Social conflict is revealed as both natural and functional in human society. Conflict is called “realistic” when rationally determined means are used to achieve culturally approved ends. In the field of Negro struggle, legal redress, political pressure and mass action meet these defining criteria of realistic conflict. This study examines some of the social functions of conflict as here defined. It is asked: does realistic conflict by Negroes have any system-maintaining and system-enhancing consequences for the larger American society? The analysis revealed that realistic racial conflict (1) alters the social structure, (2) extends social communication, (3) enhances social solidarity, and (4) facilitates personal identity.
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Joseph S. Himes (1966) studied this question.