Professor of Politics and African American Studies, Princeton University
Professor of Politics and African American Studies at Princeton University and author of Barbershops, Bibles, and BET: Everyday Talk and Black Political Thought; seminarian at Union Theological Seminary in New York
The African American Church: Intersection of Race, Religion, Politics Yesterday in Philadelphia, Barack Obama addressed the potent issues of race, religion and politics in a speech designed to allow his campaign get past the controversy created by some of the sermons of his former pastor, Jeremiah Wright. How did it come to this? We talk to the reporter who sparked the controversy, learn about the roots of the black church in America and its current role in African American society, and hear more about the difference in black and white Christian traditions.
The African American Church: Intersection of Race, Religion, Politics Yesterday in Philadelphia, Barack Obama addressed the potent issues of race, religion and politics in a speech designed to allow his campaign get past the controversy created by some of the sermons of his former pastor, Jeremiah Wright . How did it come to this? We talk to the reporter who sparked the controversy, learn about the roots of the black church in America and its current role in African American society, and hear more about the difference in black and white Christian traditions.
Obama, Race and the Presidential Campaign Barack Obama 's mother was white and his father was African. In the United States, that makes him black. He doesn't talk about it the way Hillary Clinton talks about being the first woman president, but Obama could be the first black to win the White House. The latest poll by CNN shows that Barack Obama has caught up to Hillary Clinton among Democrats in New Hampshire, the first state scheduled to hold a presidential primary next year. What's made the difference is a switch among women. New Hampshire Democrats still think Clinton has the best chance to win in November, but Obama is more likable, more believable and more likely to unite the country. Why do so many white voters support him? Why are so many black voters supporting her? We talk about transcending the racist past while confronting racial differences as a present reality.
Is the threat from Russia missing from the Russia meddling probe? There's much being made about the Trump administration's possible ties with Russia. But the bottom line is Russia's effort to influence American democracy. Do the President and his aides care enough to take action before voters go back to the polls?
Who's to blame for the opioid crisis? Some of the lawyers who took on Big Tobacco are now going after Big Pharma. It’s all about the deadly epidemic of opioid use. Are the drug companies to blame? What about the users? Later, on today’s Talking Point: making sense of Britain’s upset election.
Terrorism and tweets, hate speech and murder Just days before an election, Britain is coping with a rash of deadly terrorism, and Prime Minister Theresa May is on the defensive. And again today, President Trump has tweeted criticism of the Mayor of London. Later, a double murder in Portland, Oregon has revealed the ugly past of a supposedly “progressive” city. One immediate question: is “hate speech” protected by the First Amendment?
Trump plays scolder-in-chief with NATO allies At the opening of NATO’s dramatic new headquarters in Brussels today, President Trump acknowledged that Article 5 — promising that “an attack on one nation is an attack on all” -- has only been invoked one time: in the aftermath of September 11. But the President failed to provide what 27 other Alliance members have been waiting for: a re-commitment by America’s new leader to Article 5. Instead, they got a scolding.