This outstanding work provides detailed information on the topic in a balanced, comprehensive, and insightful manner. A thought-provoking introduction and a brief chronology open the four-volume set and are followed by more than 700 well-written and intelligently researched articles. . . . In short, the editors and contributors resoundingly achieve their stated purpose of producing a work that contributes to the understanding of racism in the United States while creating a valuable resource for general readers, students, and teachers on race relations and racial inequality. VERDICT: A use-first reference for any student or researcher of race-related and minority issues in the United States. * Library Journal, Starred Review * Although numerous resources exist on race relations in the United States . . . this new set goes beyond examining the issues surrounding a particular race or ethnic group and instead brings attention to those groups which have experienced social or institutional discrimination in one form or another. * ARBAonline * A broad, interdisciplinary reference work on race and racism in the USone that unites history, social theory, popular culture, and morehas long been needed. This four-volume set, surveying the period from American independence to the shooting of Trayvon Martin, does an admirable job of covering the events, people, movements, laws, concepts, and cultural artifacts relevant to any study of the "race question" in the US. . . . [ T]his set does a commendable job of collecting an often-dizzying array of subjects and ever-evolving concepts into a reference work suitable for scholars and casual readers alike. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-level undergraduates and above; general readers. * Choice *