Hostname: page-component-7b9c58cd5d-dkgms Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-03-14T07:07:54.122Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The Conditions of Racial Violence in American Cities: A Developmental Synthesis*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 August 2014

Joel A. Lieske
Joel A. Lieske*
Affiliation:
University of Cincinnati
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

This article analyzes the social and political conditions associated with the incidence of racial violence in a sample of 119 American cities. Data on the incidence of racial disorders are drawn from newspaper accounts compiled by the Lemberg Center for the Study of Violence during the period 1967–1969. A total of 334 disorders are analyzed.

Two alternative hypotheses are examined. The first assumes that the causes of the black urban riots are rooted largely in the disorganized environment of socially marginal individuals. The second attempts to locate the outbreak of rioting primarily within a closed and unresponsive political system. Paradoxically, the results tend to provide empirical support for both theoretical perspectives. At the same time, the data suggest the need to reformulate and revise conventional interpretations of the black urban riots. This is done by synthesizing and testing a developmental model which implies a curvilinear relationship between the incidence of racial violence on the one hand, and black political development on the other.

Type
Research Article
Information
American Political Science Review , Volume 72 , Issue 4 , December 1978 , pp. 1324 - 1340
Copyright
Copyright © American Political Science Association 1978

Footnotes

*

I would like to express special thanks to William Keech, Paul Power, Han Kyo Kim and my referees for their thoughtful and helpful criticisms of earlier drafts. I also owe a heavy intellectual debt to Alden Lind, William Keech and Thad Beyle for teaching me the importance of theory in guiding empirical research. These individuals, of course, do not share any responsibility for the analysis or conclusions.

