The Great Wells of Democracy by Manning Marable
"The Great Wells of Democracy" by Manning Marable explores the intersection of race and democracy in the United States, arguing that the nation's ideals have been compromised by structural racism and historical inequalities. Marable introduces the concept of "racialization," which refers to how social power and privilege have been shaped by past discrimination. The book is divided into three sections, beginning with "The American Dilemma," where Marable contrasts two narratives of American democracy: one celebrating it as the world's finest, the other highlighting the pervasive structural racism that undermines it.
In "The Retreat from Equality," Marable critiques both state-based and race-based approaches to addressing racism, highlighting their failures and the emergence of a phenomenon he calls "civil death," which results from systemic barriers to education and political participation. The final section, "Reconstructing Racial Politics," advocates for grassroots movements among African Americans to foster change from the ground up. Marable emphasizes the importance of addressing historical injustices, including discussions on reparations, and leveraging contemporary movements like hip-hop culture and faith-based initiatives to revitalize democracy. Overall, the work calls for a renewed commitment to inclusivity and equitable policy-making to fulfill the promise of American democracy.
The Great Wells of Democracy by Manning Marable
First published: 2002
Type of work: Cultural criticism
Form and Content
Inspired by the belief of Martin Luther King, Jr., that a flawed American democracy can be made more inclusive, Manning Marable pledges in the introduction to The Great Wells of Democracy to begin a new conversation about race. Using personal recollections and recent events as illustrations, Marable claims that the United States has fallen short of its ideals because “racialization,” or the “social expression of power and privilege” based on past discrimination and present inequalities, has permeated democracy. A revitalization of civil society is necessary to bring the United States closer to the promise of democracy.
Marable’s book—and his argument—is organized into three sections. The first section, “The American Dilemma,” describes two incompatible narratives on race and democracy in the United States. The first narrative claims the United States is the finest example of democracy in the world, and the second claims that democracy is shaped by “structural racism,” defined as institutional barriers that limit democratic rights as well as social and economic opportunities. Through a brief historical account, Marable demonstrates that this racism existed before American democracy began. In response to structural racism, he says, some have advocated “state-based”—political and legal change—change, while others have advanced “race-based” change based in Black Nationalism and racial separation. Finally, a third group advocates “transformationist” policies, which are essentially “class-based.”
The book’s second section, “The Retreat from Equality,” describes the dimensions of structural racism and explains why the responses to it have so far been ineffective. Marable begins by demonstrating that “state-based” approaches, the focus of early “integrationist” civil rights leaders, have failed. A history of electoral politics reveals that neither major party is interested in addressing race. African American politicians, Marable asserts, follow a “post-black” politics of surrendering to white corporate or political interests to gain reelection, while sympathetic white politicians like Bill Clinton, who have the political authority to advance racial equality, lack the political and moral will to do so. Marable uses the example of the Million Man March to demonstrate that “race-based” approaches have also failed because such efforts led to division over Black Nationalism, and permanent structural change failed to emerge.
Marable goes on to describe the “civil death” that results from structural racism. The erosion of public education through school choice policies, as well as the cost of higher education, limits people’s access to the knowledge they need to transform their lives. Increasing levels of incarceration threaten more African Americans with “civil death” by denying felons suffrage. The emerging African American middle class separates itself from other African American communities and creates so-called race traitors who work to destroy racial categories or even deny the reality of racism. Each of these elements has contributed to maintaining structural racism and has fueled the “civil death” that threatens to undermine the ideal of American democracy.
In the third and final section, “Reconstructing Racial Politics,” Marable advocates building a new kind of politics that accesses the capacity for change present in the activities of ordinary African Americans. By engaging in grassroots struggles based in the problems of everyday life, African Americans can begin rebuilding democracy from the bottom up. From the collective experiences of African Americans and other, allied groups, new social theories and political strategies can then be devised. A discussion of reparations will include the historical consequences and moral challenges emerging from structural racism, and reparations can take the form of civic and economic compensation that addresses “civil death.”
Marable believes that connecting to present areas of strength in the African American community, such as socially conscious hip-hop artists and faith-based initiatives, can bring legitimacy to these new politics. Such efforts can be used to revitalize those suffering the “civil death” resulting from structural racism. Finally, Marable argues that opposition to some of the “racialized” policies that followed the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, can be used to address the central international problem of the twenty-first century, “global apartheid.” Marable hopes that by engaging in these actions, African Americans will be able to convince white Americans that white supremacy—and the power, privilege, and prejudice that fuel structural racism—cannot be sustained.
Critical Context
Throughout his work, Manning Marable’s dedication to African Americans and to progressive change has been evident. Through a gradual reconsideration of the nature of such change, however, Marable has come to conclude that leadership has largely failed. For example, in Black American Politics: From the Washington Marches to Jesse Jackson (1985), Marable examined the history of social protest movements and argued that such movements were taking on an electoral form, as exemplified by the Rainbow Coalition. The concept of leadership was revisited in Black Leadership (1998), in which Marable concluded that contemporary black leaders remain mired in the strategies and language of the Civil Rights movement.
The Great Wells of Democracy brings those concerns together in a single work. While Marable’s belief in the possibility for social movements to take electoral forms seems to have waned after Black American Politics was written, his confidence in social protest movements as a method of change only grew.
Bibliography
Dauphin, Gary. “Authentically Black: Essays for the Black Silent Majority.” Review of The Great Wells of Democracy, by Manning Marable. Black Issues Book Review 5, no. 1 (January/February, 2003): 53-54. Favorable review of Marable’s work. Valuable for reflections on the September 11 attacks and racial history.
Harris, Robert. Review of Black Leadership, by Manning Marable. The Journal of American History 85, no. 4 (March, 1999): 1673-1674. Review of Black Leadership that includes a significant discussion of Marable’s doubts about leadership and the need for more “group-centered” movements.
Kirkus Reviews. Review of The Great Wells of Democracy, by Manning Marable. 70, no. 21 (November, 2002): 1593. Brief but interesting critical review accusing Marable of “foggy” thought and frequent generalizations.
McWhorter, John. “Still Losing the Race?” Review of The Great Wells of Democracy, by Manning Marable. Commentary 117, no. 2 (February, 2004): 37-41. McWhorter’s critical review of Marable’s work, written partly in response to Marable’s criticism of McWhorter’s work in The Great Wells of Democracy. Particularly interesting for the very different account of racism offered by McWhorter.
Marable, Manning. “An Interview with Manning Marable.” Souls 7, no. 2 (Spring, 2005): 75-87. Lengthy discussion with Marable about the role of electoral politics in transforming black America, especially using third parties as an avenue for change.