The Anti-Civil Rights Movement - by Mike Steve Collins (Hardcover)

About the Book

"Collins views American society as being trapped in the so-called prisoner's dilemma. According to this classic piece of game theory, two prisoners whose interests would normally be aligned are put in a situation that compels them to betray their solidarity with each other. As Collins tells it, all of us are prisoners, and if we banded together we could create policies that would lead to a better, happier world. But those leading the Anti-Civil Rights Movement, such as Edward Blum, have repeatedly found ways to split coalitions-to pit marginalized groups against each others-whenever those coalitions have threatened the power of conservative elites to set the political and legal agenda. One of the central tools in the conservative arsenal has been affirmative action, which has had a long history of dividing the Asian American and Black American communities, going back to the anti-busing sentiment among Chinese Americans in San Francisco in the early 1970s. In 2013, the same year he helped gut the Voting Rights Act in the Shelby County v. Holder case, Blum created the Students for Fair Admissions and brought a suit against Harvard University for discriminating against Asian Americans-the latest in a long string of prisoner dilemmas designed to undermine social progress. Collins's groundbreaking work is a field guide to the personalities, funding, and dilemmas that characterize the war between the Civil Rights Movement and the Anti-Civil Rights Movement-between the forces represented, respectively, by Thurgood Marshall and the one who replaced him on the Supreme Court, Clarence Thomas. Reading this book helps readers better understand the battles that have been fought in the past, but also where the next fight might take place, and what might be necessary in order to win"--

Book Synopsis

In this deeply researched and powerfully written exposé, Mike Steve Collins pulls back the curtain on the networks of power and influence that are pulling the strings to undo progress toward a more just and equitable society. The efforts of this anti-civil rights movement, as Collins calls it, most recently came to a head on June 23, 2023, when the US Supreme Court effectively ended affirmative action in higher education and opened the door to even more regressive policies, laws, and bans. The ruling was the fulfillment of a decades-long battle by right-wing activists and their networks to divide the country.

As Collins sees it, American society is trapped in a style of thinking and decision-making that makes bad choices seem rational. Called a prisoner's dilemma by game theorists and a hermeneutic trap by Collins, this way of thinking has led to policy choices that make everyone worse off, in part by creating hostility between communities that could productively work together and form powerful coalitions. The work of the anti-civil rights movement, led by figures such as Edward Blum and Christopher Rufo, has repeatedly found ways to undermine the shared interests of the American people by splitting coalitions and pitting marginalized groups against each other even while claiming and perhaps feeling the highest of motives. From racial segregation in the 1960s to the modern boogeyman of critical race theory, conservative elites have wielded cultural and political wedges to expand their power to set the political, educational, and legal agenda.

Affirmative action has long been a weapon of choice in conservatives' arsenal against social progress, and few have leveraged it as successfully--and detrimentally--as Edward Blum. In 2014, the year after he helped gut the affirmative action aspect of the Voting Rights Act in Shelby County v. Holder, Blum created Students for Fair Admissions and brought a suit against Harvard University for discriminating against Asian Americans. A decade later, this latest effort in a long string of traps and dilemmas became the Supreme Court case that upended affirmative action.

Collins's groundbreaking work is a field guide to the personalities, funding, and dilemmas that characterize the ongoing war between the civil rights movement and the anti-civil rights movement--between the forces represented by figures such as Thurgood Marshall, a hero of the civil rights movement, and his replacement on the Supreme Court, Clarence Thomas, a hero of the anti-civil rights movement. This book will help readers better understand the battles that have been fought in the past, where the next fight might take place, and what will be necessary in order to win.

Review Quotes

"The Anti-Civil Rights Movement: Affirmative Action as Wedge and Weapon follows the rise, expansion, and triumph of what Mike Steve Collins calls 'the anti-civil rights movement' or, seen from my perspective, the construction of the hegemonic force now overthrowing affirmative action and, more broadly, endeavoring to outlaw any legal and civil awareness of racism in the United States. Detailing the leaders, foot soldiers, advocacy groups, and funders, this book shows how the rather nasty sausage has been made, behind the scenes and out in the open. Readers who haven't delved into the history will be shocked by the human, informational, and financial resources poured into this retrograde project. But as a scholar who has recounted some of this history, I found myself physically nauseated by the disgusting language used by conservatives to depict Black Americans. Why are we blasted with so much raw hatred on race and now on other issues? What can be done to shift the discourse to compassionate problem-solving?"--Ellen Messer-Davidow, author of The Making of Reverse Discrimination: How DeFunis and Bakke Bleached Racism from Equal Protection

"Michael Collins offers a novel interpretation of the genealogy and persistent power of the Anti-Civil Rights movement by uncovering the long line of politicians, lawyers, academics, entrepreneurs, and think-tank leaders who have convinced many white people that any effort to solve racial injustice is a threat to their well-being."--Matthew Johnson, author of Undermining Racial Justice: How One University Embraced Inclusion and Inequality

"Michael Collins's The Anti-Civil Rights Movement is a riveting story of the development and restriction of affirmative action in the United States. It is the strongest reason we have for changing course and beginning to restore the practice of affirmative action that is needed to advance the cause of racial justice in the US."--James P. Sterba, author of Is a Good God Logically Possible?

"Mike Stevens Collins delivers a compelling and insightful exploration of the anti-civil rights movement's archaeology, weaving a narrative that is both engaging and thoroughly researched. By employing affirmative action policy as a cohesive element, he presents a persuasive argument that reveals the tactics of the movement and sheds light on counterstrategies. This book is essential reading for educators, scholars, and civil rights activists who are seeking to develop robust strategies and responses to this highly coordinated anti-civil rights movement."--Liliana M. Garces, coeditor of Racial Equity on College Campuses: Connecting Research and Practice and Affirmative Action and Racial Equity: Considering the Evidence in Fisher to Forge the Path Ahead

"The Anti-Civil Rights Movement is a richly detailed account of how conservative groups and individuals used affirmative action to splinter coalitions that had worked to advance civil rights. The book is to be noted for the attention it pays to the role Asian Americans played and helps us to understand better how coalitions come together and how they fall apart, including how conservatives were able to divide the Asian American community and tokenize them in their efforts to kill affirmative action, despite broad support among Asian Americans for affirmative action."--Robert S. Chang, coauthor of Banned: The Fight for Mexican American Studies in the Streets and in the Courts