ABSTRACT
"Introduction to American Government" is a standard course for college freshmen. Most of the major textbooks used for these courses utilize the institutional and behavioral approach to the study of American government. The struggle of African Americans, originally locked out of the political process, denied the right to vote and to hold political office, is crucial to the study and meaning of democracy in America. Rosalee A. Clawson and Elizabeth R. Kegler examined images in 27 American Government college textbooks for a racial bias in the portrayal of poverty. They found that African Americans are portrayed as poor in these images at a disproportionately higher rate than whites and other minorities. The textbooks were found to perpetuate and promote nationalist views of American history and institutions, avoid issues of conflict and controversy, particularly in the realm of institutionalized racism and contemporary issues, and what Stuart J. Foster describes as "mentioning".
