Elijah Anderson
Encyclopedia
Elijah Anderson is an American sociologist. He holds the William K. Lanman, Jr. Professorship in Sociology at Yale University
, where he teaches and directs the Urban Ethnography Project. Anderson is one of the nation’s leading urban ethnographers and cultural theorists. He received his B.A. from Indiana University, his M.A. from the University of Chicago and his Ph.D. from Northwestern University
, where he was mentored by Howard S. Becker
.
Before he joined the Yale historical faculty in July 2007, Anderson served for many years as the Charles and William L. Day Distinguished Professor of the Social Sciences and Professor of Sociology at the University of Pennsylvania
, with a secondary appointment in the Wharton School; in 2008, he was accorded the Charles and William L. Day Distinguished Professor Emeritus of the Social Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania.
Previously, he worked as an assistant professor of Sociology at Swarthmore College
(1973–1975). In 1975, he joined the University of Pennsylvania faculty where he rose to associate professor in 1981, and to full professor in 1988. He was appointed to the Max and Heidi Berry Term Chair in the Social Sciences in 1989, to the Charles and William L. Day Professorship in 1991, and then to Distinguished Professor in 2001. He has also served as Visiting Professor at Swarthmore College, Princeton University
, and Ecole des Etudes Hautes en Science Sociales
in Paris
, France
.
Anderson has written and edited numerous books, book chapters, articles, and scholarly reports on race in American cities. His most prominent works include Code of the Street: Decency, Violence, and the Moral Life of the Inner City (1999), winner of the 2000 Komarovsky Award from the Eastern Sociological Society
, Streetwise: Race, Class, and Change in an Urban Community (1990), winner of the American Sociological Association
’s Robert E. Park Award for the best published book in the area of Urban Sociology, and the classic sociological work, A Place on the Corner: A Study of Black Street Corner Men. In 2008, he edited Against the Wall: Poor, Young, Black, and Male], which is based on a national conference, "Poor, Young, Black, and Male: A Case for National Action?" which he organized at the University of Pennsylvania in 2006. His most recent work is The Cosmopolitan Canopy: Race and Civility in Everyday Life.
In addition, Anderson has won the Lindback Award for Distinguished Teaching] at the University of Pennsylvania, and he was named the Robin M. Williams, Jr., Distinguished Lecturer for 1999-2000 by the Eastern Sociological Society. In 2006, he was awarded an honorary Doctor of Science degree from Northwestern University. Anderson has served on the Board of Directors of the American Academy of Political and Social Science
and as vice-president of the American Sociological Association. He has served in an editorial capacity for a wide range of professional journals and special publications in his field, including Qualitative Sociology
, Ethnography, American Journal of Sociology
, American Sociological Review
, City & Community, Annals of the Society of Political and Social Science, and the International Journal of Urban and Regional Research. He has also served as a consultant to a variety of government agencies, including the White House
, the United States Congress
, the National Academy of Science, and the National Science Foundation
. Additionally, he was a member of the National Research Council’s Panel on the Understanding and Control of Violent Behavior.
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
, where he teaches and directs the Urban Ethnography Project. Anderson is one of the nation’s leading urban ethnographers and cultural theorists. He received his B.A. from Indiana University, his M.A. from the University of Chicago and his Ph.D. from Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
, where he was mentored by Howard S. Becker
Howard S. Becker
Howard Saul Becker is an American sociologist who made major contributions to the sociology of deviance, sociology of art, and sociology of music. Becker also wrote extensively on sociological writing styles and methodologies. In addition, Becker's book The Outsiders provided the foundations for...
.
Before he joined the Yale historical faculty in July 2007, Anderson served for many years as the Charles and William L. Day Distinguished Professor of the Social Sciences and Professor of Sociology at the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
, with a secondary appointment in the Wharton School; in 2008, he was accorded the Charles and William L. Day Distinguished Professor Emeritus of the Social Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania.
Previously, he worked as an assistant professor of Sociology at Swarthmore College
Swarthmore College
Swarthmore College is a private, independent, liberal arts college in the United States with an enrollment of about 1,500 students. The college is located in the borough of Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, 11 miles southwest of Philadelphia....
