Randall kennedy s new book sets what we know of barack obamas presidency in relief against the sorry history of racial politics in america. The strange career of a troublesome word, on librarything librarything is a cataloging and social networking site for booklovers home groups talk zeitgeist. The enactment of these new policies suggests while racial preferences are unpopular, so is resegregation. That word, of course, is nigger, and it is quickly proliferating in the debate over kennedys new book, nigger. Randall kennedy, author info, published books, bio, photo. Renowned for his cool reason visavis the pitfalls and cliches of racial discourse, randall kennedy harvard professor of law and author of the new york. Klein professor of law at harvard university, where he teaches courses on contracts, criminal law, and the regulation of race relations.
Sep 06, 2011 articles by randall kennedy looks like youre using a browser we dont support. Randall kennedy, author info, published books, bio, photo, video. Randall kennedy s interracial intimacies is many things. The strange career of a troublesome word pantheon books is based on a series of classroom lectures he prepared exploring the. Kennedy claims that the term nigger is fascinating precisely because it has been put to a variety of uses and can radiate a wide array of meanings p. I ran into it while preparing to write a new concluding chapter, to a book on. A lively treatise on the most offensive word in the english language, from a renowned expert on civil rights and black legal history race, crime, and the law, 1997. I come, therefore, to the new book by randall kennedy, a professor at the harvard law school, with a certain enthusiasm. Kennedy describes how legal and political voices have consistently over time explained versions of race is different. Randall kennedy sthe persistence of the color line. Timelyas the 2012 presidential election nearsand controversial, here is the first book by a major africanamerican public intellectual on racial politics and the obama presidency. Banned books week randall kennedy on american slavery.
The persistence of the color line by randall kennedy. Renowned for his insightful, commonsense critiques of racial politics, randall kennedy gives us a shrewd and penetrating analysis of the complex relationship between the first black president and his africanamerican constituency. He received his undergraduate degree from princeton university and his law degree from yale university. Jan 07, 2002 randall kennedy is a harvard law professor. In this groundbreaking, powerfully reasoned, lucid work that is certain to provoke controversy, harvard law professor randall kennedy an original, wise and courageous work that moves beyond sterile arguments and lifts the discussion of race and justice to a new and more hopeful level.
That word, of course, is nigger, and it is quickly proliferating in the debate over kennedy s new book, nigger. The strange career of a troublesome word, a slim volume whose stated intention is to. He has a welltuned ear for the diverse ways the word has. Harvard law school professor randall kennedy recently appeared on the radio program the takeaway to discuss his new book the persistence of the color. Duboiss the souls of black folk is one of the most lauded books in the africanamerican canon, but i found it disappointingly thin. Race, crime, and the law by randall kennedy, paperback. If it had been called the nword, the medias preferred euphemism for what kennedy calls the paradigmatic slur, the debate over. The author does not want to neglect the achievements that have been made over time by only focusing on the bias aspects of american legal order.
African american literature book club celebrating our literary legacy since 1997 black literature is for everyone african american literature book club. He attended oxford university as a rhodes scholar and is a former clerk to. Articles by randall kennedy looks like youre using a browser we dont support. Into this debate steps the highly thoughtful harvard law professor, randall kennedy, whose new book candidly assesses affirmative actions costs and benefits. Aug 12, 2011 randall kennedys new book sets what we know of barack obamas presidency in relief against the sorry history of racial politics in america. Randall kennedy, harvard law school professor and author of such critically acclaimed and provocative books as race, crime, and the law and the national bestseller nigger. To improve your visit to our site, take a minute and upgrade your browser. A new book argues that the supreme court justices early embrace of black nationalism is central to understanding his politics and jurisprudence. Not only does kennedy uncover the longstanding failure of the justice system to protect blacks from criminals, but he also engages the debate over the wisdom and legality of using racial criteria in jury selection.
Jumping off from a series of lectures he gave in 1999, harvard law professor kennedy explores with care the cultural, social, and legal significance of the powerful nword. Kennedy book award grand prize an original, wise and courageous work that moves beyond sterile arguments and lifts the discussion of race and justice to a new and more hopeful level. Author randall kennedy grapples with a stigma of our racial discourse that is a subject of much anxiety and acrimony in black america. Kennedy, in this small book, asks more of us when it comes to race conversations, and it is this breaking of the boundaries that makes nigger an important study. Darcus howe noted of nigger in new statesman, had a white person used the word, rejection would have been immediate. The persistence of the color line by randall kennedy book. Over the years he has told us a great deal some of it intentionally, with scholarship and skill. Klein professor of law and focuses his research on the intersection of racial conflict and legal institutions in american life. Harvard law professor randall kennedy takes on a highly complex issue in a way that no one has before. Sep 04, 2011 every campaign enlists its own metalanguage.
