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Whiteshift: Populism, Immigration, and the Future of White Majorities Paperback – February 11, 2020
This is the century of whiteshift. As Western societies are becoming increasingly mixed-race, demographic change is transforming politics. Over half of American babies are non-white, and by the end of the century, minorities and those of mixed race are projected to form the majority in the UK and other countries. The early stages of this transformation have led to a populist disruption, tearing a path through the usual politics of left and right. Ethnic transformation will continue, but conservative whites are unlikely to exit quietly; their feelings of alienation are already redrawing political lines and convulsing societies across the West. One of the most crucial challenges of our time is to enable conservatives as well as cosmopolitans to view whiteshift as a positive development.
In this groundbreaking book, political scientist Eric Kaufmann examines the evidence to explore ethnic change in North American and Western Europe. Tracing four ways of dealing with this transformation—fight, repress, flight, and join—he charts different scenarios and calls for us to move beyond empty talk about national identity. If we want to avoid more radical political divisions, he argues, we have to open up debate about the future of white majorities.
Deeply thought provoking, enriched with illustrative stories, and drawing on detailed and extraordinary survey, demographic, and electoral data, Whiteshift will redefine the way we discuss race in the twenty-first century.
- Print length624 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherHarry N. Abrams
- Publication dateFebruary 11, 2020
- Dimensions5.65 x 2.05 x 8.8 inches
- ISBN-101419741926
- ISBN-13978-1419741920
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Editorial Reviews
Review
“A powerful and rigorously researched exploration of how demographic change is transforming western societies and politics. Rejecting extreme nationalism and extreme liberal individualism alike, Kaufmann uses a wealth of empirical data to carve out a space for a multivocal and flexible political system that recognizes ethnic identities without sacrificing liberal values of freedom and tolerance. Whether or not you end up agreeing with it, this is a book that speaks to the most urgent and difficult issues of our time.”―John Gray, author of Seven Types of Atheism
“A valuable contribution . . . an important book that challenges the conventional wisdom on controlling immigration and fighting racism.”
―W. James Antle III, The American Conservative“A magisterial survey of the most important political trend of the 21st century so far. It will be controversial—but mostly with those who dislike evidence, are horrified by open mindedness, and who find it convenient to ignore truth. It should be required reading for today’s rulers; they may not like it, but they need to understand Kaufmann’s defense of democracy before it’s too late.” ―Trevor Phillips, founding chairman of the Equality and Human Rights Commission
“Whiteshift is a big, brilliant, ambitious book—perhaps the first truly definitive book of the Trump era. Meticulous, challenging, and provocative, this is the rare book that takes it upon itself to try to shift our entire way of thinking on the most difficult question of our time—inevitable demographic and ethnic change in the United States and Europe.”―Shadi Hamid, Senior Fellow, Brookings Institution and author of Islamic Exceptionalism
“Extraordinary. . . a tour de force that could expand the so-called ‘Overton window’—the range of what is acceptable to say—on these central issues.”―David Goodhart, Sunday Times
"An important new book"―Scott McConnell, The American Conservative
“Fascinating . . . Kaufmann has done something exceedingly rare among center-right thinkers, which is to write an intelligent, challenging, and in its own way, brave book about race and identity; one not meant to fire up partisans but to make an honest attempt to understand our present dilemmas and propose a solution. . . . Whiteshift is the best diagnosis of populism the right has to offer, and presents compelling arguments that defenders of asymmetric multiculturalism should be prepared to answer.”―New York Magazine
