Transcending the Color Line : The Sociology of Black Experience in America

A moral and philosophical approach to the stubborn problem of racism. Transcending the Color Line by sociologist and professor Bobby E. Mills, PhD, represents a philosophical attempt to make sense out of American black collective experience. These essays do not reflect traditional sociological perspectives and methodological considerations. Instead, the query is: How do we live? And more importantly, what are we willing to sacrifice in order to live the way we say we want to live? In other words, this collection digs deeper into the moral and spiritual issues that lie beneath the more obvious sociological ones. Invariably the search for moral understanding and spiritual meaning is neither easy nor popular. Yet it is the abstract, empirical (amoral and apolitical) character of traditional sociology that has all but rendered it irrelevant to the resolution of contemporary social ills. The biased theoretical assumptions of the scientific method (i.e., abstract empiricism) are the social basis for the collective bias otherwise known as the illusion of value neutrality. This collective cultural bias is the social foundation for institutional racism, sexism, theological dogmatism (i.e., denominationalism), and above all, authoritarianism. Indeed, every “ism” is a schism, and schisms divide. Our either/or logic fosters cultural extremism rather than a universal perspective on humanity. By digging deep to the true source of our sociological and leadership issues, these essays not only call black and white individuals accountable to the dysfunction present in our shared social experience, but inspire all people to transcend the color line and become part of the solution. "Transcending the Color Line", by sociologist and professor Bobby E. Mills, PhD, represents a philosophical attempt to make sense out of American black collective experience. This collection of essays does not reflect traditional sociological perspectives and methodological considerations. Instead, the query is: How do we live? More importantly, what are we willing to sacrifice in order to live the way we say we want to live? In other words, these essays dig deeper to the moral and spiritual issues that lie beneath the more obvious sociological ones. Invariably the search for moral understanding and spiritual meaning is neither easy nor popular. Yet it is the abstract, empirical (amoral and apolitical) character of traditional sociology that has all but rendered it irrelevant to the resolution of contemporary social ills. The biased theoretical assumptions of the scientific method (i.e., abstract empiricism) are the social basis for the collective bias otherwise known as the illusion of value neutrality. This collective cultural bias is the social foundation for institutional racism, sexism, theological dogmatism (i.e., denominationalism), and above all, authoritarianism. Indeed, every “ism” is a schism, and schisms divide. Our either/or logic fosters cultural extremism rather than a universal perspective on humanity. By digging deep to the true source of our sociological and leadership issues, these essays not only call black and white individuals accountable to the dysfunction present in our shared social experience, but inspire all people to transcend the color line and become part of the solution. **A moral and philosophical approach to the stubborn problem of racism.**__Transcending the Color Line__ Invariably the search for moral understanding and spiritual meaning is neither easy nor popular. Yet it is the abstract, empirical (amoral and apolitical) character of traditional sociology that has all but rendered it irrelevant to the resolution of contemporary social ills. The biased theoretical assumptions of the scientific method (i.e., abstract empiricism) are the social basis for the collective bias otherwise known as the illusion of value neutrality. This collective cultural bias is the social foundation for institutional racism, sexism, theological dogmatism (i.e., denominationalism), and above all, authoritarianism. Indeed, every “ism” is a schism, and schisms divide. Our either/or logic fosters cultural extremism rather than a universal perspective on humanity. By digging deep to the true source of our sociological and leadership issues, these essays not only call black and white individuals accountable to the dysfunction present in our shared social experience, but inspire all people to transcend the color line and become part of the solution. In Transcending the Color Line: The Sociology of Black Experience in America, Bobby E. Mills blends theological and sociological concepts to creatively address the pressing social issues plaguing American society. Drawing upon his decades of experience as a professional sociologist seeking to spiritually bride the racial divide in American culture, this eries of provocative essays offer an intellectual framework for reconciling some of the numerous ideological contradictions that exist between individuals, ethic social groups, and members of American society in general. Fundamentally, it asks the question, should sociology be the sociology of social justification or the sociology of social justice? Provided by publisher