Dr. Arica Coleman | That the Blood Stay Pure: African Americans, Native Americans and the Predicament of Race and Identity in Virginia

Join Dr. Arica L. Coleman for a discussion on her book That the Blood Stay Pure: African Americans, Native Americans and the Predicament of Race and Identity in Virginia, a Choice Outstanding Academic Title for 2014, that traces the history and legacy of Virginia’s effort to maintain racial purity and the consequences of this almost four hundred year effort on African American – Native American relations and kinship bonds in the Commonwealth.

Dr. Coleman is an award winning, nationally recognized independent scholar, lecturer, and freelance contributor of American history. Her research focuses on comparative ethnic studies and issues of racial formation and identity. Dr. Coleman has held faculty appointments in Africana Studies at Widener University, the University of Delaware, and Johns Hopkins University. She has lectured and presented papers at academic and public venues including The Organization of American Historians, The American Historical Association, The Association for the Study of African American Life and History, MIT’s Conference on Race and Science, The National Holocaust Museum, The Virginia Forum, and many others. She has also lent her expertise on matters of race and ethnicity to the Virginia General Assembly House Rules Committee, the Washington Post, NPR, Indian Country Today, History News Network, L.A. Progressive, The Female View Broadcast, Native Trailblazers Blog Radio, CTV (Canada News), the Atlantic Live, Cheddar TV, Vox’s Today Explained, and the IHeart Radio Podcast: Here’s Something Good. Her work on the Loving v. Virginia case which examines Mildred Loving’s claim of an exclusive Native American identity was cited by The New York Times, The Root, and MadameNoir. Her second book, In The Matter of Black Lives: Womanist Prose (with a foreword by renowned author Marita Golden) is scheduled for release in December 2020.

This talk is part of the Woodrow Wilson House Speaker Series LUNCH & LEARN, TUESDAYS at NOON on ZOOM. Join notable historians, curators, and leaders for a series of talks exploring the social movements of the early 20th Century and their relevance today. Talks explore Women’s Suffrage, activism and protest, racial inequity, and the consequences and legacy of Woodrow Wilson’s presidency.

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