In his major bestseller, Race Matters, philosopher Cornel West burst onto the national scene with his searing analysis of the scars of racism in American democracy. Race Matters has become a contemporary classic, still in print after ten years, having sold more than four hundred thousand copies. A mesmerizing speaker with a host of fervidly devoted fans, West gives as many as one hundred public lectures a year and appears regularly on radio and television. Praised by The New York Times for his "ferocious moral vision" and hailed by Newsweek as "an elegant prophet with attitude," he bridges the gap between black and white opinion about the country's problems. In Democracy Matters, West returns to the analysis of the arrested development of democracy-both in America and in the crisis-ridden Middle East. In a strikingly original diagnosis, he argues that if America is to become a better steward of democratization around the world, we must first wake up to the long history of imperialist corruption that has plagued our own democracy. Both our failure to foster peace in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the crisis of Islamist anti-Americanism stem largely from hypocrisies in our dealings with the world. Racism and imperial expansionism have gone hand in hand in our country's inexorable drive toward hegemony, and our current militarism is only the latest expression of that drive. Even as we are shocked by Islamic fundamentalism, our own brand of fundamentalism, which West dubs Constantinian Christianity, has joined forces with imperialist corporate and political elites in an unholy alliance, and four decades after the murder of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., insidious racism still inflicts debilitating psychic pain on so many of our citizens. But there is a deep democratic tradition in America of impassioned commitment to the fight against imperialist corruptions-the last great expression of which was the civil rights movement led by Dr. King-and West brings forth the powerful voices of that great democratizing tradition in a brilliant and deeply moving call for the revival of our better democratic nature. His impassioned and provocative argument for the revitalization of America's democracy will reshape the terms of the raging national debate about America's role in today's troubled world.

Democracy Matters

History

West, Cornel

Americas

Penguin Audio

The Power of Religion in the Public Sphere represents a rare opportunity to experience a diverse group of preeminent philosophers confronting one pervasive contemporary concern: what role does—or should—religion play in our public lives? Reflecting on her recent work concerning state violence in Israel-Palestine, Judith Butler explores the potential of religious perspectives for renewing cultural and political criticism, while Jürgen Habermas, best known for his seminal conception of the public sphere, thinks through the ambiguous legacy of the concept of "the political" in contemporary theory. Charles Taylor argues for a radical redefinition of secularism, and Cornel West defends civil disobedience and emancipatory theology. Eduardo Mendieta and Jonathan VanAntwerpen detail the immense contribution of these philosophers to contemporary social and political theory, and an afterword by Craig Calhoun places these attempts to reconceive the significance of both religion and the secular in the context of contemporary national and international politics.

The Power of Religion in the Public Sphere (A Columbia / SSRC Book)

BUTLER, JUDITH

Habermas, Jürgen

Taylor, Charles

World

Columbia University Press

The American Evasion of Philosophy: A Genealogy of Pragmatism

Politics & Social Sciences

Philosophy

Univ of Wisconsin Pr

Taking Emerson as his starting point, Cornel West’s basic task in this ambitious enterprise is to chart the emergence, development, decline, and recent resurgence of American pragmatism. John Dewey is the central figure in West’s pantheon of pragmatists, but he treats as well such varied mid-century representatives of the tradition as Sidney Hook, C. Wright Mills, W. E. B. Du Bois, Reinhold Niebuhr, and Lionel Trilling. West’s "genealogy" is, ultimately, a very personal work, for it is imbued throughout with the author’s conviction that a thorough reexamination of American pragmatism may help inspire and instruct contemporary efforts to remake and reform American society and culture.
"West . . . may well be the pre-eminent African American intellectual of our generation."—The Nation
"The American Evasion of Philosophy is a highly intelligent and provocative book. Cornel West gives us illuminating readings of the political thought of Emerson and James; provides a penetrating critical assessment of Dewey, his central figure; and offers a brilliant interpretation—appreciative yet far from uncritical—of the contemporary philosopher and neo-pragmatist Richard Rorty. . . . What shines through, throughout the work, is West's firm commitment to a radical vision of a philosophic discourse as inextricably linked to cultural criticism and political engagement."—Paul S. Boyer, professor emeritus of history, University of Wisconsin–Madison.
 Wisconsin Project on American Writers
Frank Lentricchia, General Editor

The American Evasion of Philosophy: A Genealogy of Pragmatism (Wisconsin Project on American Writers)

University of Wisconsin Press

A study of American pragmatism, this book looks at all the different stages from the Emersonian roots, through the dilemma of the mid-century pragmatic intellectual up to the decline and resurgence of American pragmatism. It also discusses prophetic pragmatism.

