Princeton Professor Talks Race, Literature and Democracy in Provost Lecture Series

Eddie S. Glaude Jr., Princeton University (N.J.) William S. Todd professor of religion and African American studies, spoke about race, democracy and coping with the rise of “Trumpism” in an Oct. 25 lecture at White Hall.

The event, attended by about 70 people, was the first of three in Emory’s “Provost Lecture Series.”

Glaude, who heads Princeton’s African American Studies Department, detailed his commitment to reading literature that helps him better understand democracy under President Donald J. Trump.

“I find myself these days, more so than usual, reaching for books … anything to distract from … this country’s politics,” Glaude said. “I want to hear a voice other than my own, so I read.”

Glaude said he briefly found refuge while reading Walt Whitman’s “Democratic Vistas.” The book describes a form of American democracy that “wasn’t just about laws and elections” but also values and culture.

“Whitman, for me, offers an unflinching criticism of the nation and of its culture,” Glaude said. “He yearned for a kind of consensus rooted in a spiritualized democratic individuality that bound one to another.”

However, Glaude noted that Whitman failed to address America’s history of slavery and racism.

“[Whitman’s] journalism and letters are filled with noxious views about black people,” Glaude said. “[Whitman’s] failure to interrogate the looming presence of race and its effects on character … haunts his radical democratic vision.”

Glaude said he then examined the book “No Name in the Street” by author and social critic James Baldwin, whom he said provided a more accurate depiction of racism in America.

“Unlike Whitman, Baldwin required a reckoning with the darker history of this country,” Glaude said. “He required us to excavate and recreate history.”

Glaude added that Whitman’s color-blind theory of democratic culture would be enhanced if read through the lens of Baldwin’s depiction of racism.

“Whitman, in Baldwin’s hands, is transformed,” Glaude said. Whitman understood the importance of fighting for democracy, but his work can only be useful when his ideas confront a history of racism, Glaude said.

Glaude noted that Baldwin’s perspective is key in working toward a racially conscious democracy, especially when “we confront the moral callousness of Donald Trump.”

When asked if the Confederacy won the U.S. Civil War, Glaude explained that white supremacy remains present because the war was only a fight over slavery.

“Whitman is very clear about the evil of slavery, just as Abraham Lincoln was, but he is deeply suspicious of black freedom,” Glaude said. “Even after the abolition of slavery and the end of the war, Whitman expressed his opposition to allowing black men the right to vote.”

When asked about how one can avoid becoming disillusioned by current events and “Trumpism,” Glaude said it is important to believe in “achieving the impossible.”

“My ability to hold off cynicism is rooted in my unshakable faith in the capacity of human beings to empathize,” Glaude said. “I’m a country boy from Mississippi and in the face of the blood-stained soil of that state, here I am at Emory. I embody the impossible.”

In reference to pipe bomb mailings to prominent Trump critics, Glaude said he has received death threats because of his beliefs.

“I had to call my wife yesterday and say, ‘If you don’t recognize the package, do not open it,’” Glaude said.

Tassia Drame (20PH) said she appreciated that Glaude recognized the racial diversity of the audience and spoke to both white and black audience members directly.

“He spoke the truth,” Drame said. “He was not afraid to say the ‘N-word’ … but he also wasn’t afraid to call out white people.”

Mark McGovern (22C) said he enjoyed the poetic nature of Glaude’s speech.

“I think the performative aspect really helped [the speech],” McGovern said. “It seemed almost literary at times, and I think that made it much better … the audience definitely loved that as well.”

Founder of the Algorithmic Justice League Joy Buolamwini and photographer Carrie Mae Weems will speak at Emory as part of the Provost Lecture Series on Feb. 7, 2019, and April 8, 2019, respectively.