This engaging reader consists of 57 edited articles organized according to seven unifying themes. Part I establishes the importance of examining race as a contemporary social issue. Part II introduces the analytical frameworks that are now being used to think about race in society. Part III examines the most immediately experienced dimensions of race: beliefs and ideology. Part IV examines racial identity and interracial relationships, topics that are especially interesting to students. Part V analyzes the importance of the political economy of race, showing how the economic exploitation of racial groups is buttressed by political arrangements in the state. In particular, the racial division of labor is supported by concepts of citizenship that deny full rights of citizenship to certain groups. Part VI details the consequences of race and racism as manifested in different social institutions, including work, family, health, housing, education, and social justice. Part VII focuses on social movements and social change. Each section includes articles examining the outcomes within social institutions that stem from the reality of racial inequality in society.