The Dilemmas and Contradictions of Economic Development for Blacks and Latinos in the United States

This review essay examines four books representing some of the main positions and proposed solutions regarding African American and Latino underdevelopment in the United States today. It summarizes and contrasts the various, often contending views, present in the books. The author argues that the debate reflects deep contradictions in American society and that the differing positions largely represent the views of the groups and interests in contention. While identifying weaknesses and possible research areas, the author introduces some of the elements for a progressive agenda emanating from the analysis. He insists that analyses that do not integrate class, gender, race/nationality, and socioeconomic system cannot grasp the complexity of minority underdevelopment in the United States. Finally, the essay emphasizes the need to add the variable of restructuring in an effort to understand the new dimensions of the problem and to develop solutions that respond to a globalizing economy and society.