“The Great Negro State of the Country?”

Abstract

Scholarship on African American political participation—like research on political participation generally—has focused largely on the national-level preferences of citizens and policy makers. Considerably less attention has been paid to such dynamics in the American states. This article provides an introduction to Black legislative activity in the State of Arkansas with an eye on descriptive and substantive representation issues. Specifically, the article investigates the presence and role of Black Arkansans in the state's General Assembly in the post-1960s era of civil rights reforms, assessing their acquisition of legislative seats, their ascendancy to committee and chamber leadership positions, and—especially—their attempt to present an influential voting bloc. The article concludes that though African American legislators in Arkansas are disadvantaged by their small numbers, they have found other ways to exercise power in the state legislature.