African Americans in Michigan

by Lewis Walker, Benjamin C. Wilson, and Linwood H. Cousins 63 pp.

African Americans in Michigan. By Lewis Walker, Benjamin C. Wilson and Linwood H. Cousins. East Lansing, Mich.: Michigan State University Press, 2001. Pp. 63. Index, further resources, photos. $9.95 paper.

African Americans in Michigan is part of a larger series titled "Discovering the Peoples of Michigan," which aims to examine Michigan's multicultural heritage. While the first book in the series, Ethnicity in Michigan: Issues and People, introduced issues to be considered in the study of cultural identity, African Americans in Michigan specifically considers a few elements of African Americans' experiences in Michigan.

In the introduction, series editors Linwood Cousins and Arthur W. Helweg describe the motivation and goals for this volume. It was, in part, prompted by discussions between Cousins and a Swiss visiting scholar about African American experiences in the United States. The Swiss scholar's incorrect perception of that experience--that racism has dissipated after the civil rights movement and that housing, schooling and economic inequalities do not exist between African Americans and their white counterparts--demonstrated a need for more research.

The overarching purpose of this volume (and the other volumes in the series) is not merely to illustrate the experiences and contributions of a particular ethnic group, but also to better understand and deal with the rapid ethnic diversification taking place in Michigan. The authors hope that knowledge of issues within this smaller population will help illuminate cultural, pluralistic, and ethnic issues that are rapidly developing in the rest of the country as well.

The next article details the history of the more than 1.3 million African Americans currently living in Michigan and looks at their contributions, all made within the bondage of slavery or the oppression of racism. Authors Lewis Walker and Benjamin C. Wilson discuss migration, racism, and African American contributions in three separate periods: the antebellum migration period, postbellum migration period, and the "Search for 'good money' era: 1890s to present urbanization." The authors examine the areas blacks migrated from and where they settled in Michigan, and they elaborate on the motivations for the moves. African American contributions to the state are discussed as well. The authors then examine current issues facing the black community, such as unemployment, housing, family, education, and health issues. The chapter concludes with a discussion that considers the future of Michigan's African Americans.

The last article by Linwood H. Cousins, "Ethnicity in Identity Politics in the Schooling Experiences of African American High School Students," considers schooling and ethnic identity politics. Although his study focuses on Newark, N.J., Cousins points out that the problems there are parallel--though with subtle, important differences--to those in urban industrial cities like Detroit, Flint, and Saginaw, Michigan.

After outlining those differences, Cousins uses the viewpoints presented from this community of black high school students to consider the larger issue of African American ethnicity as an important but elusive feature of life in the U.S. because of the omnipresence of race and class. He looks at African American ethnicity as "both separateness and togetherness or 'we-ness and they-ness'" (32). Cousins quotes students, parents, and teachers, in addition to considering class discussions, academic performance, and limitations of both the educational system and the larger ethnic community. Religion also figures into the discussion, as do the intersections between the community in school, the latter best expressed in proposed school state takeovers. The article concludes with a short discussion of the implications of multicultural education.

Like the first volume in this series, graphs, charts and photographic data--along with a bibliography--serve as a starting point for anyone wishing to pursue this topic further, and the many issues raised by the authors serve as a feeding ground for scholars in the field.

Lisa M. Cook
University of Colorado at Boulder