How We Win the Civil War: Securing a Multiracial Democracy and Ending White Supremacy for Good
“Politically charged, thoughtfully reasoned.”
“A seminal and urgent work. This book is a rallying cry…this book provides hope. ”
— Senator Cory Booker
“Spirited and persuasive, this is a rousing call for change.”
“If we first recognize that we are in a war, and then learn the lessons and follow the lead of those who have shown they know how to prevail, we can definitely win the Civil War, secure a multiracial democracy, and end white supremacy for good.”
Steve Phillips’s first book, Brown Is the New White, helped shift the national conversation around race and electoral politics, earning a spot on the New York Times bestseller list and launching Phillips into the upper ranks of trusted observers of the nation’s changing demographics and their implications for our political future.
Now, in How We Win the Civil War, Phillips warns that the Confederates never stopped fighting the Civil War, that conservatives are taking full advantage of this reality, and that those in denial imperil our democracy. He charts the way forward in the post-Trump era, arguing that progressives must recognize the true nature of the fight we’re in—an existential battle between those who wish to make America a multiracial democracy and those clinging to the concept that this is fundamentally a white nation.
Additional Praise for How We Win the Civil War
"By centering community organizers rather than abstract manifestos, the book demonstrates an authentic commitment to democracy. How We Win is well positioned to shape election outcomes, policy outcomes, and debates about the future of multiracial democracy.”
— Spencer Overton, professor of law at George Washington University, and president of the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies
“Steve Phillips reminds us that the Civil War was a war for democracy, and that the struggle against racism in American society and politics has always been a struggle for democracy. He shows, further, that in our own time, we can save democracy from right-wing authoritarianism by mobilizing Black, Latino, and Asian American voters rather than chasing the elusive ‘middle’ of the electorate. It’s not only good politics, it’s a strategy that has worked.”
— Mae Ngai, professor of history, Columbia University, and winner of the Bancroft Prize for The Chinese Question
"Reading this book is the first time I felt a sense of hope in a very long time."
— Sara Blanchard, co-host, "Dear White Women" podcast
Praise for Steve Phillips and Brown is The New White
“Steve Phillips has a deep understanding of how the civil rights movement changed America. His book sparks an important conversation about what in- creasing racial and cultural diversity will mean for American politics and policy.”
— Senator Cory Booker
“Steve Phillips is not only an author writing about the potential of a ‘New American Majority.’ He is one of its gifted architects, an innovator with deep roots in electoral politics and a passion for connecting people of every race and back- ground in common purpose. His energetic book, Brown Is the New White, is both a fascinating exploration of today’s rapidly changing demographic landscape and an opportunity to see the future through the eyes of one of America’s most engaging public servants and progressive political minds.”
— Henry Louis Gates Jr., Alphonse Fletcher University Professor, Harvard University