This publication discusses the results of an opinion poll on the political views of young African Americans.

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Date Published: 2001

Price: $10.00

Tug-of-wars over style and strategy have often strained the relationship between groups in the race relations and racial justice movement. Some have been labeled as too confrontational, while others have been accused of working too much within the power structure. Holding Up the Mirror: Working Interdependently for Just and Inclusive Communities, published by the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, shows that mutual acceptance of seemingly competing tactics can make the movement stronger and more effective.

"There can never be a 'one-size-fits-all' approach to race relations because race problems appear in different ways and affect people differently," said Joint Center president, Eddie N. Williams. "In Holding Up the Mirror, race relations and racial justice groups from across a wide spectrum are acknowledging that strategic collaborations can help them all reach a wider, more diverse audience more effectively."

Written by Maggie Potapchuk, senior program associate with the Joint Center's Network of Alliances Bridging Race and Ethnicity (NABRE) program, Holding Up the Mirror provides greater insight into nine distinct approaches being used by local and national organizations across the country. It also recommends ways for creating collaborative strategies to address community issues.

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Date Published: March 2002

Price: $20.00

How can online dialogue on controversial issues of race and ethnicity strengthen local coalitions and promote action to address a specific issue?

From Talk to Action is a booklet concerning racial profiling and how to make creative use of online dialogue to foster improved race relations and civic empowerment. The booklet has a dual purpose. First, it is intended as a guide to community leaders who wish to foster dialogue, bolster action and awareness, and create positive solutions in their communities to address racial profiling. Second, the booklet is intended as a summary of a unique effort to demonstrate how online communications can be used to foster civic empowerment. By linking people who otherwise might not come in contact with each other, the technology can help to break down barriers to communication and interaction and thus both debunk negative stereotypes that continue to plague us and generate cooperative efforts to bridge racial and ethnic divisions.

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Date Published: April 2002

Price: $10.00

While African Americans are well represented in the nation's armed services overall, their numbers appear to be thinning in the army officer corps. Colonel Kendrick's study, based on intensive focus groups and surveys, examines what black officers themselves perceive to be causing this problem. Among their serious concerns are apparent inequities in career-enhancing job assignments, disparities in ROTC instruction at minority versus majority college campuses, and mentoring arrangements that stress white officers' needs. Kendrick recommends that the army equalize its education standards for all instructors, improve diversity training, and develop better systems for evaluating officer assignments.

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The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies (Joint Center) has long been a leading authority on trends related to the opinions and voting preferences of the nation’s black electorate.  Two years ago, when the Joint Center launched its Commission to Engage African Americans on Climate Change, we undertook a major poll of African Americans’ opinions on the issue of climate change, in which we found that more than half of black voters believe it to be a serious problem that the nation must address.  Last year, our second comprehensive survey of African Americans on  climate change issues produced further evidence that a strong majority of African American voters want government action on climate change, and revealed additional details about what they are willing to do as individuals to help mitigate the problem.

In this report, we present the findings of surveys we conducted in four key states—Arkansas, Indiana, Missouri and South Carolina—with a focus on determining how African American views on climate change and other issues might affect the outcomes of the mid-term national elections this November.  While it is always difficult to predict election outcomes, the information from these surveys will no doubt contribute to the body of knowledge that political and policy analysts will use to understand how the climate change issue is viewed by a key electoral constituency, particularly at a time of tremendous economic upheaval in the nation.