History

The Center for the Study of Race and Ethnicity in America (CSREA) was established in 1988 with the premise that is crucial to understand race as a historical and sociological reality in America and to understand the implications of race and ethnicity as historical, social, and analytical categories for mutidisciplinary studies and multiple modes of discourse. To coordinate and develop Brown`s academic resources for this purpose, the Center facilitates teaching and research on African Americans, Asian Americans, Latinos, and Native Americans. It also includes teaching, research, and conferences on biracials and multiracials.

The Center emphasizes the interdisciplinary and comparative study of these groups and promotes analytical studies of race, ethnicity, gender, and class. Within Brown University, the Center works with departments and faculty who share similar goals and interests. For graduate and undergraduate students, the Center brings in invited scholars and speakers for the annual events of ethnic student organizations and provides grants in support of their research in the areas of race and ethnicity in America or in the comparative study of American racial or ethnic groups with those in other countries.

The Center is the founding member of The Southern New England Consortium on Race and Ethnicity ( SNECORE ), a group of colleges and universities in Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts. The Center was established through the initiative of faculty members from a number of departments who share similar interests or have been involved in the teaching and research on the issues of race and ethnicity in America. The proposal to then Brown President Howard Swearer to establish the Center for the Study of Race and Ethnicity in America was submitted by John Ladd (Philosophy), Rhett Jones (History and Afro-American Studies), Robert Lee (Third World Center), Martin Martel (Sociology), and Mari Jo Buhle (American Civilization), and had the endorsement of faculty from diverse departments: Douglas D. Anderson (Anthropology) Calvin Goldscheider (Sociology), Frances Goldscheider (Sociology), George Hicks (Anthropology), Ferdinand Jones (Psychology), William McLoughlin (History), Charles Nichols (English), Theodore Sizer (Education), and Albert Wessen (Biology & Medicine).