The American Evasion of Philosophy: A Genealogy of Pragmatism (Language, Discourse, Society)

PALGRAVE~MACMILLAN

In this powerful collection by one of today's leading African American intellectuals, Keeping Faith situates the current position of African Americans, tracing the geneology of the "Afro-American Rebellion" from Martin Luther King to the rise of black revolutionary leftists. In Cornel West's hands issues of race and freedom are inextricably tied to questions of philosophy and, above all, to a belief in the power of the human spirit.

Keeping Faith: Philosophy and Race in America

Biographies & Memoirs

Community & Culture

Routledge

First published in 1994. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor &amp; Francis, an informa company.

White Screens Black Images

Humor & Entertainment

MacCabe, Colin

Snead, James

Movies

Keeping Faith: Philosophy and Race in America (Routledge Classics)

'The sheer range of West's interests and insights is staggering and exemplary: he appears equally comfortable talking about literature, ethics, art, jurisprudence, religion, and popular-cultural forms.' - Artforum Keeping Faith is a rich, moving and deeply personal collection of essays from one of the leading African American intellectuals of our age. Drawing upon the traditions of Western philosophy and modernity, Cornel West critiques structures of power and oppression as they operate within American society and provides a way of thinking about human dignity and difference afresh. Impressive in its scope, West confidently and deftly explores the politics and philosophy of America, the role of the black intellectual, legal theory and the future of liberal thought, and the fate of African Americans. A celebration of the extraordinary lives of ordinary Americans, Keeping Faith is a petition to hope and a call to faith in the redemptive power of the human spirit.

Keeping Faith (Routledge Classics)

Religion & Spirituality

"Credible and important."—Kirkus Reviews Examining the issues that have united Blacks and Jews in the past and now separate them, two long-time friends and leading intellectuals try to restore the special relationship between the two groups in a hard-hitting and worthwhile exchange. Can Jews and Blacks be friends and allies once again? It's neither easy nor impossible, say Michael Lerner and Cornel West, in a dialogue that looks at the most pressing problems of contemporary America through the prism of the relationship between their two communities. The alliance between Blacks and Jews was the cornerstone of liberal politics for much of the twentieth century. Yet today there are people in each community who see their former ally as their most dangerous foe. In the current political climate, it would be easy to suggest we gloss over the differences and unite in the face of a common enemy: the reactionary right. But calls for unity are not likely to succeed unless they are based on working through the explosive issues that separate communities. West and Lerner refuse to compromise their deeply held views for the sake of unity. In a dialogue that is always respectful, though sometimes marked by tension, they help each other understand their different ways of looking at the world. Avoiding easy outs and quick fixes, they explore such subjects as Louis Farrakhan, Zionism, the economic inequalities between Jewish and Black communities, crime, and affirmative action. Both powerful public intellectuals, Lerner and West take on some of the most demanding problems of our time, in a sophisticated but extremely accessible way. They conclude with a plan for healing the rifts that have developed. But in a deeper sense, it is their dialogue itself that is healing. Lerner and West's relationship is a model rarely seen in American politics: two powerful men ready to explore differences, not afraid to disagree, and drawn through the course of the dialogue to grow closer and morecaring for each other. The dialogue of this book is a model for both the Black and the Jewish communities, and it suggests that healing and transformation are possible, and that hope can triumph over cynicism and despair. With a new epilogue on the O.J. Simpson verdict and the Million Man March.

Jews and Blacks: A Dialogue on Race, Religion, and Culture in America

Lerner, Michael

Penguin Publishing Group

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