Reuel Schiller. Forging Rivals

Reuel Schiller is not the first scholar to write on the collapse of modern liberalism, specifically the divide between labor unions and the black freedom movement. However, he makes a unique proposition: the split emerged not with 1960s affirmative action, but rather through 1940s and 1950s legal and policy disputes. In the introduction of Forging Rivals: Race, Class, Law, and the Collapse of Postwar Liberalism, Schiller “argues that the legal regime that emanated from postwar liberalism was permeated with doctrinal and institutional contradictions.” Schiller posits, “This regime attempted to implement the principles of democratic majoritarianism at the same time that it sought to protect the rights of minorities and individuals . . . The result was a fatal weakening of liberalism” (5). This book, which relies heavily on archival sources and a thorough survey of the literature, is useful for researchers, university students, and general audiences. Schiller’s effective narrative style introduces chapters with key individuals inside various conflicts. The book’s chief asset is its focus on the often neglected story of postwar San Francisco.

Art · Democracy · Law and economics · Liberalism · Literature · Narrative · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Communism, Protests, Social Movements · Historical Studies and Socio-cultural Analysis · Law · Vietnamese History and Culture Studies