**This highly accessible account of the evolution of American racism outlines how ‘colorblind’ approaches to discrimination ensured the perpetuation of racial inequality in the United States well beyond the 1960s.** * A highly accessible account of the evolution of American racism, its perpetuation, and black people’s struggles for equality in the post-civil rights era * Guides students to a better understanding of the experiences of black Americans and their ongoing struggles for justice, by highlighting the interconnectedness of African American history with that of the nation as a whole * Highlights the economic and political functions that racism has served throughout the nation’s history * Discusses the continuation of the freedom movement beyond the 1960s to provide a comprehensive new historiography of racial equality and social justice