When Affirmative Action Was White

An Untold History of Racial Inequality in Twentieth-Century America

By: Ira Katznelson

Narrated by: Jonathan Yen

Length: 8 hrs and 20 mins

Publisher's summary

In this "penetrating new analysis" (New York Times Book Review), Ira Katznelson fundamentally recasts our understanding of 20th century American history and demonstrates that all the key programs passed during the New Deal and Fair Deal era of the 1930s and 1940s were created in a deeply discriminatory manner. Through mechanisms designed by southern democrats that specifically excluded maids and farm workers, the gap between blacks and whites actually widened despite postwar prosperity. In the words of noted historian Eric Foner, "Katznelson's incisive book should change the terms of debate about affirmative action, and about the last 70 years of American history.”

©2005 Ira Katznelson (P)2016 Tantor

Critic reviews

"[An] intriguing study" ( Publishers Weekly)

i recommend

Good listen but at times it was a list of stats. The book included a very thoughtful discussion of the New Deal and its impact on African Americans.

Excellent and eye opening

Opened my eyes to the intricacies of racist practices that have been imbedded in our society throughout the 1900s, which propelled one part of society and hindered the other.

A must read for all Americans

This book poignantly explains and exposes why there are such stark racial gaps in America and how it was accomplished through intentional design. The narrator makes a very tough subject to become aware of easy to listen to, which made the subject matter that much more effective

A MUST READ for every American.

A MUST READ for every American. This book explains how we find ourselves in our current environment and how to make a more equitable future for all.

Telling American history as it is

When Affirmative Action was White is just another addition to the stream of scholarship clarifying exactly how America created a racial wealth gap, the specific actions and attitudes that created it and those utilized to address it along with lessons learned. I think this is a crucial contribution to the overall argument for restorative or corrective justice with an emphasis on large government action used to grow the gap and the need for large, systemic solutions to reduce it. Ira Katznelson also does a great job explaining HOW these arguments should be made and the immense failure of relying on common sense or empathy to carry the day. Overall a really thorough book that delivers on its title.

A *MUST* Read/Listen

Loved the analysis. It fits well to what I experience growing up in Atlanta. If you want to understand a component of racism, start here first!

Very informative and honest!

it's not honest that you can read a mainstream book and hear the truth about how the US government treated African Americans or American descendants of slaves(ASOS)!!

Extremely enlightening

This book is profoundly informative and interesting. It should be a curriculum read in our school system and a required read for immigrants.

Intelligent Description of Some Sources of Modern Inequality

Excellent study of how the New Deal, GI Bill, and Fair Deal were shaped by southern Democrats to benefit their white constituencies and deliberately cut out African-Americans. A pretty brilliant historical defense of why Affirmative Action for African-Americans made sense (and still makes sense) to account in a small way for past discrimination.

Riveting and necessary read for all Europeans-Americans (white-American, EAs) and others alike!

This book is an extension to W.E.B. Dubois ‘The Souls of Black Folks’ (which chronicled the daily hardships, life, racist systematic restrictions all of which prevented and delayed the upward mobility of African Americans (AA) post Emancipation!)

I will keep my review succinct however please view the sources I reference if you really want to understand what the black experience was/is like for many black Americans today; why the wealth gap is as massive as it is, why the prison industrial complex is merely a modern form of Jim Crow (which existed overtly from 1876-1960) throughout the US, it was more overt in the South however don’t be naive to believe that AAs’ were better off or did not face white rage, violence and discriminatory treatment in the North, West or the East, The US was and still is one NATION.

I commend the narrator’s voice throughout this audiobook. He was enthusiastic all throughout which made listening to such awful information of consistent legal exclusion, differential treatment towards AAs’ somewhat tolerable.

‘When Affirmative Action was white’ pros:
•It provided a mixture of national statistics, opinion surveys, polls and assessments on Americans views towards AAs’ from the 1930s-1950s which gives you immense context because “time changes so [hopefully] do some peoples views.” All of which are embedded in colorful yet racist laden stories.

• It graphically detailed how AAs‘ nationally have experienced well over “seven centuries of disenfranchisement not four” due to the racist EAs who were in Government roles during those eras.

•It described the various legal mechanisms that were by design racist and consistently excluded and ignored the needs of AAs’ but were handsomely given to EAs (ie. GI Bills benefits, home loans, business loans, security, access to high quality schools, social security, employment, access to health amongst other).

•It documented economic statistics on the workforce, schools, gender, employment salaries (wage discrimination, exploitation) and much. Many of these restrictions amongst other hardships during those time the author argued also contributed to the destruction of the black family structure.

• It detailed the stance of various Presidents during those times which is crucial.

• It stated dozens of factoids (ie, racist laws that were by design created to maintain the status quo toward AAs’ while propelling the formation of a white middle class, sustaining racist defacto quotas, and racist EA’s treatment towards AAs’ and more) which he argues is why many AA and (black Americans) continue to be left behind or at the lower end of the social economic ladder in 2020.

‘When Affirmative Action was white’ con: none, this is NECESSARY reading!

Additional references:
The New Jim Crow- Michelle Alexander
Black like me-John Griffin
Why are all the black children sitting together in the cafeteria- Dr. Beverly Tatum
The Moynihan Report: The Negro Family-Daniel Moynihan