Conclusion

Abstract

American politics requires of its African American denizens feats that no other demographic group must perform. Blacks must maintain political cohesion in the face of economic and social divergences among themselves and external solicitations by the likes of black conservatives to disaggregate their political power. Their cohesion, in turn, is the very lifeblood of the American two-party system. For their Herculean efforts on behalf of American democracy, they are not rewarded but instead are asked to engage in self-censorship so as not to risk alienating white voters. This is the current price of black electoral success in a white electorate. This is what post-racialism— prematurely declared—looks like for African American voters.