Racism, Class and the Racialized Outsider - by Satnam Virdee (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

"Racism, Class and the Racialized Outsider is that rare thing nowadays, an academic book that not only engages with a wider public but also provides a sharp campaigning edge to the analysis. Historical and broad in its coverage, this is one of the best accounts of contemporary racism published in a good long time." Mark Perryman, Philosophy Football
Racism, Class and the Racialized Outsider offers an original perspective on the significance of both racism and anti-racism in the making of the English working class. While racism became a powerful structuring force within this social class from as early as the mid-Victorian period, this book also traces the episodic emergence of currents of working class anti-racism. Through an insistence that race is central to the way class works, this insightful text demonstrates not only that the English working class was a multi-ethnic formation from the moment of its inception but that racialized outsiders - Irish Catholics, Jews, Asians and the African diaspora - often played a catalytic role in the collective action that helped fashion a more inclusive and democratic society.

From the Back Cover

"Racism, Class and the Racialized Outsider is that rare thing nowadays, an academic book that not only engages with a wider public but also provides a sharp campaigning edge to the analysis. Historical and broad in its coverage, this is one of the best accounts of contemporary racism published in a good long time." Mark Perryman, Philosophy Football

Racism, Class and the Racialized Outsider offers an original perspective on the significance of both racism and anti-racism in the making of the English working class. While racism became a powerful structuring force within this social class from as early as the mid-Victorian period, this book also traces the episodic emergence of currents of working class anti-racism. Through an insistence that race is central to the way class works, this insightful text demonstrates not only that the English working class was a multi-ethnic formation from the moment of its inception but that racialized outsiders - Irish Catholics, Jews, Asians and the African diaspora - often played a catalytic role in the collective action that helped fashion a more inclusive and democratic society.

Review Quotes

"A remarkable study of the interplay between racism and anti-racism in shaping the contours of working class organization and struggle in England. It is a nuanced and sophisticated contribution both to the empirical account of this historical trajectory, and to our theoretical understanding of the mutually constitutive character of race and class." Erik Olin Wright, Vilas Distinguished Professor, University of Wisconsin, USA, and Past-President, American Sociological Association
"A serious and conceptually sophisticated analysis of key aspects of racism and anti-racism in the contemporary environment. Its combination of history and sociology makes it somewhat unique and it has no obvious competitor at the present time." John Solomos, Professor of Sociology, University of Warwick, UK
"Virdee's inspiring and historically wide-ranging account of the hidden role played by racialized minorities in the formative moments of English labour history sets a new benchmark in work on race and class." Verity Burgmann, Professor Emerita, Monash University, Australia
"This pathbreaking and cogently written book is a major contribution to our historical understanding of racism and working class politics in England." - Rodolfo D. Torres, University of California, Irvine, USA
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"A remarkable study of the interplay between racism and anti-racism in shaping the contours of working class organization and struggle in England. It is a nuanced and sophisticated contribution both to the empirical account of this historical trajectory, and to our theoretical understanding of the mutually constitutive character of race and class." - Erik Olin Wright, Vilas Distinguished Professor, University of Wisconsin, USA, and Past-President, American Sociological Association

"A serious and conceptually sophisticated analysis of key aspects of racism and anti-racism in the contemporary environment. Its combination of history and sociology makes it somewhat unique and it has no obvious competitor at the present time.'"- John Solomos, Professor of Sociology, University of Warwick, UK

"Virdee's inspiring and historically wide-ranging account of the hidden role played by racialized minorities in the formative moments of English labour history sets a new benchmark in work on race and class." - Verity Burgmann, Professor Emerita, Monash University, Australia


'A remarkable study of the interplay between racism and anti-racism in shaping the contours of working class organization and struggle in England. It is a nuanced and sophisticated contribution both to the empirical account of this historical trajectory, and to our theoretical understanding of the mutually constitutive character of race and class.'- Erik Olin Wright, Vilas Distinguished Professor, University of Wisconsin, USA, and Past-President, American Sociological Association

'A serious and conceptually sophisticated analysis of key aspects of racism and anti-racism in the contemporary environment. Its combination of history and sociology makes it somewhat unique and it has no obvious competitor at the present time.' - John Solomos, Professor of Sociology, University of Warwick, UK

'Virdee's inspiring and historically wide-ranging account of the hidden role played by racialized minorities in the formative moments of English labour history sets a new benchmark in work on race and class.' - Verity Burgmann, Professor Emerita, Monash University, Australia



This book is "a serious and conceptually sophisticated analysis of key aspects of racism and anti-racism in the contemporary environment. Its combination of history and sociology makes it somewhat unique and it has no obvious competitor at the present time. This is also a book that attempts to suggest a broadly Marxist approach to this field and this will in some ways add to its appeal." - John Solomos, University of Warwick, UK

"Virdee's inspiring and historically wide-ranging account of the hidden role played by racialized minorities in the formative moments of English labour history sets a new benchmark in work on race and class. Enlightening and essential reading, it reformulates English labour historiography in the innovative way it reveals the important roles of both racism and anti-racism in the making, unmaking and remaking of the English working class over two centuries." - Professor Verity Burgmann, School of Social Sciences, Monash University, Australia

About the Author

Satnam Virdee is Professor of Sociology at the University of Glasgow, UK.
Satnam Virdee is Professor of Sociology at the University of Glasgow, UK.