In a nation that is tearing itself apart over race, trying to speak honestly about the state of black America is a perilous task. Candor and thoughtfulness are often drowned by hysteria, expediency, and sentimentalism. The State of Black America seeks to restore these sorely needed virtues to the present discourse, assembling a company of scholars who confront our nation’s troubled racial history even as they bear witness to the promise the American heritage contains for blacks. Featuring scholarship from a variety of disciplines, including history, economics, social science, and political philosophy, The State of Black America offers to the world a “toolbox” of intellectual resources to aid careful and sound thinking on one of the most fraught issues of our time. Featuring contributions from W. B. Allen, Mikael Rose Good, Edward J. Erler, Robert D. Bland, Glenn C. Loury, Ian V. Rowe, Precious D. Hall, Daphne Cooper, Star Parker, and Robert Borens.