Center for African American Studies poised to lead at critical time

[Blue_Tires]

Princeton's Center for African American Studies is launching an aggressive effort to become the leading resource for the public's understanding of race in America, coming at a time when the center's scholars say they are seeing an upward trend in racial issues igniting the country in a series of "brush fires."

Working with a new chair, scholars will build on growth and strategies developed in the center's first three years to take advantage of fresh avenues to broaden discussions of race with the public, to engage in research that could be of use to policymakers, and to harness a unique interdisciplinary approach to reach the next generation of leaders.

"When we begin to think about the direction of the field, we believe that what we're doing here at Princeton, right here in this moment, will set the path for the field of African American studies in the next century," said new center chair Eddie Glaude, Princeton's William S. Tod Professor of Religion and African American Studies. "We have an enormous task ahead of us, so we're very excited about it."

Scholars at the center noted that, when black children were banned from a pool at a Philadelphia swim club in June, there was a clamor for voices to dissect the social and political meaning of the incident. There was a similar call when a black Harvard University professor was arrested outside his home by white officers in July; when a debate between leading academics in this country and abroad devolved into a discussion of whether the Felix the Cat cartoon character is black; and also when debates erupted about the racial overtones of the "birther" movement questioning President Barack Obama's citizenship, "tea parties" to protest so-called government intrusion, and a congressman's now infamous "You lie" outburst during the president's health care address to Congress.
http://www.princeton.edu/main/news/archive/S25/53/53G77/index.xml?section=featured