An American Dilemma

An American Dilemma
source
Name	An American Dilemma
Author	Gunnar Myrdal
Country	United States
Language	English
Subject	Race relations in the United States
Publisher	Harper & Brothers
Pub date	1944
Pages	1,483

An American Dilemma: The Negro Problem and Modern Democracy is a foundational study of race relations in the United States authored by Swedish economist Gunnar Myrdal and published in 1944. Commissioned by the Carnegie Corporation of New York, the massive work synthesized research from a team of prominent American scholars to analyze the pervasive contradiction between the nation's democratic ideals and its systemic racial discrimination. Its central argument, that this moral conflict constituted a "dilemma" for white Americans, profoundly influenced academic discourse and the emerging civil rights movement. The study's publication during World War II highlighted the global implications of American racial practices and provided an intellectual framework for challenging Jim Crow laws.

Background and publication

The project originated in 1937 when the Carnegie Corporation of New York, led by Frederick P. Keppel, sought an objective, comprehensive study of what was then termed "the Negro problem." Seeking an outsider's perspective to avoid domestic biases, the foundation recruited Swedish social scientist Gunnar Myrdal, known for his work on social democracy in Sweden. Myrdal assembled a distinguished research team that included scholars like Ralph Bunche, Kenneth B. Clark, and Dorothy Swaine Thomas, who contributed specialized studies on topics ranging from caste and class to legal framework in the American South. The research was conducted over several years, with Myrdal and his wife, Alva Myrdal, traveling extensively throughout the United States, including the Deep South. The final manuscript, completed during World War II, was published in 1944 by Harper & Brothers as a two-volume set, coinciding with a growing national awareness of the hypocrisy of fighting fascism abroad while maintaining segregation at home.

Central thesis and argument

Myrdal's core argument posited the existence of an "American Creed"—a set of ideals rooted in the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution, and the Bill of Rights that emphasized liberty, equality, and justice. He contended that the pervasive discrimination against African Americans, enforced through Jim Crow laws, disfranchisement after the Reconstruction era, and economic exploitation, created a profound moral and psychological dilemma for white Americans. This conflict between national ideals and racial practices, Myrdal argued, was the principal engine for potential social change. He was cautiously optimistic, believing that educational efforts and the exposure of this contradiction would lead white Americans to reform the system to align with their professed beliefs, a process he described as a "self-fulfilling prophecy" toward greater equality.

Research methodology and data

The study was groundbreaking for its interdisciplinary approach, combining sociology, economics, political science, and anthropology. Myrdal's team compiled and analyzed a vast array of data, including U.S. Census statistics on income, education, and health, alongside historical analyses of slavery in the United States and the Reconstruction era. Field research involved extensive interviews and observations across the American South, documenting the realities of sharecropping, lynching in the United States, and the poll taxes in the United States. The work also examined the role of institutions like the NAACP, the Supreme Court of the United States, and historically black colleges such as Howard University and Fisk University. This empirical foundation aimed to present an incontrovertible, fact-based picture of racial inequality, moving the discussion from moral abstraction to documented social pathology.

Reception and influence

Upon its release, An American Dilemma received widespread critical acclaim, praised in publications like The New York Times and The New Yorker for its scope and rigor. It quickly became a seminal text in the social sciences, influencing a generation of scholars and providing intellectual ammunition for civil rights lawyers. Its findings were cited prominently in the landmark Supreme Court of the United States case Brown v. Board of Education (1954), particularly in the social science appendix prepared by Kenneth B. Clark. The book also influenced policymakers in the Harry S. Truman administration and informed the work of organizations like the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr., who referenced its analysis of the American conscience.

Legacy and modern relevance

The legacy of An American Dilemma is enduring but complex. It established the "dilemma" or "gap" between ideals and practice as a central paradigm for understanding American society. Later scholars, including W.E.B. Du Bois and those of the Black Power movement, critiqued Myrdal's work for its emphasis on white psychology and its optimistic belief in gradual, conscience-driven reform, arguing it underestimated the role of institutional racism and economic determinism. Despite these critiques, the study's fundamental observation about the nation's unresolved racial conflict remains profoundly relevant. Its framework is often invoked in contemporary analyses of events in cities like Ferguson, Missouri and Minneapolis, debates over the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and ongoing discussions about reparations, mass incarceration in the United States, and the Black Lives Matter movement, underscoring the persistent challenge of aligning national practice with democratic creed.

Category:1944 non-fiction books Category:Books about racism in the United States Category:Carnegie Corporation of New York