“Tightly argued . . . empirically careful . . . conceptually precise . . . the book is in many ways a model of scholarship on right-wing populism. . . . Whiteshift’s clarityabout the ultimate implications of anti–political correctness politics is, second to the statistical analyses, its core virtue.”―Vox
“Might [Whiteshift] be the must-read book of the year? . . . informative, fascinating, and relevant on just about every page. . . . On top of all of its other virtues, Whiteshift provides the best intellectual history of the immigration debates I have seen.”―Tyler Cowen, Marginal Revolution
“Kaufmann’s explosive claim is that it is not enough to blame a resurgent racism for today’s populist revolts. . . . [He] redefines whiteness as a Western cultural norm, rather than a racial categorization. . . . Kaufmann has done a service in assembling the facts about present inter-ethnic relations in the West.”―Los Angeles Review of Books
“Whiteshift is an extremely ambitious book . . . intelligible for anyone who has been following American politics . . . [Eric Kaufmann] marshals a vast and convincing body of research . . . Kaufmann’s case that rising white anxiety is an urgent political problem seems almost unassailable. . . . Kaufmann’s book is valuable for its breadth, for its clear analysis of often-confused issues, and for its asseveration of the stakes of politics in an era of demographic change”―National Review
“Really engaging . . . Whiteshift is by far the most thorough and scholarly treatment of the politics of white majorities I’ve read.”―Andrew Sullivan, New York Magazine
“Whiteshift makes a convincing case that a single phenomenon is rolling across the West, one that has little to do with free trade, pro or anti. Instead, it is the inevitable reaction of demographic majorities to massive, immigration-induced demographic change”―The Washington Post
About the Author
Product details
- Publisher : Harry N. Abrams (February 11, 2020)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 624 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1419741926
- ISBN-13 : 978-1419741920
- Item Weight : 1.44 pounds
- Dimensions : 5.65 x 2.05 x 8.8 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #1,375,594 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #250 in Immigration Policy
- #336 in Demography Studies
- #713 in Nationalism (Books)
- Customer Reviews:
About the author
Eric Kaufmann is Professor of Politics at Birkbeck College, University of London. He is the author of Whiteshift: Immigration, Populism and the Future of White Majorities (Penguin, October 2018). He has also written Changing Places: mapping the white British response to ethnic change (Demos 2014), Shall the Religious Inherit the Earth: demography and politics in the twenty-first century (Profile 2010), The Rise and Fall of Anglo-America: the decline of dominant ethnicity in the United States (Harvard 2004) and two other books. He may be found on twitter at @epkaufm and on the web at www.sneps.net.
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Customers find the book thought-provoking and informative. They find the arguments compelling and the author passionate about the subject. The book covers a wide historical and geographic range, covering topics like race, nationality, and political history.
AI-generated from the text of customer reviews
Customers find the book thought-provoking and informative. It lays out compelling arguments regarding the demographic changes happening. The author is passionate about the subject and knowledgeable about it. They appreciate his reasonable and perceptive approach in the early chapters. The book examines a big, important question and does it in depth. Chapters 7 and 8 provide an interesting analysis of attitudes on immigration and race. Multiculturalism is rich and inclusive, but excludes the majority.
"...Multiculturalism is rich and inclusive, but excludes the majority and can weaken commitment to the nation.”..." Read more
"Eric Kaufmann is one of the bravest, most important, most articulate, and convincing scholars of our time and I would actually argue that he is the..." Read more
"...Chapters 7 and 8 provide an interesting analysis of attitudes on immigration and race, using the analytical tools previously described...." Read more
"very informative must read" Read more
Customers find the book's historical and geographic scope extensive. They mention it covers topics like racism, nationality, political history, and demographic change.
