Majority Minority
Format:Hardback
Publisher:Oxford University Press Inc
Published:27th May '22
Should be back in stock very soon
"Trenchant and groundbreaking work" -- Molly Ball,National Political Correspondent, TIME Magazine "The go-to source for understanding how demographic change is impacting American politics." - Jonathan Capehart, The Washington Post and MSNBC "A treasure trove" -- Thomas B. Edsall, Columnist, The New York Times "A joy to read. . . A tour de force" -- Eric Kaufmann, Professor of Politics, Birkbeck College, University of London How do societies respond to great demographic change? This question lingers over the contemporary politics of the United States and other countries where persistent immigration has altered populations and may soon produce a majority minority milestone, where the original ethnic or religious majority loses its numerical advantage to one or more foreign-origin minority groups. Until now, most of our knowledge about largescale responses to demographic change has been based on studies of individual people's reactions, which tend to be instinctively defensive and intolerant. We know little about why and how these habits are sometimes tempered to promote more successful coexistence. To anticipate and inform future responses to demographic change, Justin Gest looks to the past. In Majority Minority, Gest wields historical analysis and interview-based fieldwork inside six of the world's few societies that have already experienced a majority minority transition to understand what factors produce different social outcomes. Gest concludes that, rather than yield to people's prejudices, states hold great power to shape public responses and perceptions of demographic change through political institutions and the rhetoric of leaders. Through subsequent survey research, Gest also identifies novel ways that leaders can leverage nationalist sentiment to reduce the appeal of nativism--by framing immigration and demographic change in terms of the national interest. Grounded in rich narratives and surprising survey findings, Majority Minority reveals that this contentious milestone and its accompanying identity politics are ultimately subject to unifying or divisive governance.
This work is powerful and convincing; it should be read by those interested in US and world history, law, sociology, and immigration. Researchers will quickly identify that there is simply no other book quite like this one, making Gest's work truly groundbreaking. * A. R. S. Lorenz, Ramapo College, CHOICE *
Justin Gest's trenchant and groundbreaking work adds badly needed context to the fraught discussion of American demographics while opening a window onto other societies. With rich prose and wide-ranging scholarship, Gest's clear-eyed analysis puts our vicious national divides into perspective and argues that they can, in fact, be solved—if we make the right choices. The conclusion is as compelling as it is challenging: only by seeing past American exceptionalism can we fulfill America's destiny and become a truly cohesive multiracial democracy. * Molly Ball, National Political Correspondent, TIME Magazine *
Ever since I read The New Minority, Justin Gest has been one of my go-to sources for understanding how the demographic changes in the United States are impacting White people and American politics. With Majority Minority, Gest not only shows that what's happening in the United States and Europe is not unique, but he also delineates three paths taken by majority minority societies when confronted with demographic change. Thanks to Gest, the test facing the United States is clear. * Jonathan Capehart, The Washington Post and MSNBC *
Justin Gest's Majority Minority is a treasure trove of analysis, information, data and, most importantly, a thoughtful conclusion based on solid research. Gest addresses what has become a central dilemma in the nation's politics: how can white Americans come to terms with the loss of majority status? His book goes far beyond prior studies in that he examines how six other societies that have undergone parallel population upheavals—Hawai'i, Mauritius, Singapore, New York City, Bahrain, and Trinidad and Tobago—to document the key role played by political and civic leaders. Majority Minority could not be more relevant. * Thomas B. Edsall, Columnist, The New York Times *
Majority Minority is a joy to read. It takes a pressing problem (demographic change and backlash politics), and combines serious social science analysis with rich description and reportage. It is a tour de force that will no doubt become a fixture on reading lists. * Eric Kaufmann, Professor of Politics, Birkbeck College, University of London *
ISBN: 9780197641798
Dimensions: 157mm x 226mm x 43mm
Weight: 703g
424 pages