Reimagining Truth

1000 Cady Mall,Tempe AZ 85281

08 April, 2022

Description

"Reimagining Truth: Unraveling the Religion of Whiteness and Advancing a Black Ecology," a talk by J. Kameron Carter (Indiana University) About this talk J. Kameron Carter invites us to reimagine truth by uncoupling it from the righteousness of a nation premised on the religion of whiteness. W.E.B. DuBois used the phrase “religion of whiteness” a century ago to diagnose the crisis of his times. For DuBois, whiteness takes mythic-patriarchal form as Prometheus, who in stealing fire from Mt. Olympus claimed divinity for himself and ownership of the earth. DuBois presciently argued that whiteness as Promethean religion, as colonial adventure, and finally as environmental crisis was always destined to boomerang upon itself. The “crashing” of whiteness DuBois predicted compels a reimagination of truth along different lines. Carter proposes a Black ecology of mutual interdependence and care to advance an “otherwise” imagination of truth that has always been there, always present as an alternative to the catastrophic religion of whiteness. About the speaker J. Kameron Carter is professor of religious studies and co-director of the Center for Religion and the Human at Indiana University. His work is situated at the intersection of questions of race and the current ecological ravaging of the earth. He is interested in what these intertwined issues have to do with the modern world, generally, and with America (or rather the Americas), more specifically, as a unique religious situation or phenomenon. He explores these matters through the lens of critical theory, combined with theories of the sacred and languages drawn from the domains of religion, theology, and philosophy. He also draws on feminist, gender, and queer theory, philosophy and aesthetics, and literatures and poetries of the African diaspora as a further repertoire of resources with which to reimagine matter itself, all with a view to imagining alternative worlds, other ways of being with the earth and thus with each other. Carter's books include "Race: A Theological Account" (2008), "The Anarchy of Black Religion: A Mystic Song" (2022), and the forthcoming "The Religion of Whiteness: An Apocalyptic Lyric." He has also edited the special volumes, "The Matter of Black Religion: Thinking with Charles H. Long" for American Religion and "Religion and the Futures of Blackness," for South Atlantic Quarterly. In addition to these and other numerous scholarly articles, he is also a published poet. Carter teaches courses at the undergraduate and/or graduate levels in black studies and/as critical theory; continental philosophy and aesthetics; religion, modernity, and the secular; political theology; hip hop and religion; black feminism and religion; theories of religion; theory of the sacred; modern theology; race and mysticism; Afro-futurism and religion; black experimental writing and poetics; black nature or eco-poetry; African American literature and religion. A major theme in both his research and teaching is the way in which it reimagines religion and the political beyond the dominant racialized conceptions of these terms and towards alternative framings and new worlds. This event is supported by the project, "Recovering Truth: Religion, Journalism and Democracy in a post-Truth era," funded by the Henry Luce Foundation. COVID 19 Guidelines: Please keep in mind the CDC recommendations as well as ASU Community of Care health protocols on how to keep yourself and others healthy. Consistent with ASU’S current guidelines, face coverings are required during this event and negative COVID tests prior to attending are highly recommended. Face coverings will be available upon entry for those who may have forgotten them.