Gilroy and Rex converge on race and class as fractured struggles among political actors

Evidence

Here there exists, perhaps surprisingly, a great deal of similarity between Gilroy’s notion of the relationship between class and race and Rex’s theoretical conclusions (Rex and Tomlinson, 1979). Both authors are arguing that the continuous historical project of working-class struggle has been fractured, leaving a number of classes or class/race fractions involved in specific struggles. Equally, Gilroy and Rex both emphasize that their formulations are models of social action. It is essential to both positions that the significance of race is located within the salience that this term of reference has developed in the world of political actors. — David Theo Goldberg, John Solomos, A Companion to Racial and Ethnic Studies, 2204

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to Omi and Winant’s racial formation theory, also mentioned in this chapter; a classic Race & Ethnic Studies syllabus pair.