Recent flashpoints in Black-Jewish relations--Louis Farrakhan's Million Man March, the violence in Crown Heights, Leonard Jeffries' polemical speeches, the O.J. Simpson verdict, and the contentious responses to these events--suggest just how wide the gap has become in the fragile coalition that was formed during the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s. Instead of critical dialogue and respectful exchange, we have witnessed battles that too often consist of vulgar name-calling and self-righteous finger-pointing. Absent from these exchanges are two vitally important and potentially healing elements: Comprehension of the actual history between Blacks and Jews, and level-headed discussion of the many issues that currently divide the two groups. In Struggles in the Promised Land, editors Jack Salzman and Cornel West bring together twenty-one illuminating essays that fill precisely this absence. As Salzman makes clear in his introduction, the purpose of this collection is not to offer quick fixes to the present crisis but to provide a clarifying historical framework from which lasting solutions may emerge. Where historical knowledge is lacking, rhetoric comes rushing in, and Salzman asserts that the true history of Black-Jewish relations remains largely untold. To communicate that history, the essays gathered here move from the common demonization of Blacks and Jews in the Middle Ages; to an accurate assessment of Jewish involvement of the slave trade; to the confluence of Black migration from the South and Jewish immigration from Europe into Northern cities between 1880 and 1935; to the meaningful alliance forged during the Civil Rights movement and the conflicts over Black Power and the struggle in the Middle East that effectively ended that alliance. The essays also provide reasoned discussion of such volatile issues as affirmative action, Zionism, Blacks and Jews in the American Left, educational relations between the two groups, and the real and perceived roles Hollywood has play in the current tensions. The book concludes with personal pieces by Patricia Williams, Letty Cottin Pogrebin, Michael Walzer, and Cornel West, who argues that the need to promote Black-Jewish alliances is, above all, a "moral endeavor that exemplifies ways in which the most hated group in European history and the most hated group in U.S. history can coalesce in the name of precious democratic ideals." At a time when accusations come more readily than careful consideration, Struggles in the Promised Land offers a much-needed voice of reason and historical understanding. Distinguished by the caliber of its contributors, the inclusiveness of its focus, and the thoughtfulness of its writing, Salzman and West's book lays the groundwork for future discussions and will be essential reading for anyone interested in contemporary American culture and race relations.

Social deviance—any behavior that violates a cultural norm—can involve something as major as crime or as minor as consistently and deliberately wearing lively mismatched socks. Whether a crime, a sin, or simply unique taste, what’s considered deviant at one time and place can change, as when extensive tattooing and "body art" evolved from a sideshow carnival spectacle to a nearly universal rite of passage within U.S. culture. Drawing contributions from across the social and behavioral sciences, including sociology, anthropology, criminology, politics, psychology, and religion, the Encyclopedia of Social Deviance introduces readers to the lively field of rule-making and rebellion that strikes at the core of what it means to be an individual living in a social world. Key Features: More than 300 articles authored by key figures in the field are organized A-to-Z in two volumes. Each article concludes with cross-references to related entries and further readings. A thematic "Reader’s Guide" groups related articles by broad areas (e.g., Concepts; Theories; Research Methodologies; Individual Deviance; Organizational Deviance; etc.) as one handy search feature on the e-Reference platform, which also includes a comprehensive index of search terms. Available in both electronic and print formats, this two-volume, A-to-Z encyclopedia set is a must-have resource for students and researchers who seek to understand social deviance. Key Themes: Crime, Property Crime, Sex Crime, Violent Crime, White-Collar/Corporate Defining Deviance Deviance in Social Institutions Deviant Subcultures Discrimination Drug Use and Abuse Marriage and Family Deviance Measuring Deviance Mental and Physical Disabilities Methodology for Studying Deviance Self-Destructive Deviance Sexual Deviance Social and Political Protest Social Control and Deviance Studying Deviant Subcultures Technology and Deviance Theories of Deviance, Macro Theories of Deviance, Micro Transitional Deviance

In 1927, Beatrice Cannady succeeded in removing racist language from the Oregon Constitution. During World War II, Rowena Moore fought for the right of black women to work in Omaha’s meat packinghouses. In 1942, Thelma Paige used the courts to equalize the salaries of black and white schoolteachers across Texas. In 1950 Lucinda Todd of Topeka laid the groundwork for the landmark Supreme Court decision Brown v. Board of Education. These actions—including sit-ins long before the Greensboro sit-ins of 1960—occurred well beyond the borders of the American South and East, regions most known as the home of the civil rights movement. By considering social justice efforts in western cities and states, Black Americans and the Civil Rights Movement in the West convincingly integrates the West into the historical narrative of black Americans’ struggle for civil rights. From Iowa and Minnesota to the Pacific Northwest, and from Texas to the Dakotas, black westerners initiated a wide array of civil rights activities in the early to late twentieth century. Connected to national struggles as much as they were tailored to local situations, these efforts predated or prefigured events in the East and South. In this collection, editors Bruce A. Glasrud and Cary D. Wintz bring these moments into sharp focus, as the contributors note the ways in which the racial and ethnic diversity of the West shaped a specific kind of African American activism. Concentrating on the far West, the mountain states, the desert Southwest, the upper Midwest, and states both southern and western, the contributors examine black westerners’ responses to racism in its various manifestations, whether as school segregation in Dallas, job discrimination in Seattle, or housing bias in San Francisco. Together their essays establish in unprecedented detail how efforts to challenge discrimination impacted and changed the West and ultimately the United States.