(1973–1975). In 1975, he joined the University of Pennsylvania faculty where he rose to associate professor in 1981, and to full professor in 1988. He was appointed to the Max and Heidi Berry Term Chair in the Social Sciences in 1989, to the Charles and William L. Day Professorship in 1991, and then to Distinguished Professor in 2001. He has also served as Visiting Professor at Swarthmore College, Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
, and Ecole des Etudes Hautes en Science Sociales
École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales
The École des hautes études en sciences sociales is a leading French institution for research and higher education, a Grand Établissement. Its mission is research and research training in the social sciences, including the relationship these latter maintain with the natural and life sciences...
in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
Anderson has written and edited numerous books, book chapters, articles, and scholarly reports on race in American cities. His most prominent works include Code of the Street: Decency, Violence, and the Moral Life of the Inner City (1999), winner of the 2000 Komarovsky Award from the Eastern Sociological Society
Eastern Sociological Society
Eastern Sociological Society is a non-profit organization with a mission of "promoting excellence in sociological scholarship and instruction." It publishes a peer-reviewed journal and holds a yearly academic conference, the Annual Meeting of Eastern Sociological Society....
, Streetwise: Race, Class, and Change in an Urban Community (1990), winner of the American Sociological Association
American Sociological Association
The American Sociological Association , founded in 1905 as the American Sociological Society , is a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing the discipline and profession of sociology by serving sociologists in their work and promoting their contributions to serve society.The ASA holds its...
’s Robert E. Park Award for the best published book in the area of Urban Sociology, and the classic sociological work, A Place on the Corner: A Study of Black Street Corner Men. In 2008, he edited Against the Wall: Poor, Young, Black, and Male], which is based on a national conference, "Poor, Young, Black, and Male: A Case for National Action?" which he organized at the University of Pennsylvania in 2006. His most recent work is The Cosmopolitan Canopy: Race and Civility in Everyday Life.
In addition, Anderson has won the Lindback Award for Distinguished Teaching] at the University of Pennsylvania, and he was named the Robin M. Williams, Jr., Distinguished Lecturer for 1999-2000 by the Eastern Sociological Society. In 2006, he was awarded an honorary Doctor of Science degree from Northwestern University. Anderson has served on the Board of Directors of the American Academy of Political and Social Science
American Academy of Political and Social Science
The American Academy of Political and Social Science was founded in 1889 to promote progress in the social sciences. Sparked by Professor Edmund J. James and drawing from members of the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania, Swarthmore College, and Bryn Mawr College, the Academy sought to...
and as vice-president of the American Sociological Association. He has served in an editorial capacity for a wide range of professional journals and special publications in his field, including Qualitative Sociology
Qualitative Sociology
Qualitative Sociology is an academic journal dealing with sociology. It publishes research papers on the qualitative interpretation of social life. This includes photographic studies, historical analysis, comparative analysis, and ethnography....
, Ethnography, American Journal of Sociology
American Journal of Sociology
The American Journal of Sociology was established in 1895 by Albion Small and is the oldest academic journal of sociology in the United States. The journal is attached to the University of Chicago's sociology department and it is published bimonthly by The University of Chicago Press. Its...
, American Sociological Review
American Sociological Review
The American Sociological Review is a bimonthly, peer-reviewed academic journal covering all aspects of sociology, including new theoretical developments, results of research that advance the understanding of fundamental social processes, and methodological innovations. It is published by SAGE...
, City & Community, Annals of the Society of Political and Social Science, and the International Journal of Urban and Regional Research. He has also served as a consultant to a variety of government agencies, including the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
, the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
, the National Academy of Science, and the National Science Foundation
National Science Foundation
The National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health...
. Additionally, he was a member of the National Research Council’s Panel on the Understanding and Control of Violent Behavior.
Selected publications
- The Cosmopolitan Canopy: Race and Civility in Everyday Life" (2011, W.W. Norton)
- Against the Wall: Poor, Black, and Male (editor, 2008) ISBN 978-0812240979
- A Place on the Corner: A Study of Black Street Corner Men (2nd ed., 2003)
- Problem of the Century: Racial Stratification in the United States (co-editor with D. Massey, 2001)
- Code of the street: Decency, violence, and the moral life of the inner city. New York: W.W. Norton, 1999, pp. 150-154, ISBN 9780393040234.
- Streetwise: Race, Class and Change in an Urban Community (1990)
- Being Here and Being There: Fieldwork Encounters and Ethnographic Discoveries. From series The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 595 (September) (co-editor with Scott N. Brooks, Raymond Gunn, and Nikki Jones, 2004) ISBN 978-1412913959
- The Study of African American Problems: W.E.B. Du Bois's Agenda, Then and Now. From series The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 568 (March) (co-editor with Tukufu ZuberiTukufu ZuberiTukufu Zuberi is an American sociologist, filmmaker, social critic, educator, and writer. He is the Lasry Family Professor of Race Relations, and Professor and Chair of the Sociology Department at the University of Pennsylvania...
, 2000). ISBN 978-0761922278