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Past presidents of ASA and APSA weigh in
Race and equality in America served as the timely topics of January's Chancellor's Distinguished Lecture. Co-hosted by the School of Social Sciences' Center for the Study of Democracy (CSD) and Department of Sociology, the talk also kicked off the inaugural annual Robin M. Williams, Jr. Lecture series established to honor the research and teaching of Robin M. Williams. A distinguished visiting professor who devoted much of his career and writing to studies of intergroup tensions, race and ethnic relations, and war and peace, Williams spent the last 16 years of his life pursuing his love for research, teaching and service at UCI.
Addressing the issues of race and equality in the afternoon talk were Dianne Pinderhughes, past president of the American Political Science Association and current professor at the University of Notre Dame, and Troy Duster, past president of the American Sociological Association and current professor at New York University.
"Obama's election to office is a sign that times have changed and boundaries have been crossed, but we still have a ways to go," said Pinderhughes. She went on to highlight both the substantive and functional dimensions in which she says issues of race and equality exist today, identifying key political and economic components she says the new Presidential administration can help address including rising personal debt, the housing crisis, high unemployment, ideological hiring patterns in government offices - issues she explained are negatively affecting the African American community in higher numbers.
Duster's talk began with an historical account of the conditions under which social movements have brought about change before leading into what he says is a need for the country to stand not mesmerized by the symbolic nature of Obama's election, but to instead seize the opportunity to incite action for the changes discussed throughout his campaign run. On the subject of unemployment, Duster highlighted America's stagnant industrial sector as a key revitalization area that could spark job growth. Before closing, he reemphasized the need to capitalize on the new President's grassroots supporters. "Obama's grassroots campaign created a movement. It's important not to lose the momentum of this historic movement as it is the continued mobilization of an entire population toward a common agenda that keeps you progressive."
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