Political Economy of Race, Class, and Gender by Omi and Winant - Book Report/Review Example

RACIALIZATION is an ideological concept with rich historical background (Omi and Howard, 4). Capitalists discriminated against blacks in the labor market. The division of employees on racial lines ruined the emergence of a unified class organization (Hosang and Daniel, 304). The period of servitude where Africans worked for Whites subjected blacks to racial slavery. The servant-master relationship set in motion the understanding of the society, which streamlined the racial identity of Africans and European settlers in America (Omi and Howard, 3).

The influx of immigrants in America led to a defensive mechanism by the natives who feared competition and wanted to maintain superiority over their servants. However, ideological differences emerged over the classification of nonwhite immigrants. This led to the political organization of the working class (Omi and Howard, 6). As a result, divisions among laborers, segregated unions, and exclusionary legislation were the center of American society in the nineteenth century. However, the changes in the economic climate of America and in other parts of the world led to changes in the social structure of the nonwhites (Omi and Howard, 7).

The transformation of blacks from rural farm laborers to the urban working class was the epitome of the economic changes. These economic changes also affected other nonwhites’ immigrants. The emergence of Japan and other economies altered employment patterns as Asian immigrants returned to their native origins (Omi and Howard, 10). In conclusion, Omi and Winant discuss how the racial identity of blacks in the nineteenth century was determined on a color line basis. They further discuss the political differences that emerged in the classification of other nonwhites immigrants.

The paper finally discusses how the economic transformations in America and other parts of the world led to changes in the racial identity of Africans and nonwhite European immigrants in America.