. A general introduction gives important background information and outlines fundamental issues, current scholarship, and scholarly controversies. Introductions to individual volumes put the articles in context and draw attention to germinal ideas and major shifts in the field. After reading the material, even a beginning student will have an excellent grasp of the basics of the subject.

    Theodore Roosevelt's Social Darwinism and Views on Imperialism, The Louisiana Purchase Exposition, Saint Louis, 1904: The Coronation of Civilization, The Afro-American Response to the Occupation of Haiti, 1915-1934, The Damnable Dilemma: African-American Accommodation and Protest During World War II, Human Rights in History: Diplomacy and Racial Equality at the Paris Peace Conference, William E.B. DuBois, Marcus Garvey, and Pan-Africa, Black Nationalism and the Italo-Ethiopian Conflict, 1934-1936, Black America and the Italian-Ethiopian Crisis: An Episode in Pan-Negroism, Black Americans and Italo-Ethiopian Relief, 1935-1936, Afro-American Reactions to the Japanese and the Anti-Japanese Movement, 1906-1924, The Genesis of American-Japanese Antagonism, Yellow, Red, and Black Men, Racial Aspects of the Far Eastern War of 1941-1945, Cross-Cultural Perception and World War II: American Japanists of the 1940s and Their Images of Japan, Walter White and the American Negro Soldier in World War II: A Diplomatic Dilemma for Britain 342 Britain and the Black G.I.s: Racial Issues and Anglo-American Relations in 1942

    Biography

    Michael L. Krenn University of Miami