EDDIE GLAUDE JR. DELIVERS POWERFUL KEYNOTE ADDRESS ON VOTING RIGHTS AT SECOND ANNUAL ADI CONVENING
October 2024 — The nation faces a choice that goes beyond red or blue this November, according to Eddie Glaude Jr., the James S. McDonnell Distinguished University Professor at Princeton University and a New York Times bestselling author. It also must decide whether to confront the deep-seated issues of racism and voter suppression fueled by white supremacy. Ignoring them could threaten the integrity of American democracy, he warned.
With a contentious presidential election just days away, the noted scholar delivered a compelling keynote address at the Second Annual Antiracist Development Institute (ADI) Convening, held October 16-18 at Penn State Dickinson Law in Carlisle. Glaude described historical and contemporary challenges to voting rights, including ongoing efforts to undo the gains of the mid-20th century civil rights movement.
His address closed the three-day gathering focused on co-creating methods to dismantle structures that scaffold systemic racial inequality. Glaude spoke to both convening attendees and members of Penn State Dickinson Law’s “Race and the Equal Protection of the Laws” class, a required course for first-year students.
People who care about the rule of law must take action to protect it, he told the more than 150 people gathered in Apfelbaum Family Courtroom and Auditorium. “How we imagine community, how we fight in this moment, the decisions we make close to the ground will help determine the fate of this nation. In communion with each other, with the fullness of the humanity of those with whom we live in full view, and with love, a new America can be found,” said Glaude. “This is my hope. This is my prayer.”
‘We cannot hide from each other’
Glaude began by outlining the historical framework leading to current concerns about voting rights. He linked the gradual weakening of Voting Rights Act protections to current voter suppression efforts, such as states purging voter rolls.
Glaude noted that the Constitution was written for an agrarian, slave-holding society, and today, “we are still struggling with the idea of whether or not we will be a multiracial democracy as forces exploit and deepen grievances and hatred.” He called for a renewed focus on community care and solidarity, noting that the future of American democracy depends on seeing our diversity as a strength.
“The question of who we are as a country can only be answered if we run toward our fears. We cannot hide from each other,” said Glaude. He closed his speech by noting that making progress demands a commitment to humanity and love in the face of division.
The ADI has embraced this approach in its own work, deploying a love ethos fueled by radical empathy while welcoming and uplifting diverse voices. This work includes producing a nine-volume book series, titled “Building an Antiracist Law School, Legal Academy, and Legal Profession,” which will be published by ADI partner University of California Press.
‘We must refuse to mute ourselves’
Following the keynote, Glaude met with convening attendees for a Q&A. Topics ranged from how to expedite the adoption of institutional antiracism in higher education to the importance of displaying individual identities in the pursuit of democracy.
“We have to bring the fullness of who we are into every space,” said Glaude. “If we are going to make our way into a different way of being together, we have to control that which we can control. We must refuse to mute ourselves, refuse to make ourselves quiet.”
Penn State Dickinson Law Dean and Donald J. Farage Professor of Law Danielle M. Conway, the executive director of the ADI, wrapped up the Q&A by thanking Glaude. “Dr. Eddie Glaude Jr. hit that right out of the park today. Thank you for connecting what we do in the law to what matters to humanity,” said Conway.