tension city by jim lehrer, my view from the middle seat. you should have said the middle hot seat. thank you. >> guest: thank you, gloria. ..y to offer a lot for our members. >> next on booktv, in his book "black and tired," anthony bradley applies christian teachings to the summits of race -- subjects of race, politics, contemporary culture, globalization and education. this is about an hour.

>> good morning, thank you for joining us here an the heritage foundation. as director of lectures and welcyou , it's my privilege to >> good morning thank you for joining us at the heritage foundation. was the director of this seminar is it is my a privileged to welcome new fed also join us on ourin website. please make the last courtesy check that the cellphones have been turned off it will be appreciated.ve we will allow questions from our internet viewers if they like to e-mail us. and we will post them within 24 hours for your future reference. introducing our special guest is mark marshal who is director of policy studies and also religion and civilinin

society but also oversees the welfare marriage family and religion and civil society. all so our online catalog related to family and religious practices. prior to joining us here, she worked on a cultural policy issues at tha empower america and was a senior director of family studies at the family research council.je please join me in welcoming jennifer marshall. [applause]ok >> thank you for being here at for this book the event on "black and tired" essays on race, politics, culture, and international development" by anthony bradley a few days ago hurricane irene pushed back the official dedication of the new memorial to dr. martin luther king but the silver lining is the delay appropriately extends k our focus on the

civil-rights legacy and the work of since then have strive to make all god's children truly free at last. dr. bradley is one of those freedom seekers. as the title conveys, "black and tired" he is not satisfied with the progress. although for reasons you may not hear about.luin as the essays show like devaluing the family and her pop delusional talk, anthony bradley is a scholar with a wide ranging and tristan his academic pedigrees shows that as well with his undergraduate-- britain degree -- undergraduate degree is in science andry a also from the seminary in t theology and today teaches at a christian a liberal arts school, king's collegeatin in his first book was

liberating the black theology and his latest book looks at the experiences of one race to teachers of all humanity. our views of human nature will shape our public policy. it is worth to consider what it means to be fully human. please join me to welcome dr. anthony bradley as he does that to 85. >> thank you for thed invitation i am honored and delighted to be here at the heritage foundation for this e been to. four years i often saygro because i am a nerd growing up by would watch c-span quite a bit and and wonder i

wonder if one day i will stand in front of this fact chophouse my connection to the foundation goes back some years. with great honor and a lot of the work with my own research and writing hisrm work has bed helpful for me in terms of my own attends to think differently about political and economicamer liberation for african-americans. the united states is a an incredible place standing out among other nations in the world and i recently had an opportunity to be

reminded how great this place was that my family reunion in alabama. it is the county that my family's plantation was.oas i stand here before you as a defendant of slaves from the bradley plantation. and in the civil-rights movement this is my family story of struggling and fighting for humanity and a freedom in a culture that was saturated with injustice and dehumanization. what is so amazing about

this narrative four storey this not only does my family know where the plantation is, but we now own it there are members of my family currently living on its as free h people who have property rights two it codified am protected by the rule of law. co how many countries in the world is it possible to have a group of people who were of once slaves on a piece of property?re and then a few generations later actually own the property? that they were being in slave to. that p is what makes this place absolutely amazing and of course, we noticed the progress in our country by are having a black family in theworl oval office not too many

countries around the world where you would see some dominant cultures rise that level the status and like the civil-rights movement. and to think about some of the founding principles to be a descendant of slaves to stand in front of the group of people with a ph.d. standing in front of theond heritage foundation backdropto speaking to you about my second book is an amazing narrative about the potential of freedom and liberty and empowerment that this country actually offers

to those who have the opportunity to take it granted to of it. i name my book "black and tired" on purpose. one because i am black as you can tell.te some of the story of raising to use excess from those experiences because the hopes and dreams and aspirations values and principles that created the conditions that put me here today, are being subsidized and eroded by those who have good intentions but often do not think of thehey consequences of public policy decision because they have different views on the human person and human dignity.

