The Rainbow Coalition (and rainbow politics in general) provides a suitable context in which to explore ideas about the relationship between theories of social identity and actual processes of identity formation. A brief outline of the history of Rev. Jesse Jackson's two presidential nomination campaigns is provided. Existing academic interpretations of the Rainbow Coalition are then reviewed, and a class-based analysis is favoured rather than one grounded in racial politics or new social movements. This conclusion needs to be tempered by a fuller consideration of the geography of the Rainbow Coalition than has been available so far. The paper ends with a tentative examination of what geographical principles and themes are involved, drawing on case studies from Vermont, Van Nuys, CA, and Baltimore, MD, It is suggested that a focus on the circulation of finance capital may provide both the principle linking the coalition's diverse constituencies and places and a significant point of political leverage for future rainbow polities.
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