How Race Is Made in America examines Mexican Americans—from 1924; when American law drastically reduced immigration into the United States; to 1965; when many quotas were abolished—to understand how broad themes of race and citizenship are constructed. These years shaped the emergence of what Natalia Molina describes as an immigration regime; which defined the racial categories that continue to influence perceptions in the United States about Mexican Americans; race; and ethnicity. Molina demonstrates that despite the multiplicity of influences that help shape our concept of race; common themes prevail. Examining legal; political; social; and cultural sources related to immigration; she advances the theory that our understanding of race is socially constructed in relational ways—that is; in correspondence to other groups. Molina introduces and explains her central theory; racial scripts; which highlights the ways in which the lives of racialized groups are linked across time and space and thereby affect one another. How Race Is Made in America also shows that these racial scripts are easily adopted and adapted to apply to different racial groups.
#239090 in Books 2010-08-04Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.00 x .70 x 6.00l; .70 #File Name: 0520266560224 pages
Review
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful. Fascinating background solutions - how do we get there?By Joyce BenderCalifornia Crackup is the first non-fiction work since Seabiscuit to successfully lure me away from my evening novel. It's a real-life mystery thriller that unravels the twisted skein of California's political mess in clear; fast-paced writing. Even better; the mystery has a believable solution - fixes presented are ideas proven to work in other places instead of misty; untried fantasies. It's illuminating reading not just for Californians; but for everyone who wants more responsive; effective democracy. Like sheep to the slaughter; other states are blithely heading down the same slippery slope with no clue what's in store. Neither the root causes or the solutions are obvious. One problem: there's not even the briefest map to help readers have a part in turning this plan into reality - a puzzling deficiency given the voluminous footnotes on everything else.5 of 6 people found the following review helpful. Must-Read for understanding California's political quagmireBy Gary DelsohnYou have to read "California Crackup" by Joe Mathhews and Mark Paul to know how the wonderful state of California became so thoroughly broken. If a temperate climate and spectacular natural beauty were not enough; California is also a world-changer in everything from the arts to tech. But our government seems all but useless much of the time. Read this fast-paced and enetertaining little book and you'll understand why. To fix something you first need to know how it was broken. Crackup is an essential addition to our literaure about California by two outstanding journalists. Sadly; my major take away from the book is that a weakened media and an ill-informed and unrealistic public are just as much to blame for California's troubles as the people we send to Sacramento. It's true: we get the government we deserve. Excellent piece of writing; reporting and analysis; as well as fun to read.14 of 16 people found the following review helpful. You know it's broken; don't you?By Jerry SchwarzA few months ago; although it seems like years; I was standing on corners soliciting signatures on a petition to have an initiative to call a California constitutional convention. My catch phrase was "help fix California's government". When people walked past (as most did of course) I would say "you know it's broken" Only one person ever said no it isn't; but many laughed because what I said was so obvious.My explanation of what was broken was similar to the authors'. I described it as "a vicious cycle". The authors describe this as follows; "The public distrusts the legislature and their elected officials. So voters; preferring to trust themselves; make major policy decisions via ballot initiative. These decisions because of the requirement that initiatives not be changed by legislators alone; further tie the hands of lawmakers. The frustrated lawmakers find it difficult to solve pressing problems; further fueling the public frustration that produces more initiatives and more hand-tying. This vicious cycle produces anger; more budgeting at the ballot box and poor governance."The first part of the book contains a description of how California government reached its present condition. Especially valuable is the discussion of a number of initiatives that have contributed to creating California's dysfunction. Prop 13 and prop 98 are probably the best known; but if you care about California you also should know about prop 4 (the Gann initiative); prop 4(terrm limits); prop 63 (mental health) and many others discussed in this book.I found the description of the initiative that created the California lottery particularly instructive. Not because the initiative had a significant impact but because it perfectly encapsulates what is wrong with the process. Firstly it was a purely commercial activity. The original sponsor of the initiative was a company whose business is to collect signatures; financial backing came from a company that administers state lotteries. Both were working for themselves; not for California. Secondly; the result was to create a state lottery that "effectively -- and forever -- stripped state law makers of the power to make policy choices about how to manage the lottery; use the funds it generates; or adjust to changes in the market ..."In the second part of the book the authors present details of what a revised constitution that fixed California's government might look like. The organizing idea; which I haven't seen before; is that in California the legislative authority resides in a combination of the elected legislature and direct democracy. Currently they don't work well together (the vicious cycle) but reform can't get rid of either. Reform must combine them into a consistent whole in which they work together. The authors present in detail what this might look like. For example; they propose a unicameral legislature based on a form of proportional representation. And they propose one of my favorite ideas; electing state wide officiers via instant runoff voting. If you want to see all the details of their proposals you'll have to get the book.There is one significant issue that the authors don't address satisfactorily. Namely; how can we ever get a constitutional revision along these lines? They suggest that ultimately the legislature will recognize that a revision is needed and create either a revision commission or a constitutional convention. Personally I don't think this is realistic. But I don't blame the authors. They have done their job. They've presented a detailed plan that if enacted would have a good chance of fixing California government. The future of California may depend on some influential political actors picking up the ideas in this book.