"...The author hits it in a big way – academic and historical depth with unapologetic policy suggestions...." Read more
"...think of, showing the interconnection of race, nationality, and political history...." Read more
"...The book contains considerable historical and geographic breadth, covering demographic change and ethnic relations across time and across Europe,..." Read more
"...attitudes about immigration and racism for example; it ranges through time and geography and for Kaufmann leads to some conclusions regarding where..." Read more
Top reviews from the United States
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- Reviewed in the United States on August 23, 2019The issue is a big one – how will predominantly white and European countries transition to current majorities’ becoming minorities. The author hits it in a big way – academic and historical depth with unapologetic policy suggestions. There are compromises – he sometimes uses squirrelly phrasing, its very detailed documentation often includes social surveys conducted on the internet fly, and it is long. It also covers Britain, Europe, and Canada as immigration and majority concern cases, but it primarily analyzes the US case. After reading only the US chapters, here are some sample quotes and takeaways:
“On immigration, all could agree that barring non-whites was racist. But was it also the case that limiting immigration to a level the ethnic majority could assimilate was racist?” (p. 89)
“Conflict resolution approaches such as truth and reconciliation commissions [such as in S. Africa] focus on getting people to move away from the victimhood narratives used by ultra-nationalists... How odd then that left-modernists, ostensibly progressive, are doing precisely the opposite, stirring up a sense of victimhood among often-reluctant ethnic minorities.” (p. 517)
“... liberal political theories were designed for a time when nation-states were ethnically stable and migration was limited. International law therefore lacks any rights or protections for ethnic majorities, only nation-states and minorities.” (p. 525)
“Ethic nationalism has richness, but excludes minorities. Multiculturalism is rich and inclusive, but excludes the majority and can weaken commitment to the nation.” (p. 530) In contrast to these two poles the author proposes an alternative – “multivocalism” which “maximizes meaning and unity by harnessing the complexity of national identity” (p. 531) and which allows people “to crowd-source national symbols and allow people to read what they want into them, picking and choosing what moves them.” (p. 532) The transition in the US at the beginning of the twentieth century from WASP majority identity to whiteness is already an example (with big speedbumps and caveats) of allowing multivocalism to change the inflection of the US ethnic majority identity. His suggestion is to cultivate an ongoing shift rather than to exacerbate it.
And the author is prodigiously knowledgeable and passionate about the subject. I am grateful that this has entered a currently impoverished public discussion (in the US).
- Reviewed in the United States on June 2, 2019Eric Kaufmann is one of the bravest, most important, most articulate, and convincing scholars of our time and I would actually argue that he is the most important academic in the world. This wonderful book lays out compelling arguments regarding the dramatic demographic changes happening in the West and he backs it up with lots of supporting data. Kaufmann gives many fascinating historical examples from around the world that show how and why demographic changes tend to cause tremendous conflict. However, Kaufmann also gives hope to readers and lays out a way in which Western countries can move forward.
I strongly agree with Kaufmann's arguments that whites in Western countries have legitimate interests as a demographic group in decline and that these views have to be expressed and listened to by the other side. He argues that there has to be a compromise between white interests (mostly an interest in maintaining white majorities) and hard-edged civic nationalism and I couldn't agree more. He argues that this compromise can only happen if 1) Left-Modernism tones down its claim that all white ethno-cultural interests are racism and 2) if whites accept that the new white majorities will be much more of mixed race. Personally, I don't even see whites in the Alt-Right strongly opposing mixed race whites identifying as white so I think the only big hurdle to this sort of compromise is Left-Modernism.
This book is packed with data proving that maintaining a solid white majority is not only very important to many whites in the West but also to a substantial number of minorities within those countries (over 25% of non-whites). Yet, few who prefer white majorities have the courage or verbal skills to articulate this controversial preference since Left-Modernism has deemed this position as racist. Kaufmann explains how Left-modernism became such a powerful force in the West with a fascinating historical outline of this ideology.
There are so many wonderful arguments in this book and I can't lay out all of them but I also love the author's assertion that public opinion is very driven by cues given by the elites/persuaders in society. He argues that Trump and other nationalist politicians have already played a huge role in moving the Overton Window away from Left-Modernism but that we have to take an additional step by acknowledging that hard-edged civic nationalism is not going to work.
I hope that many influential politicians, media personalities, and persuaders read this book because nobody else lays out a better path forward for how the West can survive. I also highly recommend Kaufmann's amazing book, "Shall the Religious Inherit the Earth" if you are fascinated by demographics. Make it a priority to read "Whiteshift" and please recommend it to others! The West is at a point where we are trying to avoid civil war and heroes like Kaufmann can go a long way towards saving us.
