From Post-racialism to Black Lives Matter: Waking Up in the Obama AgeFrom Post-racialism to Black Lives Matter: Waking U

Lecture “From Post-racialism to Black Lives Matter: Waking Up in the Obama Age” by Michael Jeffries, associate professor of American studies at Wellesley College. A sociologist by training, Jeffries’ research has emphasized the sociology of race and ethnicity, identity and politics, and popular culture. His book — “Paint the White House Black: Barack Obama and the Meaning of Race in America” (Stanford 2013) — uses Obama-related topics to demonstrate how race relies on other social forces, like gender and class, for its meaning and impact. It features discussions of race and nationhood, discourses of “biracialism” and Obama’s mixed heritage, the purported emergence of a “post-racial society,” and popular symbols of Michelle Obama as a modern black woman.