PNW Race, Racism, Anti-Racism Series

Since the brutal killing of George Floyd, millions of people (Americans and others) were shocked and outraged. Hundreds of protests were held in cities across America – perhaps the largest demonstrations against racism since the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. Urgent questions about inequality, racial discrimination, and police violence opened up a national dialogue that continues despite the conviction and sentencing of Derek Chauvin.

In 2020, PNW faculty offered Race, Racism, Anti-Racism, a free educational faculty-driven series, with discussions reflecting on these recent events and social movements.

In 2021-2022, we continue this series, dedicating it to the spirit and memory of Mr. Glen Ford (1949-2021), journalist and co-founder of Black Agenda Report, who passed away in an untimely manner on July 28, 2021. We owe a debt of gratitude to Mr. Ford for being our first guest speaker for this series in September of 2020.

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2021-2022 Speakers

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September 28, 12:30 – 1:45 p.m.

The Origins and Future of Critical Race Theory

Lee B. Artz, Ph.D., Professor of Media Studies and Director of the Center for Global Studies at PNW (left) with Patrick Anderson, Ph.D., Assistant Professor Philosophy, Central State University, Dayton, OH, and Contributor: Mint Press News and Black Agenda Report.

Beginning with an overview of the work of Derrick Bell, the “father of critical theory,” Peterson introduces a robust intellectual and political history of critical race theory as racial realism. Working from a Black radical tradition and anti-colonialism, Peterson offers a critique of intersectionality as an idealist, liberal iteration of critical race theory.

Hybrid: In-Person and Synchronous Zoom

Room: Y Jean Chambers Hall, SULB, Hammond

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October 20, 12:30 – 2 p.m.

Implications of Race and Racism in Student Evaluations of Teaching: The Hate U Give

LaVada U. Taylor, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Education at PNW with other author-panelists.

Implications of Race and Racism in Student Evaluations of Teaching: The Hate U Give highlights practices in higher education such as using student course evaluations of teaching to inform merit increases, contract renewals, and promotion and tenure decisions. The collection deconstructs student course feedback to reveal implications of race and racism inherent in student responses mirroring learned behavior situated within the socio-political context of US culture and schools.

Learned behavior fostering racial hate given to students informing and shaping their classroom experiences with BIPOC faculty. To this end, the work speaks to systemic racial inequality in higher education learning spaces and possibilities of reimagining student evaluations as a cry for a more just and equitable society.

Hybrid: In-Person and Synchronous Zoom

Room: SUL 150F

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NOVEMBER 2, 12:30 – 1:45 p.m.

Princes of Peace and Ethics of Protest: Gandhi, King, Dalai Lama, Mandela

Karen B. Morris, Ph.D., Associate Professor of English at PNW with Deepa Majumdar, D.S.Sc., Professor of Philosophy at PNW.

We begin this dialogue by asking why political protest must be ethical. We continue by discussing political enmity, the moral imperative of nonviolence, and the difference between strategies and moral ideals or guiding principles – asserting that strategic thinking should never degenerate to mere expediency.

We take turns to present Gandhi, King, Dalai Lama, and Mandela – four recent princes of peace, who represent flares of Conscience in what might otherwise be a murky history of revolution. All four combine religion with protest politics – but at a high level.

At lower levels, church and state should be separate because religion and politics explode whenever they mix. But, at a higher level religion uplifts and ennobles protest politics – as these luminaries demonstrate.

The nonviolence they practiced and the moral altitude they reached may not always be feasible. But this does not reduce their relevance or take away from their glory. For they represent the horizon of ideals that mankind should always aspire towards.

Synchronous Zoom

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November 30, 12:30 – 1:45 p.m.

“Who is hurt by racism? You might be surprised to find out….”

Alan J. Spector, Ph.D., Professor of Sociology and Center for Global Studies at PNW.

Racial discrimination and racist ideas are a reality in US society. Many people are confused about who is responsible. Many white people who don’t consider themselves “racist” nevertheless imagine themselves forced into a competition with members of other race-ethnic groups. Heather McGhee and other researchers over the past fifty years have challenged this “Zero Sum” framework with evidence examining just what happens to the living conditions of white people when People of Color experience more discrimination or less discrimination. These issues will be explored in this forum.

Synchronous Zoom

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Past Speakers

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