Thirteenth Annual American Studies Conference
Keynote Address Featuring 
Dr. Julianne Malveaux
President, Bennet College
Thursday, February 23, 6-7:30 p.m.
Alexander G. Hill Ballroom in Kagin Commons, Macalester College
Friday, February 24, 11 a.m. – Noon Macalester Faculty Response
Weyerhaeuser Boardroom Macalester College
Friday, February 24, Noon-1:30 p.m. Lunchtime Discussion with Students
Weyerhaeuser Boardroom Macalester College
Economic and Social Justice in the 21st Century
This talk investigates the history of the economic recession and its effects on people of color, women, and children in particular. What have been the failures of government? How has the economy left behind most Americans? What are the effects on those who are most vulnerable?
In a recent essay, Dr. Malveaux argues that we live in a corroded economy: “While poverty strikes some communities harder than it does others, the fact is that we have more people in poverty than we have had since we began to measure poverty in 1959, and we’ve only seen poverty at this level twice since 1965. Then, we declared a war on poverty. Now, we seem content to accept it.” Dr. Malveaux’s address will consider the hard truths of the nation’s economic failure and will issue a call to arms for change.
Dr. Julianne Malveaux is an economist and public intellectual known for her incisive commentary on race, gender, labor, and the economy. As the 15th president of Bennett College, Dr. Malveaux has been the architect of exciting and innovative transformations at America’s oldest historically black college for women. In the four short years of her presidency, Bennett College has received a 10-year reaffirmation of its accreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, markedly improved its existing facilities, embarked on a $21 million capital improvements program—which marked the first major campus construction in more than 25 years—and enjoyed an historic enrollment high.
Dr. Malveaux’s popular writing has appeared in numerous publications, including Ms. Magazine, Essence magazine, Los Angeles Times, Charlotte Observer, and San Francisco Examiner. Dr. Malveaux has been a contributor to academic life since receiving her PhD in economics from MIT in 1980. She received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in economics from Boston College. Her latest publication is “Surviving and Thriving: 365 Facts in Black Economic History.”