Black Politics and American Democracy
We meet at a moment of democratic upheaval in the United States, one in which questions of race and identity are at the heart of what many understand to be a crisis for American democracy. Against this backdrop, three scholars of Black politics gather to reflect on the politics of an ever diversifying Black public and what it tells us about the possibilities and limits of democratic life in the United States.
This conversation, presented by the Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law's Program on Identity, Democracy, and Justice, brings together Katherine Tate, Corey Fields, and Hakeem Jefferson to consider how Black politics is understood in the present moment. Rather than treating Black politics as singular or static, the discussion will take seriously the diversity of views, experiences, and political commitments that exist within Black communities, and the ways those differences matter for how people understand political life.
The event will begin with brief opening reflections from Tate and Fields, followed by a conversation with Jefferson, and will conclude with a moderated Q&A with attendees.
About the Speakers
Katherine Tate is one of the foremost scholars of Black politics in the United States and a Professor of Political Science at Brown University. She received her Ph.D. in political science from the University of Michigan.
Tate is the author of seven books, including the award-winning Black Faces in the Mirror and From Protest to Politics. Her most recent book, Gendered Pluralism (University of Michigan Press, 2023), is coauthored with Belinda Robnett. She is currently at work on a new manuscript focused on Black voters and the 2024 election. Her research and teaching focus on public opinion, government, and Black and women’s politics.
Corey Fields
Corey D. Fields is a sociologist whose work examines how identity shapes social life at both the individual and collective level. He received his Ph.D. in sociology from Northwestern University.
Fields is the author of Black Elephants in the Room: The Unexpected Politics of African-American Republicans (University of California Press, 2016). His research draws on a cultural perspective to explore the relationship between identity, experience, and meaning across a range of domains, including politics, work, and relationships. This year, he is a fellow at Stanford's Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences. He is currently at work on projects examining how social and professional identities are constructed and expressed, including a study of African Americans in the advertising industry.
Hakeem Jefferson
Hakeem Jefferson is an assistant professor of political science at Stanford University and faculty director of the Program on Identity, Democracy, and Justice at the Center on Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law. He received his Ph.D. in political science from the University of Michigan.
His research centers on questions of race, identity, and political behavior in the United States, with a particular interest in the political and social lives of Black Americans. He is the author of Respectability Politics, forthcoming with the University of Chicago Press. The book examines disagreement among Black Americans about how members of their own group should behave, especially around issues of discipline and punishment, and develops a theory of ingroup social control that shows how stigma and status influence those judgments.
Philippines Conference Room — Encina Hall Central, 3rd Floor
616 Jane Stanford Way, Stanford
This event is in-person and open to the public. Live stream available via Zoom. Registration is required.