the bandeaus who structured our government in the first place. and draw the facts of the anthropology year not immediately seen come of the long term effects are experienced among the black underclass. this makes me tired.oft tired of those who think putting decisions in the hands of a few people is best in the long run when it has been demonstrated repeatedly, thatople concentrating power in the hands of a few people leads to moresi oppression, not less. and in fact, the concentration of power of those making decisions for the masses, this has beence i much of the black experience in america. in fact,, it "black and tired" because it seems there is a

movement, energy, to reposition african americans away that a few people are making tata decisions about those masses and it is exhausting to see the national campaign for a said dignity of blackness under the leadership of martin luther king in rosa parkso and to be hijacked by the educational narcissism from politicians and government agencies operating under the dilution to have the expertise and capacity to solve all of society's problems. to see the politics of envy undermine the campaign for dignity to see those bit ofweal varying degrees wealth

against t others and then as if there is some competition it is exhausting to see the zeros some economics that poisons the imagination ofimse those that does notpl understand the social implications of wealthic creation enough to believe the myth that the only way is to exploit others.land so i sit on the same political i lend as others to hear the catalyst to honor the dignity to guarantee the opportunity under the law for the blackson to be treated no differently than anyone else.

>> this equality of treatment is drowning in narcissism in entitlement. narcissism blames others for the shortcomings and justifying breaking the law out of a sense of entitlement. you owe us. but how do we get here? the consequences of a fewne converging friends, thegiou decrease of american life, the road shin and understanding of humans on dignity and of focus on the quality of results instead of the quality of process.to this has been poisonous to the black underclass because more and more are ignored as

an agent of public virtue which has been it has been a historic function wellesz religion you have in society the more and more people turn to government some '02 mediates human action. this was precisely the intention to purge religion from society.ed human dignity has beene perverted in ways that forces us to embrace of mission of a few easy to plan or impose at well the pursuit of the quality oful economicts results for all have created a new pathway for in justice today it is called people doing their fair share.

wide is the black underclass continue to struggle so many years after the civil-rights movement? dreaming about america where women and men are evaluated on the basis of their character rather than skin color.ht the fight for equal dignity for the political clout to and the goal of equality measured by outcome soughtted by means of government directed racially inclusive programs overshadowed the more challenging campaign for trueit solidarity based on a widespread recognition of the inherentni dignity of all people.ts beginning in 1980 s people began to identify justice on the basis of social

cosmetics including how much b stuff did or did not have size of homes and number of college degrees, law school admission rates, loan approvals. instead of whether or not blacks are treated asar equals in our social structure.ed r equal treatment may yield unexpected results but it remains the better measurement of justice and creating results. and with the movement beginning in the mid 1960's through the 1970's those morris successful minority t groups are those who looked through mobility through the market place instead of

politics uc other subdominant cultures looking at a social economic mobility but much of this erosion has to do with the understanding of the role of religion in society and to telco cautioned in his reflections on democracy in america that the pursuit of liberty without religion herds society because it tends to isolate people from one another to concentratetten everyman's intention to remans attention uponlays himself. and lays open the soul toio love of material gratification.n. " end quote. in fact, commented tocqueville says that the

main business of religion is to purify control and restrained for the exclusive taste of well-being four times of the quality. i have recently said every black person apprehended for robbing stores in a flash mobs should have their court hearing, not in front of a judge but facing the 30 front -- 35 statute of martin luther king, jr. at his memorial site and should be asked what do you think dr. king would say to you right now? i was angry when saw the footage of young blacks robbing convenience stores across america and brought to tears. n we all need to take a closer

look and those like the one shed light the public-service announcements about pollution in i am old enough to remember those. shedding tears after seeing that in america and ended with the tagline people started it people can stop it if he was alive today hehat may proclaim to the flash mobs that people start them and people can stop them. his dream was realized byee many african americans to take fullth advantage of the opportunities made available f through the quest for justice.

would. >> host: ever envision after his "i have a dream" speech not as mean and sort kitchen staff but as a first family? but years after the civil rights struggle, we have young black people ransacking stores in groups.k every time a flash mobs lutes it robs king of his dream all over america philadelphia in chicago washingtonpe d.c., young people contribute to the common good but instead trade said dignity for thefr adrenalin rush to steal from others. we will not tolerate suchof reprehensible behavior here says m the mayor vincent ghraib. and goes on to say they have

reporting residents questioning whether the could have been morally justified. actually, both morality and law are quite clear. it is wrong to steal from others and if people do not obey the law there would be apprehended, arrested and prosecuted.en with public virtue and civil rights come a his dream was one that harmonized morality and law but his dream will never be realized in america as long as this country continues that freedom does not require personal integrity and character. proponents of social logical and a series loot stores because it disenfranchised

