Michael Mitchell is associate professor at the School of Politics and Global Studies, Arizona State University, USA. His research focuses on democratization in Latin America and the politics of ethnic minorities. David Covin is professor emeritus of government and ethnic studies at California State University, Sacramento, USA. His research interests include black politics in the United States and Brazil, and social movements. Nikol Alexander-Floyd is associate professor of women's and gender studies and an associate member of the political science graduate faculty at Rutgers University-New Brunswick, USA. Julia Jordan-Zachery is associate professor of political science and director of the Black Studies Program at Providence College, USA.

• Editors' NoteGuest Editors' NoteSpecial Issue ArticlesWhy Political Scientists Don't Study Black Women, But Historians and Sociologists Do: On Intersectionality and the Remapping of the Study of Black Political Women NikolAlexander-Floyd"I Ain't Your Darn Help": Black Women as the Help in Intersectionality Research in Political ScienceJulia S. Jordan-Zachery(Black) Papa Knows Best: Marion Barry and the Appeal to Black Authoritarian DiscourseRosemary Ndubuizu"Talking" about Gender While Ignoring Race and Class: A Discourse Analysis of Pay Equity DebatesJulia S. Jordan-Zachery and Salida WilsonInfluencing the Political Agenda from the Outside: A Comparative Study of Hausa Women's NGOs and CBOs in Kano, NigeriaAdryan WallaceBlack Women's Pathways to the Statehouse: The Impact of Race/Gender IdentitiesNadia E. BrownTaking to the Airwaves: Using Content Analyses of Survey Toplines and Filmographies to Test the "Michelle Obama Image Transformation" (MOIT) HypothesisRay Block Jr. and Christina S. HaynesResearch Article: Black Urban LeadershipBlack Mayoral Leadership in New Orleans: Minority Incorporation RevisitedStefanie Chambers and William E. Nelson, Jr.Current Issue Analysis: The Supreme Court's Shelby County v. Holder DecisionReflections on Shelby v. HolderChristina RiversTrendsBlack Women State Legislators—Electoral Trend Data 1995–2011B. D'Andra Orey and Nadia E. BrownBook ReviewsBook Reviews: Special Issue on Black Women in PoliticsTiffany Willoughby-HerardSwarns, Rachel L. American Tapestry: The Story of the Black, White, and Multiracial Ancestors of Michelle Obama,reviewed by Wendy G. SmoothFoster, Frances Smith, Beverly Guy-Sheftall, and Stanlie M. James, eds. Still Brave: The Evolution of Black Women's Studies,reviewed by Brittany LewisBlackwell, Maylei. !Chicana Power! Contested Histories of Feminism in the Chicano Movement,reviewed by T. Jackie CuevasTucker-Worgs, Tamelyn. The Black Megachurch: Theology, Gender, and the Politics of Public Engagement,reviewed by Stephanie Y. MitchemHarris-Perry, Melissa. Sister Citizen: Shame, Stereotypes, and Black Women in America (For Colored Girls Who've Considered Politics When Being Strong Isn't Enough),reviewed by Nadia E. BrownMcKittrick, Katherine. Demonic Grounds: Black Women and the Cartographies of Struggle,reviewed by Zenzele IsokeNealy, Lisa Nikol. African American Women Voters: Racializing Religiosity, Political Consciousness, and Progressive Political Action in U.S. Presidential Elections from 1964 through 2008,reviewed by Hanes Walton, Jr .Levi, Robin, and Ayelet Waldman, eds. Inside This Place, Not of It: Narratives from Women's Prisons , Foreword by Michelle Alexander; Richie, Beth E. Arrested Justice: Black Women, Violence, and America's Prison Nation ; Shigematsu, Setsu, Cameron Granadino, and Jolie Chea. Visions of Abolition: From Critical Resistance to a New Way of Life ,reviewed by Ofelia CuevasMoore, Mignon R. Invisible Families: Gay Identities, Relationships, and Motherhood among Black Women,reviewed by E. Patrick JohnsonClay, Andreana. The Hip-Hop Generation Fights Back: Youth, Activism, and Post-Civil Rights Politics,reviewed by H. L. T. QuanCohen, Cathy. Democracy Remixed: Black Youth and the Future of American Politics,reviewed by Melina AbdullahThe Editors: A Note on Passing: William (Nick) Nelson and Hanes Walton, Jr.Invitation to the Scholarly Community