(Re)theorizing civic engagement: Foundations for Black Americans civic engagement theory

Abstract

Commonly known as “civic engagement,” getting involved within communities in a formalized way has served a foundational role in the development of the United States. Missing from foundational conceptualizations of analyses is theoretical and empirical research that does not center White people and experiences. In this article, I argue that researchers need to incorporate an understanding of Black American's relationship with civic engagement to increase the accuracy of literature on civic engagement. Toward this goal, I first outline the foundational conceptualizations of civic engagement. I next discuss the limitations of civic engagement theories with a focus on data sources and the exclusion of non‐White persons within foundational texts. I then highlight the historical civic activities of Black Americans that has been foregrounded in research on Black voluntary associations. This project pushes for a discussion on the relationship between civic engagement and race with a focus on Black Americans that is relevant to sociological understandings of civil society. I conclude by discussing how filling this gap has a far‐reaching impact in the field of collective behavior and social movements.

Unapologetic Blackness in Action: Embodied Resistance and Social Movement Scenes in Black Celebrity Activism

“…Lamar’s faith centers an ethic of progress and evolution that is mirrored in his political values. Despite previously not believing in voting, he came to reconcile Black civic and political engagement with his spirituality (Allen 2019; Robinson 2019). Lamar received the key to the city of Compton, the California State Senate’s Generational Icon award, and worked with President Barack Obama on his Pay It Forward program (Legaspi 2018).…”

Acknowledging the historical contributions of Black Youth's civic engagement in society

“…Recognizing the contributions of Black youth is vital to the YCE field for several reasons. Robinson (2019) notes Black youth engagement in the Americas as a series of events and actions that pushed the envelope for structural change. I argue for the expansion of this definition to be more inclusive of Blacks across the diaspora.…”

“…As noted by Caribbean and Black scholars such as Bowen (2013), Robinson (2019), and Sanatan (2019) young Black youth have made tremendous contributions to enrich the narrative of civic engagement. Still, their historical contributions are not fully integrated into the literature.…”

The Case of Black Millennials

“…Through these relationships, she observes how Black Millennials become civically engaged as a way to expand the scope of previous collective behavior research that focuses on protests moments (McCarthy and Zald 1977; Moss and Snow, 2016). Civic engagement allows scholars to depart from traditional social movements literature by incorporating everyday instances of participatory democracy, such as voluntary groups and voting (Robinson 2019a). Robinson makes three conclusions related to this relationship.…”