from mainstream society and those maybe legitimate feelings. but what was taught to us is political and social frustration does not justify breaking the law. fa perhaps if they were more familiar with life under slavery in jim crow or cared about the legacy of civil rightsal he rose in learning about john lewis and others mentioned earlier, with the heroic generation formed by the virtue of religion who pursue public justice by pursuing public virtue.meri and responsible for the

spectacle, the society that does not value performing in the way imprudent and justice and self control. why would we be surprised convenience stores are robbed by a youthful mob? in the society that does notot f value private property to foster the spirit of class warfare through wealth redistribution why should we be surprised none people don't value somebody else's property? course stuff for a more a technical term. [laughter] radical individualism defines the ethics of our era and in the criminal flash mobs -- / mod expose is our failure. we must lament the fact america is abandonment of virtue destroys the lives of young black people to

undermine the legal and economic catalyst that could end our recession for good. and then solidarity i stand in front of a king statue with a new dreamce that would give rise to a generation of law abiding citizens and in this way that blacks will surely experience the dreams king and others who died for justice. and we have this bifurcation of religious life those that make the values and principles actually work. for example,, religious life actually has educationt

success in the 2010 studies the "journal" of negro education one of the oldest and continuous academic journals, reported how church involvement increases success in the inner city and in the article titled faith and the inner-city the herb been black church, said dr. barren describes ton i cultivate successful students in inner cities. of he observes that it reinforced attitudes outlooks, behavior's andpart practice this particularly through individuals and commitments to and adoption of the goals and expectations of the group" end quote.y

these are conducive to positive educational outcome and in fact, back in 2009 reporting in another article for black inner-city youth reports it often and the black-white achievement gap "was eliminated. i will say that again. the black-whiteie achievement gap was eliminated simply because the students then low performing schools were actively involved in religious life and community one of the advantages of inner-city churches is they provide a community where black students are valued, and members of a society with promise and from whom success is expected.

also was trusted members of a community that celebrate academic success and the practice that produces it which overrides of low expectation communicated at school. additionally highlights the way in the church is the way they are equipped to deal with familys san is this encouraging parental education involvement from the heart as well as context to have regular contact with other adults for a role model and mentor. also in that same journal from howard university university, 4,273 black students were steady and it was found that family and religious life and social capital are most predictors

horrors students in college success. so those students and low performing schools in the inner city, who are involved in religious life, outside of the family, the second greatest predictor c of them going two college. and eliminates the black-white achievement gap. and there also conclude the students with active religious life involves parents and have freer opportunities for pro lik looking for issues of minimum-wage this is a winner that people love to think th about the consequences of raising the minimum wage dec

but i would submit people suit -- something of the long-term consequences because we live in a world how people make decisions on something called incentive. such the increase hertz minorities comment teenagers come of those who don't have skills in the long run because minimum-wage jobs a usually entry-level withnd f limited work experience and when of course, his employer's to pay the workers more than it demands in order to stay in business , but those fewer hours of low-skilled labor those that were too expensive to employ acrea

creating an army of permanent part-time employees and forced wage increases this is when the money covering the increase does not magically appear bypass to come from somewhere cents a mere 10 / of the best product for the lowest price come a business is will likely not pass that wage increase on in thesst on fm of higher prices butth instead, reduce the cost by laying off workers with the low was skills anddi relocating jobs for the entire business or to skirt the law altogether to pay under the table. or by hiring illegal immigrants. university of connecticut professor estimates $1 rise of the minimum wage since the current environment would further reduce teen

unemployment opportunities by 140,000 jobs. when a the modern manifestations of race ideology except for african-americans. told her to shop and where they have to send their children to school of choice , a freedom, preference, options freedom, preference, options p , those are for more sophisticated people. with high-level thinking skills come of those who deserve freedom fair often called the lead stand the rest of us must do to enjoy their own freedom to do not p

believe there exercising the same freedom just yet. sunday position themselves as surrogates decision-makers you are not nearly as of late and as they are. and people with the quelled dignity of prospective employees to be free to e forate her own wage the needs and skills and capacities with a potential employer. and with the interventionth and the the surrogate third parties because of the expectation of both the employee and employer that they know what is best for themselves. and parents were considered people of equal dignity theyl would not have third party e

late -- believes to where they can and cannot put their children and then with complex knowledge they only seem to know what is best for everyone. this feature calledn.u condescension and we know better than you people. so what deal beeps want to do is remove bay decision from the hands of or people into the hands of those who have greater compassion. this is with that black experience during slavery in jim crow committed to removing black men and women from a cultural and economic process so they could not be able to make their own decisions and experience

