African American Pioneers of Sociology : A Critical History

In African American Pioneers of Sociology , Pierre Saint-Arnaud examines the lasting contributions that African Americans have made to the field of sociology. Arguing that science is anything but a neutral construct, he defends the radical stances taken by early African American sociologists from accusations of intellectual infirmity by foregrounding the racist historical context of the time these influential works were produced. Examining key figures such as W.E.B. Du Bois, Edward Franklin Frazier, Charles Spurgeon Johnson, Horace Roscoe Cayton, J.G. St. Clair Drake, and Oliver Cromwell Cox, Saint-Arnaudreveals the ways in which many aspects of modern sociology emerged from these authors' radical views on race, gender, religion, and class. Beautifully translated from its original French, African American Pioneers of Sociology is a stunning examination of the influence of African American intellectuals and an essential work for understanding the origins of sociology as a modern discipline. "In African American Pioneers of Sociology, Pierre Saint-Arnaud examines the lasting contributions that African Americans have made to the field of sociology. Arguing that social science is anything but a neutral construct, he defends the radical stances taken by early African American sociologists from unfair criticism by considering the racist historical context of the time in which these influential works were produced." "Examining key figures such as W.E.B. Du Bois, Edward Franklin Frazier, Charles Spurgeon Johnson, Horace Roscoe Cayton, J.G. St Clair Drake, and Oliver Cromwell Cox, Saint-Arnaud reveals the ways in which these authors' radical views on race, gender, religion, and class shaped the emerging academic discipline of sociology. Faithfully and elegantly translated from the original French, African American Pioneers of Sociology is an extraordinary study of the influence of African American intellectuals and an essential work for understanding the origins and development of modern sociology."--Jacket Contents 9 Preface 11 Introduction 13 Part one: Anglo-American Sociology and the Race Question 25 1. From the Civil War to the First World War 25 2. The Rise of the Chicago School 57 3. From the Second World War to the 1960s 97 Part two: The Genesis of African American Sociology, 1896–1964 129 4. W.E.B. Du Bois: Scientific Sociology and Exclusion 129 5. Four ‘New Negroes’ 169 6. Edward Franklin Frazier 216 Part three: From Explanation to Comprehension 261 Postface: Imagining a Different History 307 Notes 311 Bibliography 357 Index 383