Eddie S. Glaude Jr. Discusses Democracy in Black: How Race Still Enslaves the American Soul

“The great instrument of moral good is the imagination,” Eddie S. Glaude Jr. told audiences at the April 14 lecture and Q&A on his new book, Democracy in Black: How Race Still Enslaves the American Soul. The evening kicked off with a reception, followed by a lecture, question and answer session, and a book signing.

Glaude is the William S. Tod Professor of Religion and African American Studies at Princeton University. The event was hosted by the Boston University School of Theology, School of Social Work, Department of Religion and the Howard Thurman Center for Common Ground. Dr. Glaude’s book has been widely mentioned and reviewed in New York Magazine, TIME magazine, Los Angeles Times, The New Yorker, and NBC News.com. Los Angeles Times called it “one of the most imaginative, daring books of the 21st century.”

In the book, Glaude argues that there is a “value gap” in our society’s regard for black lives. “What is the ‘value gap’?” Glaude asked attendees. “It is the belief that white people are valued more than others.”

“Remember imagination is bound up with the idea of empathy and sympathy […] of putting oneself in the place of another and of many others,” Glaude said.

Glaude described America as “in the midst of ‘The Great Black Depression.’” For the first time in recorded American history, he noted, there are more poor black children than there are poor white children even though there are three times more white children than black children in the nation.

Democracy in Black demands a more imaginative and impassioned step forward.

To read more about the book, click here.