Sep 03, 20 into this debate steps the highly thoughtful harvard law professor, randall kennedy, whose new book candidly assesses affirmative actions costs and benefits. Harvard law professor kennedy takes full account of discrimination by prosecutors and judges toward minority defendants, and by police and politicians who neglect the public safety of minority neighborhoods. In the wake of the supreme courts recent decision regarding fisher v. Randall kennedy, harvard law school professor, author and essayist, first came up with the idea for his new book, nigger. Race, affirmative action, and the law randall kennedy on. Randall kennedy has 20 books on goodreads with 6384 ratings. The odd career of randall kennedy minding the campus. This powerful and ruminative book by randall kennedy, the persistence of the color line. The new york times, the washington post, the boston globe, and others devoted lengthy, highprofile articles to kennedys politics and thesis. The politics of racial betrayal princeton university press. Aug 29, 20 randall kennedys cleareyed new book, for discrimination, offers many reasons, among them. His champions now span the ideological spectrum, but. A refreshingly honest book about affirmative action. Randall kennedy is a professor of law at harvard university.
The public controversy over randall kennedys new book began months before it was even published. The public controversy over randall kennedy s new book began months before it was even published. Most people in the audience silently dismiss the demand for maximalist sacrifice, kennedy, who is africanamerican, writes in his new book, sellout. Oct 29, 2019 a new book argues that the supreme court justices early embrace of black nationalism is central to understanding his politics and jurisprudence. Randall kennedys interracial intimacies is many things. The new york times, the washington post, the boston globe, and others devoted lengthy, highprofile articles to kennedy s politics and thesis. The book race, crime, and the law by randall kennedy has systematically and cogently addressed as many of the vexing issues persisting in american society, according to the new york times. Randall kennedys book nigger invites readers to reconsider the nword, its meanings, and its appropriate uses. What precisely is affirmative action, and why is it fiercely championed by. Kennedy is a law professor and author he is currently the michael r. His work focuses on the intersection of racial conflict and legal institutions in the united states. Kennedy looks on skeptically, and believes that many of the black law students do, too. Kennedy born september 10, 1954 is an american law professor and author at harvard university in cambridge, massachusetts. Kennedy, a yaletrained lawyer, a professor at harvard law, and the author of the books race, crime, and the law, and nigger, once again focuses on race and the law as he weaves his way through the topics of interracial sex, marriage, identity, and adoption.
Randall kennedys cleareyed new book, for discrimination, offers many reasons, among them. The book sets out to challenge americans oftentimes absolutist views on. Klein professor of law at harvard university, where he teaches courses on. The strange career of a troublesome word, randall kennedy explores various meanings of this contentious and ambiguous word. The strange career of a troublesome word pantheon books is based on a. Kennedy born september 10, 1954 is an american law professor and author at. The strange career of a troublesome word 1st vintage books ed edition. He supported himself with menial employment in new york city and. The word, of course, is nigger, and in this candid, lucidly argued book the distinguished legal scholar randall kennedy traces its origins, maps its multifarious connotations, and explores the controversies that rage around it. He is the author of six books, including race, crime, and the law, for which he received the robert f. Kennedy book award grand prizean original, wise and courageous work that moves beyond sterile arguments and lifts the discussion of race and justice to a new and more hopeful level. As a remedy for racial injustice, albeit a modest one, affirmative action invokes slavery and.
University of texas, randall kennedys for discrimination is at once the definitive reckoning with one of americas most explosively contentious and divisive issues and a principled work of advocacy for clearly defined justice. Kennedy gives an account of the words origin and history in 17thcentury america, examines revealing court cases in which it has figured, and in a chapter entitled pitfalls in fighting nigger analyzes the various efforts on campus and in the workplace to inhibit its use. As randall kennedy reminds us in his provocative and richly insightful new book, the persistence of the color line. Kennedy weaves a story of the fight against slavery and the censoring of david walkers 1829 tract appeal to the coloured. Many passages read as if they were written in the pages of the panthers official publication, the black panther, circa 1970.
Arsh raziuddin the confounding truth about frederick douglass. Randall kennedy, a distinguished law professor at harvard, published a book called nigger, and testified, as an expert witness in a case dealing with a white persons attack on a black man, that. As randall kennedy reminds us in his provocative and richly insightful new book, the persistence of the. Randall kennedy talks about the history of the term sellout when the word can be used and why the label has been used to chastise him. Feb 07, 2008 randall kennedy talks about the history of the term sellout when the word can be used and why the label has been used to chastise him. The strange career of a troublesome word, gives us a concise, gimleteyed, and deeply personal conspectus of the policy, refusing to shy away from the myriad complexities of. Find all the books, read about the author, and more. The strange career of a troublesome word wikipedia. For in it kennedy boldly puts forth a claim for race neutrality at least with respect to one part of the law namely, criminal law. He is at work on a legal history of the second reconstruction.
The strange career of a troublesome word is a 2002 book by randall kennedy of harvard law school about the history and sociology of the word nigger the book was prominently featured in an episode of boston public in which a white teacher, played by michael rapaport, attempted to employ the book to teach his students about the history and controversy surrounding the word season 2. In this groundbreaking, powerfully reasoned, lucid work that is certain to provoke controversy, harvard law professor randall kennedy takes on a highly complex. A 1689 inventory of an estate in brooklyn, new york, made mention of an. Renowned for his cool reason visavis the pitfalls and cliches of racial discourse, randall kennedyharvard professor of law and author of the new york. Randall kennedys penetrating critique of toures new book. Randall kennedys new book sets what we know of barack obamas presidency in relief against the sorry history of racial politics in america. Race, affirmative action, and the law, professor randall kennedy provides adroit and accessible combination of historical context, legal doctrine, and cultural awareness about race in america. His book race, crime, and the law won the robert f.
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