References

Alker, Hayward R. Jr. and Russett, Bruce M. (1964). “The Analysis of Trends and Patterns.” In World Handbook of Political and Social Indicators. New Haven: Yale University Press.Google Scholar
Apter, David E. (1965). The Politics of Modernization. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.Google Scholar
Armor, David (1972). “The Evidence on Busing.” Public Interest 28:90–126.Google Scholar
Armor, David (1973). “The Double Double Standard: A Reply.” Public Interest 30:119–31.Google Scholar
Bachrach, Peter and Baratz, Morton (1970). Power and Poverty. New York: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Banfield, Edward and Wilson, James Q. (1963). City Politics. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press.Google Scholar
Bay, Christian (1965). The Structure of Freedom. New York: Atheneum.Google Scholar
Bergman, Elihu and Gray, Virginia, eds. (1974). Political Issues in U.S. Population Policy. Lexington, Mass.: Lexington Books.Google Scholar
Berk, Richard A. and Aldrich, Howard E. (1972). “Patterns of Vandalism during Civil Disorders as an Indicator of Selection of Targets.” American Sociological Review 37:533–47.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Campbell, Angus and Schuman, Howard (1968). “Racial Attitudes in Fifteen Cities.” In Supplemental Studies for the National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders. Washington: Government Printing Office.Google Scholar
Caplan, Nathan (1970). “The New Ghetto Man: A Review of Recent Empirical Studies.” Journal of Social Issues 26:59–74.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Caplan, Nathan and Paige, Jeffrey (1968). “A Study of Ghetto Rioters.” Scientific American 219:15–21.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Coleman, James, et al. (1966). Equality of Educational Opportunity. Washington: Government Printing Office.Google Scholar
Dahrendorf, Ralph (1959). Class and Class Conflict in Industrial Society. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press.Google Scholar
Davies, James C. (1969). “The J-Curve of Rising and Declining Satisfactions as a Cause of Some Great Revolutions and a Contained Rebellion.” In Graham, Hugh D. and Gurr, Ted R. (eds.), Violence in America. New York: Bantam.Google Scholar
Doeringer, Peter and Piore, Michael J. (1975). “Unemployment and the Dual Labor Market.” Public Interest 38:67–79.Google Scholar
Downes, Bryan T. (1968). “Social and Political Characteristics of Riot Cities: A Comparative Study.” Social Science Quarterly 49:504–20.Google Scholar
Draper, N. R. and Smith, H. (1966). Applied Regression Analysis. New York: Wiley.Google Scholar
Eisinger, Peter K. (1973). “The Conditions of Protest Behavior in American Cities.” American Political Science Review 67:11–28.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Eyestone, Robert and Eulau, Heinz (1968). “City Councils and Policy Outcomes: Developmental Profiles.” In Wilson, James Q. (ed.), City Politics and Public Policy. New York: Wiley.Google Scholar
Feagin, Joe and Hahn, Harlan (1973). Ghetto Revolts. New York: Macmillan.Google Scholar
Feldstein, Martin (1973). “The Economics of the New Unemployment.” Public Interest 33:3–42.Google Scholar
Fierabend, Evo K., et al. (1969). “Social Change and Political Violence: Cross-National Patterns.” In Graham, Hugh D. and Gurr, Ted R. (eds.), Violence in America. New York: Bantam.Google Scholar
Fogelson, Robert (1971). Violence as Protest. Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday.Google Scholar
Fogelson, Robert and Hill, Robert (1968). “Who Riots? A Study of Participation in the 1967 Riots.” In Supplemental Studies for the National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders. Washington: Government Printing Office.Google Scholar
Ford, William F. and Moore, John H. (1970). “Additional Evidence on the Social Characteristics of Riot Cities.” Social Science Quarterly 51:339–48.Google Scholar
Goldman, Nathan (1969). “Social Breakdown.” In Gross, Bertram M. (ed.), Social Intelligence for America's Future. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.Google Scholar
Hadden, Jeffrey K., et al. (1968). “The Making of the Negro Mayors 1967.” Transaction 5:21–30.Google Scholar
Hawley, Willis D. (1973). Nonpartisan Elections and the Case for Party Politics. New York: Wiley.Google Scholar
Hays, Samuel P. (1964). “The Politics of Reform in Municipal Government in the Progressive Era.” Pacific Northwest Quarterly 55:157–66.Google Scholar
Huntington, Samuel P. (1968). Political Order in Changing Societies. New Haven: Yale University Press.Google Scholar
International City Manager's Association (1967, 1970). The Municipal Yearbook. Chicago.Google Scholar
Jencks, Christopher, et al. (1972). Inequality: A Reassessment of the Effect of Family and Schooling in America. New York: Basic.Google Scholar
Jiobu, Robert M. (1971). “City Characteristics, Differential Stratification, and the Occurrence of Interracial Violence.” Social Science Quarterly 52:508–20.Google Scholar
Keech, William R. (1968). The Impact of Negro Voting. Chicago: Rand McNally.Google Scholar
Kerner Commission (1968). Report of the National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders. New York: Bantam.Google Scholar
