Phoenix is the largest city in the Southwest and one of the largest urban centers in the country, yet less has been published about its minority populations than those of other major
Luckingham . . . describes the history of the Mexican-American, Chinese-American, and African-American minorities in Phoenix. This book will be essential reading for historians and students of these groups, of the Southwest, and of American cities.
—American Historical Review
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metropolitan areas. Bradford Luckingham has now written a straightforward narrative history of Mexican Americans, Chinese Americans, and African Americans in Phoenix from the 1860s to the present,
tracing their struggles against segregation and discrimination and emphasizing the active roles they have played in shaping their own destinies.
Settled in the mid-nineteenth century by Anglo and Mexican pioneers, Phoenix emerged as an Anglo-dominated society that presented formidable obstacles to minorities seeking access to jobs, education,
housing, and public services. It was not until World War II and the subsequent economic boom and civil rights era that opportunities began to open up.
Drawing on a variety of sources, from newspaper files to statistical data to oral accounts, Luckingham profiles the general history of each community, revealing the problems it has faced and the
progress it has made. His overview of the public life of these three ethnic groups shows not only how they survived, but how they contributed to the evolution of one of America's fastest-growing
cities.
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