Joseph, Peniel

Teaching Areas

Social Policy
Policy Process and Institutions

Peniel Joseph holds a joint professorship appointment at the LBJ School of Public Affairs and the History Department in the College of Liberal Arts at The University of Texas at Austin. He is also the founding director of the LBJ School's Center for the Study of Race and Democracy (CSRD). His career focus has been on "Black Power Studies," which encompasses interdisciplinary fields such as Africana studies, law and society, women's and ethnic studies, and political science.

Prior to joining the UT faculty, Dr. Joseph was a professor at Tufts University, where he founded the school's Center for the Study of Race and Democracy to promote engaged research and scholarship focused on the ways issues of race and democracy affect people's lives.

In addition to being a frequent commentator on issues of race, democracy and civil rights, Dr. Joseph's most recent book is The Sword and the Shield: The Revolutionary Lives of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. He also wrote the award-winning books Waiting 'Til the Midnight Hour: A Narrative History of Black Power in America and Dark Days, Bright Nights: From Black Power to Barack Obama. His book Stokely: A Life has been called the definitive biography of Stokely Carmichael, the man who popularized the phrase "black power." Included among Joseph's other book credits is the editing of The Black Power Movement: Rethinking the Civil Rights-Black Power Era and Neighborhood Rebels: Black Power at the Local Level.

Recent Publications

Courses Taught

Peniel Joseph, professor of public affairs and Barbara Jordan Chair in Ethics and Political Values at the LBJ School

Contact Information

Location

SRH 3.231

Phone

512-471-4263

Email:

peniel.joseph@austin.utexas.edu

Newsworthy

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News • December 13, 2021

Peniel Joseph on LBJ's Office of Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion

A statement from the inaugural associate dean for justice, equity, diversity and inclusion: It is truly an honor to serve as the LBJ School of Public Affairs' inaugural Associate Dean for Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI). My interest in issues of equity, inclusion and anti-racism are deeply personal. As the proud son of Haitian immigrants, I grew up in a multiracial New York City during the 1980s. My mother worked at Mount Sinai Hospital as a member of Local 1199 union, and I was fortunate to encounter the city's racial, religious, ethnic and ideological diversity at an early age. These experiences, I would later find out, were made possible in part by President Lyndon Johnson's commitment to equity and inclusion through Great Society legislation that transformed the nation's demographics.

News • December 13, 2021

LBJ School establishes Office of Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion (JEDI), names leadership

The LBJ School has identified justice as an institutional priority and renamed its Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) to the Office of Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI). Leading civil rights scholar Dr. Peniel Joseph and community leader Estevan Delgado have been named inaugural associate dean and director for JEDI, respectively.

Feature • August 13, 2021

Why LBJ? Incoming students on why they're here, and how they want to change the world

Expert thinkers and doers are always critically important in public policy, and given the remarkable speed of change and the complexity of challenges that we as a society face, the need for dedicated, passionate and well-trained public servants has never been clearer. New LBJ students have answered the call to service in a tremendous way. This incoming class includes more than 250 new master's degree students and nine Ph.D. students.