This collection of original essays explores policy perspectives on selected contemporary issues as they relate to black Americans and provides an analysis of recent policy decisions in terms of the resultant benefits and burdens to the black community. The major concern of Contemporary Public Policy Perspectives and Black Americans is to determine whether the current public policy objectives are meeting the needs of America's black population. The issues examined herein include public policies in the areas of urban crisis, Reaganomics, public employment, minority business enterprise, energy, the military, police, affirmative action, health, the economy, and futures and ethics policies. In discussing policy issues and their distributional benefits and results, opportunities for individual advancement are scrutinized. This scrutiny, Rice and Jones contend, is the only way to consider and discuss the equity of policy issues for black Americans.