Books by Janis Faye Hutchinson

As an African American female who grew up in Birmingham, Alabama during the Civil Rights period, Janis Faye Hutchinson has always had a strong consciousness about race and racism. In this book, she examines becoming an anthropologist from the perspective of a black female who grew up in the South during the Civil Rights era. This book intertwines Hutchinson''s childhood experiences and socialization in a segregated South, with her academic experiences and training in anthropology, to examine race and race relations in the United States. Hutchinson specifically examines the impact of the concept of race on her professional development and provides a modern outlook on diversity. Power, Race, and Culture: The Evolution of a Black Anthropologist encourages readers to think about their history, in terms of social development, and to make their own observations about race.

Race and racism are interconnected historically and in the modern world. This connection is related to changing social, political, and economic conditions that impact how we think of others and ourselves. The main focus of this book is the examination of these connections. It is argued that while both race and racism are social constructions, the justification for racism changed as the definition and attributes of races were modified to correspond with new developments in biology and genetics. This book explores the relationship between biological discoveries and changing social situations and their impact on race and racism.