Race Over Party

“Thought-provoking. . . . Expose[s] the constraints that the two-party system imposed on even the most determined northern black political actors.”—American Historical Review

“Bergeson-Lockwood’s careful attention to detail and his historiographical contribution . . . will appeal to a scholarly as well as a popular audience.”—Historical Journal of Massachusetts

“Provides an exciting new framework for understanding northern black politics during the Reconstruction era. . . . Race over Party tells the story of Boston’s black independents with a keen eye for detail and a deep empathy for the difficult political choices these leaders made to build a better future for their community.”—Journal of the Civil War Era

“Race Over Party is a wonderful addition to the historiography of African American politics of the late nineteenth century. This local history effortlessly balances the history of Black Boston with that of the struggle for political rights of African Americans throughout the country.”—Journal of African American History

“Magnificently researched. . . . One of those instant classics that we may look back upon for having forever changed the historiography of Black Boston.”—H-SHGAPE

“This is a much-needed book. It adds to our understanding of African American politics in the age of Emancipation, but more important, it shifts the focus from the South to the North in the post–Emancipation period, exposing how African Americans in the North used their particular politics to respond to rapidly changing social and political conditions.” — Shawn Alexander, University of Kansas

“This book forces us to rethink postbellum African American urban politics as a 'tragedy with a silver lining.' In the face of repeated failures to achieve full citizenship and equal rights through electoral politics (as either independents or loyal partisans), Race Over Party convincingly argues that late nineteenth century black Bostonians turned to grassroots community organizing as an alternative as well as complement to electoral strategies for social change. As such, they also helped to prepare the groundwork for the twentieth century Black Freedom Movement.” — Joe William Trotter, Jr., author of Black Milwaukee: The Making of an Industrial Proletariat, 1915-45