The Civil War outlawed slavery, and the civil rights movement put an end to legalized segregation. Crimes motivated by racism are now punished with particular severity, and Americans are more sensitive than ever when it comes to the words they use to talk about other races and ethnic groups. Yet the country remains divided along racial lines.

This controversial book identifies a new paradigm of race relations that has emerged in the wake of the legal victories of the civil rights era: racial paranoia.

African-Americans distrust the rhetoric of political correctness, and continue to see the threat of hidden racism lurking below the surface of America's public conversations. Conspiracy theories abound and racial reconciliation seems nearly impossible.

Racial Paranoia: The Unintended Consequences of Political Correctness explains how this skepticism is cultivated, transferred, and reinforced; how it shapes our nation and complicates the goal of racial equality.