Matthew Platt | Morehouse College

Matthew Platt

Morehouse College, Political Science, Faculty Member

Morehouse College, Political Science, Faculty Member |

Political Science

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Articles

From GRID to gridlock: the relationship between scientific biomedical breakthroughs and HIV/AIDS policy in the US Congress

Journal of the International AIDS Society, 2013

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Participation for What? A Policy-motivated Approach to Political Activism

Political Behavior, 2008

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Papers

A Change Narrative of Black Agenda Setting

... some further understanding or resolution of that problem (Talbert, Jones and Baumgartner 1995... more

Innovation, Inevitability, and Credibility: Tracking the Origins of Black Civil Rights Issues

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Preaching in the Wilderness: Exploring the Macro Dynamics of Political Participation

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Boons, Banes, and Neutrals: Context and Disparities in Political Participation

Racial disparities in political participation have been examined thoroughly by the literature. Ho... more Racial disparities in political participation have been examined thoroughly by the literature. However, the previous research has not explored how these participation gaps change according to broader contextual factors. This paper provides some evidence that individuals’ differing perceptions of social, political, and economic realities mediate the effects of context on participation. I argue that these differences are the
roots of participation gaps. Political activity is explained by neither individual characteristics nor context; a true understanding requires both.

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Surprisingly Normal: Recognition of Black Issues by non-Black Members of Congress

Debates in the race and representation literature have been focused on whether race matters for t... more Debates in the race and representation literature have been focused on whether race matters for the substantive representation of black interests. However, this debate has overlooked the basic reality that the vast majority of black issue legislation is sponsored by non-black members of Congress. I introduce a problem-solving framework to analyze sponsorship of black issue legislation from 1948 to 1997. The results show that black issue recognition has changed over time, but ideology, institutional position, and district composition are the core determinants of member decisions to recognize black issues. Rather than relying upon the outsider pressure of protest or the insider influence of descriptive black representation, black Americans can expand the scope of conflict by simply electing white liberal representatives. Contrary to expectations of the exceptional quality of black agenda setting, in post-war America black politics is surprisingly
normal.

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