OMNIA
, e u g o l d e t Dia i s i v Re OMNIA looks back on books from three faculty whose contributions to the conversation on race and social justice have stood the test of time. SUSAN AHLBORN, BLAKE COLE, LORAINE TERRELL, AND LAUREN REBECCA THACKER ILLUSTRATIONS BY NOA DENMON BY
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he impact of a book can be measured not only in the beauty of its words or the strength of its arguments, but in the legacy left behind—what it has, and continues, to teach its readers about the issues of the day and lessons for the future. The wave of protests in the U.S. following the killings of unarmed Black men and women, including George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery, have put a spotlight on scholarship on race and inequality. As demonstrations in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. have called for action by governments and institutions, we take a look at three books by eminent faculty that have spurred movements and informed cohorts of future experts and activists.
Black Resistance/White Law: A History of Constitutional Racism in America, published in 1971 by Mary Frances Berry, Geraldine R. Segal Professor of American Social Thought and Professor of History and Africana Studies, was inspired by the
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protests that followed Martin Luther King, Jr.’s assassination. The book investigates the government’s power to employ federal forces to quell rebellions and protests. Killing the Black Body: Race, Reproduction, and the Meaning of Liberty, published in 1988 by Dorothy Roberts, George A. Weiss University Professor of Law and Sociology, Raymond Pace and Sadie Tanner Mossell Alexander Professor of Civil Rights, and Professor of Africana Studies, coined the term “reproductive justice” and redefined reproductive rights as being not just about abortion, but the history of racism and the devaluation of Black women. And Thicker Than Blood: How Racial Statistics Lie, published in 2001 by Tukufu Zuberi, Lasry Family Professor of Race Relations and Professor of Sociology and Africana Studies, presents a critique of the concept of racial statistics and asks scholars to question the validity of their use in social science. Join us for a journey that spans decades, in which we examine the unique context of each book—and its lasting impact.