Top reviews from other countries
- TanlerReviewed in Canada on May 29, 2024
5.0 out of 5 stars We Need More Academic Freedom
In the process of exploring the impact of immigration on white communities, Kaufmann touches upon the restrictions faced by academics in the university environment. He voices many of the same concerns elaborated by the Heterodox Academy (Jonathan Haidt, University of Virginia) and The Council for Academic Freedom (Steven Pinker, Harvard). Some of the more relevant criticisms are a lack of viewpoint diversity and an excessive focus on race and gender disparities as the sole criteria for defining inequality privilege. Kaufmann says most people treat immigration as an identity issue, not as an economic one. The prevailing mindset in academia connects white identity to the most egregious aspects of modern history, like colonialism and slavery. This is not a balanced view. Kaufmann argues that all ethnic groups, including majorities, have the right to defend their legitimate self-interests without being labeled racist. This leads to a discussion of the concept of racism. Kaufmann defines racism as “unequal treatment of out-groups, and racial endogamy.” Well…it’s hard to maintain a group’s ethnic or cultural distinctiveness without embracing some form of endogamy. Therefore, multiculturalism becomes a problem. It’s a barrier to social cohesion. He describes the policies of multiculturalism in Britain, the US and Canada as “asymmetrical”. There are different sets of values for whites and non-whites. Whites are encouraged to be “cosmopolitan”. Other groups are urged to maintain their cultural distinctiveness. Kaufmann feels this is an unworkable solution. While humans seem to have an inherent tendency to coalesce into groups, political ideology or religion are often more importent factors for determining group affiliation than genetics or race. Diversity is another value promoted by the intellectual establishment. The author shows that a diverse society is not necessarily a more egalitarian one. “Whiteshift” is the term Kaufmann uses to describe a) the movement of white people out of diverse areas into suburbs or towns that have white majorities, and b) changes in the white ethnic boundary, where group identity expands to include mixed-white peoples. Generally speaking, he favors greater social integration. To this end, his personal preference would be an increase in the rate of intermarriage. However, in describing himself as a “negative liberal” he is not about to force his views on anyone. He believes that the decline of liberalism is inevitable, because a) older populations tend to be more conservative, and b) excessive immigration has triggered a rise in the acceptance of populism.
This is a massive work, with much commentary and analysis of situations specific to different countries. He has strong political opinions and gives abundant evidence to support his positions.
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EinsteinReviewed in Canada on September 26, 2022
5.0 out of 5 stars Ce livre fait vraiment le tour de la question.
Travail de recherche colossal et sérieux. Excellente documentation. À lire absolument si vous êtes théseux.
- F. W. Orde MortonReviewed in Canada on April 11, 2019
4.0 out of 5 stars An Important Book on Canada and the Western World
This is an important and original book on the distempers of our times. It is also a rarity: a book that discusses the Canadian experience with immigration and multiculturalism, comparing it with the experiences of the UK and USA, and thereby shedding light on all three.
Kaufmann's thesis is twofold. He sees the current right-wing populism of the West originating from identity issues rather than class-based economic factors. Second, he argues that the white majorities in the USA and UK have a right to value and defend their identity, provided they do not claim a privileged status for it. He shows how "white" identity has become more inclusive in the past and could become still more so in the future. Vilifying whites as racists and imperialist only makes them define themselves narrowly and strengthens the reaction that has brought Donald Trump and his ilk to power. Such a reaction is understandable. The post-modernists (Kaufmann calls them "left modernists") who dominate the social sciences and humanities in much of academia teach that racism is respectable, even admirable, so long as it is directed at "whites". The white majorities naturally balk at an indictment that leaves them with nothing to do except apologize for the actions of ancestors, far away and long ago.
Kaufmann has aimed at writing a book that will influence public policy but also withstand criticism from his peers. This entails summarizing massive amounts of attitudinal research, along with many graphs, some of which obscure his point rather than clarifying it. The results is often prolix, and the forest can be lost to view behind the trees. A good editor could have cut at least 50 pages of the 537. Repeating the central theses would keep the reader on track. But few politicians (or journalists?) will have the time and inclination to read it through. The message will be filtered through reviews and articles, many of them written by left modernists for whom minority identities trump all other considerations. Meanwhile, Canadians should be grateful for a book by a knowledgeable though not uncritical observer, one that sets contemporary Canadian issues in the context of a wider world.