A groundbreaking look at how group expectations unify Black
Americans in their support of the Democratic party
Black Americans are by far the most unified racial group in American
electoral politics, with 80 to 90 percent identifying as Democrats--a
surprising figure given that nearly a third now also identify as
ideologically conservative, up from less than 10 percent in the 1970s.
Why has ideological change failed to push more Black Americans into the
Republican Party? Steadfast Democrats answers this question with a
pathbreaking new theory that foregrounds the specificity of the Black
American experience and illuminates social pressure as the key element
of Black Americans' unwavering support for the Democratic Party.
Ismail White and Chryl Laird argue that the roots of Black political
unity were established through the adversities of slavery and
segregation, when Black Americans forged uniquely strong social bonds
for survival and resistance. White and Laird explain how these tight
communities have continued to produce and enforce political
norms--including Democratic Party identification in the post-Civil
Rights era. The social experience of race for Black Americans is thus
fundamental to their political choices. Black voters are uniquely
influenced by the social expectations of other Black Americans to
prioritize the group's ongoing struggle for freedom and equality. When
navigating the choice of supporting a political party, this social
expectation translates into affiliation with the Democratic Party.
Through fresh analysis of survey data and original experiments, White
and Laird explore where and how Black political norms are enforced, what
this means for the future of Black politics, and how this framework can
be used to understand the electoral behavior of other communities.
An innovative explanation for why Black Americans continue in political
lockstep, Steadfast Democrats sheds light on the motivations
consolidating an influential portion of the American electoral
population.
