Michael Banton

This book deals with the study of race relations as a general body of knowledge which tries to bring together in a common framework studies of group relations in different countries. It explores the intellectual context within which the old conception of race relations arose.

Originally published in 1957 this volume deals with the issue of large scale immigration into Freetown, Sierra Leone from the rural areas in the 1950s and the problems which arose as a result. It analyzes the way traditional social systems had to adjust to the demands of urban life and charts the growth of Freetown from its foundation in the 18th Century. The ethnic composition of its population and the character of the rural districts from which the migrants come are also discussed, along with the motives for migration, the nature of housing and employment.

This book deals with the study of race relations as a general body of knowledge which tries to bring together in a common framework studies of group relations in different countries. It explores the intellectual context within which the old conception of race relations arose.

Originally published in 1957 this volume deals with the issue of large scale immigration into Freetown, Sierra Leone from the rural areas in the 1950s and the problems which arose as a result. It analyzes the way traditional social systems had to adjust to the demands of urban life and charts the growth of Freetown from its foundation in the 18th Century. The ethnic composition of its population and the character of the rural districts from which the migrants come are also discussed, along with the motives for migration, the nature of housing and employment.

Ethnic and Racial Consciousness is a completely revised version of the highly acclaimed first edition published in 1988. At that time no one expected the former Yugoslavia would break up with the brutal slaughter of neighbour by neighbour. Few would have predicted the horrific massacres in Rwanda and Burundi which have led to accusations of genocide. The ending of the cold war has been followed by struggles in the former Soviet Union in which one group has struggled for dominance and the other for independence. Ethnic conflict is now one of the main threats to peace in the contemporary world. This new edition offers an up-to-date introduction to the many issues surrounding our definition and understanding of ethnic and racial difference, racism and discrimination in general.

Attempts of nineteenth-century writers to establish “race” as a biological concept failed after Charles Darwin opened the door to a new world of knowledge. Yet this word already had a place in the organization of everyday life and in ordinary English language usage. This book explains how the idea of race became so important in the USA, generating conceptual confusion that can now be clarified. Developing an international approach, it reviews references to “race,” “racism,” and “ethnicity” in sociology, anthropology, philosophy, and comparative politics and identifies promising lines of research that may make it possible to supersede misleading notions of race in the social sciences.

Attempts of nineteenth-century writers to establish “race” as a biological concept failed after Charles Darwin opened the door to a new world of knowledge. Yet this word already had a place in the organization of everyday life and in ordinary English language usage. This book explains how the idea of race became so important in the USA, generating conceptual confusion that can now be clarified. Developing an international approach, it reviews references to “race,” “racism,” and “ethnicity” in sociology, anthropology, philosophy, and comparative politics and identifies promising lines of research that may make it possible to supersede misleading notions of race in the social sciences.

In this important and timely new book, Michael Banton examines the international politics of racial discrimination and racism. The book recounts key events in the international politics of race during the past few decades. It discusses the difficulties in defining race and racism, provides case studies of international initiatives and national measures against discrimination, and reviews the 2001 World Conference Against Racism. The idea that humans naturally belong in races derives from a scientific error, but it is not easily dispelled from popular thought. By relying on this conception of racism, the international antiracist movement continually recycles the very idea of race that it condemns. In its place, the adoption of an international perspective should inspire a powerful critique of the language of race as used in the English-speaking world. The new language of human rights reformulates the issues in ways that should appeal to everyone. Michael Banton's writings over many years have included classical studies of race and ethnicity and have made him one of the best-known and respected sociologists of race. This book will be a key text for students of the politics and sociology of race, international relations and anti-discrimination law. It is written in a style that will also appeal to the general reader.

In this important and timely new book, Michael Banton examines the international politics of racial discrimination and racism. The book recounts key events in the international politics of race during the past few decades. It discusses the difficulties in defining race and racism, provides case studies of international initiatives and national measures against discrimination, and reviews the 2001 World Conference Against Racism. The idea that humans naturally belong in races derives from a scientific error, but it is not easily dispelled from popular thought. By relying on this conception of racism, the international antiracist movement continually recycles the very idea of race that it condemns. In its place, the adoption of an international perspective should inspire a powerful critique of the language of race as used in the English-speaking world. The new language of human rights reformulates the issues in ways that should appeal to everyone. Michael Banton's writings over many years have included classical studies of race and ethnicity and have made him one of the best-known and respected sociologists of race. This book will be a key text for students of the politics and sociology of race, international relations and anti-discrimination law. It is written in a style that will also appeal to the general reader.

This thoroughly revised and updated edition of Michael Banton’s classic book reviews historical theories of racial and ethnic relations and contemporary struggles to supersede them. It shows how eighteenth- and nineteenth-century concepts of race attempted to explain human difference in terms of race as a permanent type and how these were followed by social scientific conceptions of race as a form of status. In a new concluding chapter, ‘Race as social construct’, Michael Banton makes the case for a historically sensitive social scientific understanding of racial and ethnic groupings which operates within a more general theory of collective action and is, therefore, able to replace racial explanations as effectively as they have been replaced in biological science. This book is essential reading for anyone wanting to understand contemporary debates about racial and ethnic conflict.

Ethnic and Racial Consciousness is a completely revised version of the highly acclaimed first edition published in 1988. At that time no one expected the former Yugoslavia would break up with the brutal slaughter of neighbour by neighbour. Few would have predicted the horrific massacres in Rwanda and Burundi which have led to accusations of genocide. The ending of the cold war has been followed by struggles in the former Soviet Union in which one group has struggled for dominance and the other for independence. Ethnic conflict is now one of the main threats to peace in the contemporary world. This new edition offers an up-to-date introduction to the many issues surrounding our definition and understanding of ethnic and racial difference, racism and discrimination in general.

This is the first book to provide an inside account of how a United Nations human rights treaty body actually works. At the same time it is an introduction to the international law of racial discrimination. The book focuses on the practical operation and implementation of the International Covenant on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, emphasising throughout the relationship between the law and politics. The book takes account of current issues in international race relations - from the process of dismantling apartheid in South Africa to recent horrors and genocides in the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda. Michael Banton's latest work will be crucial reading for anyone interested in eliminating racial discrimination on an international level. About Michael Banton: Michael Banton is Chairman of the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, 1996-98.

The years 1965–8 were the ‘liberal hour’ for race relations policy in Britain. Laws were then enacted, enforcement agencies created, and community relations councils established. These bodies, and their personnel, have been called ‘the race relations industry’. To many people, the output of this ‘industry’ appears disappointing relative to the input into it. This book examines a variety of optimistic assumptions about the speed with which immigrants adjust to a new environment; inadequate minority bargaining power; insufficiently speedy and decisive action by the central government; unwillingness on the part of the white majority to accept the desirability of such action; and the difficulty of fitting a race relations policy into an administrative system created to serve an ethnically homogeneous population. The policies initiated in 1965 reflected the ascendancy of liberal over conservative assumptions about race relations. Now these are under sharp attack from a radical standpoint. Promoting Racial Harmony shows how the debate has changed, drawing upon recent economic theory to formulate the issues in an original but non-technical manner.