The Hamiltons'lucid study of the history of policy making in social welfare, from the New Deal to the present, is written from a black perspective and is meticulously researched and documented. Black civil rights organizations, seeking a universal social welfare system, jobs in the regular work force, and national hegemony over government programs, worked for policies that comprised a dual agenda: the pursuit of race-specific issues and the fight for a social welfare agenda that included all citizens regardless of race. Part of the story is that of the clash of the two agendas.... Highly recommended.

Dona Cooper Hamilton is associate professor of social work at Herbert H. Lehman College, City University of New York.

Charles V. Hamilton is Wallace Sayre Professor of Government at Columbia University.