The Racial Politics of Congressional Cafeterias
Posted: 19 Oct 2016
Date Written: October 17, 2016
Abstract
This article narrates through the racial history of U.S. congressional dining facilities to reveal how race orders the organization of space and labor in the U.S. Capitol. I build upon existing theories of racialized space, developing a more robust account of how rules, labor, and space constitute raced organizations. Over the past 150 years, at least three different epochs categorize and define lawmakers’ understanding of race, racism, and the status of African Americans. The trajectory of black legislative workers from Reconstruction, the New Deal, and the Post-Civil Rights Eras does not suggest a linear progression to the attainment of equal rights, instead it shows that political gains are easily reversed and how institutional rules are used to legitimate inequality. Specifically, data shows that labor and space are privatized to accommodate white supremacy and usurp workers’ political and economic rights. Furthermore, this historical analysis documents how institutional rules inside raced organizations change to reflect the current period of racialization and incorporate a more dynamic understanding of how raced organizations evolve. Finally, this article designates congressional dining facilities as an important site of political protest for the advancement of African American political rights both in and outside of the Capitol.
Keywords: Congress, Segregation
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