Lee, Eugene C. (1960). The Politics of Nonpartisanship. Berkeley: University of California Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lemberg Center for the Study of Violence (1968). Riot Data Review No. 1. Mimeographed, Brandeis University.Google Scholar
Lerner, Daniel (1958). The Passing of Traditional Society. Glencoe, Ill.: Free Press.Google Scholar
Lineberry, Robert L. and Fowler, Edmund P. (1967). “Reformism and Public Policies in American Cities.” American Political Science Review 61:701–16.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lipsky, Michael (1968). “Protest as Political Resource.” American Political Science Review 62:1144–58.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Long, Norton (1971). “Is the Inner City Doomed?: The City as Reservation.” Public Interest 25:22–38.Google Scholar
Marquette, Jesse F. (1974). “Social Change and Political Modernization in the United States.” American Political Science Review 68:1058–74.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Maslow, Abraham H. (1954). Motivation and Personality. New York: Harper.Google Scholar
Matthews, Donald R. and Prothro, James W. (1966). Negroes and the New Southern Politics. New York: Harcourt Brace.Google Scholar
Meyers, Jerome K. (1951). “Assimilation in the Political Community.” Sociology and Social Research 35:175–82.Google Scholar
Midlarsky, Manus and Tanter, Raymond (1967). “Toward a Theory of Political Instability in Latin America.” Journal of Peace Research 4:209–27.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Miller, Zane L. (1973). The Urbanization of Modem America. New York: Harcourt Brace.Google Scholar
Morgan, William R. and Clark, Terry Nichols (1973). “The Causes of Racial Disorders: A Grievance-level Explanation.” American Sociological Review 38:611–24.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Moynihan, Daniel P. (1965). The Negro Family: The Case for National Action. U.S. Department of Labor. Washington: Government Printing Office.Google Scholar
Nieburg, H. L. (1969). Political Violence. New York: St. Martin's Press.Google Scholar
Olson, Mancur Jr. (1963). “Rapid Growth as a Destabilizing Force.” Journal of Economic History 23:529–52.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pettigrew, Thomas F., et al. (1973). “Busing: A Review of ‘the Evidence.’” Public Interest 30:88–118.Google Scholar
Pomper, Gerald (1966). “Ethnic and Group Voting in Nonpartisan Elections.” Public Opinion Quarterly 30:79–97.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rainwater, Lee and Yancey, William L. (1967). The Moynihan Report and the Politics of Controversy. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press.Google Scholar
Rossi, Peter H. and Berk, Richard A. (1970). “Local Political Leadership and Popular Discontent in the Ghetto.” Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 391:111–27.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Russett, Bruce M. (1965). Trends in World Politics. New York: Macmillan.Google Scholar
Rustin, Bayard (1966). “‘Black Power’ and Coalition Politics.” Commentary 42:35–40.Google Scholar
Sharkansky, Ira (1975). The United States: A Study of a Developing Country. New York: David McKay.Google Scholar
Silver, Allan A. (1968). “Official Interpretations of Racial Riots.” In Connery, Robert H. (ed.), Urban Riots. New York: Vintage.Google Scholar
Skolnik, Jerome H., ed. (1969). The Politics of Protest. New York: Simon and Schuster.Google Scholar
Spilerman, Seymour (1970). “The Causes of Racial Disturbances: A Comparison of Alternative Explanations.” American Sociological Review 35:627–49.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Stinchcombe, Jean L. (1968). Reform and Reaction. Belmont, Calif.: Wadsworth.Google Scholar
Taeuber, Karl E. and Taeuber, Alma F. (1965). Negroes in Cities. Chicago: Aldine.Google Scholar
Tomlinson, T. M. (1969). “The Development of a Riot Ideology among Urban Negroes.” In Grimshaw, Allen D. (ed.), Racial Violence in the United States. Chicago: Aldine.Google Scholar
U.S. Bureau of the Census (1961). The 1960 Census of the Population–Selected States. Washington: Government Printing Office.Google Scholar
U.S. Bureau of the Census (1967). The 1967 City and County Data Book. Washington: Government Printing Office.Google Scholar
U.S. Department of Education (1969). The 1967 Elementary and Secondary Education Directory. Washington: Government Printing Office.Google Scholar
U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (1967). Uniform Crime Reports, 1966. Washington: Government Printing Office.Google Scholar
Wattenberg, Ben J. and Scammon, Richard (1973). “Black Progress and Liberal Rhetoric.” Commentary 55:35–44.Google Scholar
Wilson, James Q. (1968). Varieties of Police Behavior. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Winham, Gilbert R. (1970). “Political Development and Lerner's Theory: Further Test of a Causal Model.” American Political Science Review 64:810–18.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wolfinger, Raymond (1965). “The Development and Persistence of Ethnic Voting.” American Political Science Review 59:896–908.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Submit a response

Comments

No Comments have been published for this article.