John Kerry ’66 was the featured speaker at the Class Day ceremony on May 18. He was introduced by two of the events co-chairs: Nia Holston and Josh Rubin. Here is a transcription of his address. (more…)
Book focuses on race relations between Native Americans, African Americans
It’s a rosy picture, to think of Native Americans and African Americans embracing one another over the course of our country’s history.
But that rosy picture has a dark side, one tainted by tense race relations little discussed in the academic literature, pop culture and history textbooks, according to the University of Delaware’s Arica Coleman. (more…)
Jack Turner, UW assistant professor of political science, is the author of “Awakening to Race: Individualism and Social Consciousness in America,” published this month by University of Chicago Press. He answered a few questions about his book for UW Today.
What’s the central concept behind “Awakening to Race”?
The book addresses the challenge of racial justice by asking, “What does it mean to be a self-aware human being? What does it mean to be awake to reality?”
In part, it means confronting the worst aspects of ourselves and our lives. Being awake to reality in the United States means confronting the ways America’s history of slavery, Jim Crow and white supremacy still shapes the present — the opportunities we have or we lack, the confidence we have in ourselves or fail to have in others, the ways our chances for success are still color coded. (more…)
