William Julius Wilson, a MacArthur Prize Fellow, is the Lewis P. and Linda L. Geyser University Professor at Harvard University. He is past president of the American Sociological Association and has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Philosophical Society, and the National Academy of Education. In 1998 he was awarded the National Medal of Science. His previous books include Power, Racism, and Privilege (1976), The Declining Significance of Race (1979), The Truly Disadvantaged (1987), and When Work Disappears (1996).

• Acknowledgments Introduction 1. Racial Antagonisms and the Expanding Ranks of the Have-Nots 2. Global Economic Changes and the Limits of the Race Relations Vision 3. Building a Foundation for Multiracial Cooperation 4. From "Racial Preference" to Affirmative Opportunity 5. Bridging the Racial Divide and Coalition Politics Notes Bibliography Index

"A powerful call for a multiracial, progressive political coalition to combat rising inequality in America.... A very important attempt to deal with the simultaneous evils of race and class.... A challenge to activists, leaders, teachers, and parents.... I am very impressed by this book and am grateful that a public figure as prominent as Wilson has written it. The complex analysis that has gone into his admirably accessible and politically progressive new book is itself an act of progressive action and faith - a crucial combination for compassionate social action and for crossing seemingly unbridgeable gaps." - Tricia Rose, The Boston Book Review "An excellent work." - Vernon Ford, Booklist "I highly recommend Bridge Over the Racial Divide to anyone concerned with social and economic justice for all." - Fablo Naranjo, Chicago Tribune "[Wilson] is pointing us in the right direction, and he backs up his recommendations with a commanding grasp of both the daily and the statistical realities of American life. The divide is still wide, and the urgency is great. It is time to start working on the foundations of the bridge he calls upon us to build." - Paul L. Wachtel, Tikkun "In this brief but powerful book, the prominent sociologist William Julius Wilson makes a compelling case for the need for a multiracial coalition to sustain the nation's 'equalizing institutions.' By this he means high quality schools, social welfare programs, labor unions, and regulatory systems that blunt the extremes of the market and disburse the benefits of economic growth to all citizens." - Social Service Review