Philip Klinkner, professor of government, says, "The Census figures show an America that is becoming more diverse than ever. Nonetheless, black Americans continue to remain outside of the melting pot. Among those people who reported more than one race, only a very few claimed to be of black or African-American descent. In fact, more people claimed Asian or American Indian backgrounds than black backgrounds, despite the fact that these groups are only a fraction of the black population.
"Two factors explain these results. First, despite the falling of many old taboos, many Americans remain reluctant to marry and produce children with blacks. Second, many Americans seem to be unwilling or unable to acknowledge their black ancestry.Thus, even in the 21stcentury, the stigma of blackness remains."
Klinkner teaches and researches American politics, especially political parties and elections, race and American politics, and American political history at Hamilton College. He is also the director of Hamilton s Arthur Levitt Public Affairs Center. An Iowa native, Klinkner received his Ph.D. in political science from Yale University. In 1995, he received the Emerging Scholar Award from the Political Organizations and Parties section of the American Political Science Association. In 1990-1991, he was a Research Fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C.
Klinkner's most recent book, The Unsteady March: The Rise and Decline of Racial Equality in America,(with Rogers Smith of Yale University) challenges the assumption that race relations will automatically get better. He conducted the 1999 Survey of Young American's Racial Attitudes, co-sponsored by the NAACP and Zogby International. He has also commented on a variety of topics in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, The Nation, and on numerous radio and television shows. Contact:
Philip A. Klinkner, associate professor of government and director of the Arthur Levitt Public Affairs Center at Hamilton College may be contacted on 315-859-4344 (office) or via e-mail at pklinkne@hamilton.edu.