Discrimination, Jobs, and Politics: The Struggle for Equal Employment Opportunity in the United States since the New Deal [Paperback]

Throughout this impressive and controversial account of the fight against job discrimination in the United States, Paul Burstein poses searching questions. Why did Congress adopt EEO legislation in the sixties and seventies? Has that legislation made a difference to the people it was intended to help? And what can the struggle for equal employment opportunity tell us about democracy in the United States?

This is an important, well-researched book. . . . Burstein has had the courage to break through narrow specializations within sociology . . . and even to address the types of acceptable questions usually associated with three different disciplines (political science, sociology, and economics). . . . This book should be read by all professionals interested in political sociology and social movements. —Donald Tomaskovic-Devey,Social Forces

Discrimination, Jobs and Politics[is] satisfying because it tells a more complete story . . . than does most sociological research. . . . I find myself returning to it when I'm studying the U.S. women's movement and recommending it to students struggling to do coherent research. —Rachel Rosenfeld,Contemporary Sociology

Preface
Introduction
1. Democratic Politics and Equality of Opportunity
What We Already Know
EEO Legislation: The Beginnings
A Preview
Some Caveats
2. Ideas and Politics in the Congressional Debate on Equal Employment Opportunity
The Beginnings of Congressional Action: Why the 1940s?
Legislating Equality: What Members of Congress Proposed
Growth of Support for EEO Legislation
The End of Legislative Activity
Conclusions: The Legislative Process
3. Public Opinion and Congressional Action
What the Public Wanted: Data
Public Opinion and Congressional Support for EEO
What the Public Wanted the Government to Do
The Intensity of Public Concern
Uncertainty, State Laws, and Congressional Support for EEOlÓ/