Crystal Fleming: The White Supremacy of Cultural Sociology – Toward a Critical Race Assessment
Engaging Frantz Fanon’s analysis of racism and culture as well as Charles Mills’ work on epistemological ignorance, this talk develops a critical race assessment of white supremacy in classical and contemporary cultural sociology. In so doing, the speaker considers three questions: (1) What political and institutional factors explain the persistence of white-centered theoretical preoccupations, methodological approaches and citation practices, despite increasing attention to racism and anti-racism in the study of culture? (2) What connections might we forge between the ongoing fetishization and intellectual hegemony of Eurocentric formulations such as Bourdieu’s « cultural capital » and the white supremacist storming of the Capitol? (3) How might critical race theory advance the field of cultural sociology and broaden its social relevance?
An author, cultural critic and social scientist, Prof. Crystal Fleming is committed to empowering people with the conceptual tools needed to understand, confront and challenge white supremacy. She is Associate Professor of Sociology and Africana Studies at SUNY Stony Brook. Prof. Fleming’s passion for speaking truth to power, addressing injustice and promoting equality infuses her scholarship, writing and teaching.
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