liberation end for them sauce. keep being african-american is out of the process removes the power from experience same liberty under the subjection of the others. so the empowerment only comes to america and strapped when we all recognize that when we take the decisions from the fe masses and put them into the hands of the few, we undermine people's dignity. if you believe people have dignity, and capacity for reason and virtue, you will put more decisions in their hands. if you believe however some

people have superior wisdom, more so than others as a class, then you will put more and more a decisions in the hands of the few to roll over everybody else. it is a defacto cash system progress long as america does the respects the ingnity of the underclass to stop tying their shoes for them, the nation will go bankrupt. bilt the institution that will erode and subside. i long for the day when blacks are respectedh enough that the virtue drives the idea of what it means to beled human to allow those two

pursue with religious liberty and political liberty asked parents remove decisions from children who are not mature, it is unbelievably unsold thing that we would right public policy to treat the class of people as if they are perpetual children. this is what it was about at its core and with the dec control of others who sought to make their decisions for them as if they were children.card so those that carried placards that say i am a man.ive i am not a boy. not a country that treats us

with fall individuals and capacity and potential to make those decisions for ourselves and family that leads to our own political and economic liberation. until that time, where those liberties are experienced where it is honored, i will remain black and tired. y thank you very much. [applause] >> we will take questions and comments the.ti >>on i really appreciate what you have to say and i would w imagine on most points igia

agree with the national conservative and a woman of faith i can understand where you're coming from but pardon me for those white people in their room. [laughter] >> this is a chocolate conversation and. [laughter] and some things i feel i do not want toaul give white america at a pass i realize i have a personal responsibility for everything that i do and myer mother raised me in such a way there are things that i will and will not do. but as we have these public conversations i don't want to give white america of pass to talk about the flash mobs there is no way on earth even now my mom say

you better not do and i don't think about it. that is a result of no home and training that is basic and simple but there are kids in the world, little black kids to do feel so angry that they are angry in "black and tired" so how do we have that conversation inamout giving them a pass? >> that is where emphasize the rule of law. what is important is if you look at the constitution and the bill ofld rights, we have to hold people accountable to the fact they are not even applying of law it is to cal l america to its own standards.pe we cannot give people a pass

when they have human indignity against their own standards. that it is hypocritical. where there is injustice and the dignity is undermined, we want to call that out and some have argued thated one of the roles of african-americans have played is the conscience because a few are the dominantur culture you have a lot of blind spots and itkes takes some brown and yellow people to raise up the flagrais to say you may not realize this but some of your actions have hurt my own opportunities. spe we have some of the need torivi continue to speak about issues related to white privilege. a

to what i often call nerve nativity but it must conform and you will remember the ridiculous article that came out in psychology today on duty thaton to black women just turnon beautiful and that was a great example of the anglo-dutch emissivity that what is right isat normal and everybody else must conform. we have to continue to address that because we'rey all morally fraught with ourselves with their own blind spot and collectivelyas a we can have a blind spot together. i am more than happy to do that. that means i have no friends.

[laughter]n't i am attacked both sides because i am equally concerned that and some ways, both in ignoring the problem can expose the racist ideology that you don't even care enough to be concerned about the issue but on the other side, the patriarch of good intentions to treat people like their pets, children instead i'd like adults.orta the issue of home training is important i want to preach the sermon now but i want. these institutions have thelack road did in the black i community with the hip-hop generation that represents the most un church group since the plantation.on

we have to begin to ask questions where's the church? is the of black church and dead because that institution that goes to moreover to has been on the decline in terms of influencing that generation because home training was fraud. not just at home but anybody use church could smack you and tell you to stand up.uour those two things are t important. good for that question. my sister was adopted in to our family going into significant questions for our family they have been dif addressed long before now.

it is different because there is a draw to the hip-hop culture and day drive to the activities that are detrimental. it the initial categories are notec even therecess necessarily. what can the dominant culture chris gins areake people with strong moral categories to make it easier to start from categories of dignity so that it is more competitive? in the is to express their identity to be part of a group that does not look a like something their friends would have a hard time

understanding. i you know, where i am going and that is in the family context. what can day preacher do to bring about the reform or the question with the hypocrisy that i eight agree att exist back to the standards of america's founding anddom how we honor freedom. and the gift that it is. all are created equal as given by god or the creator with inalienable rights in the constitution.nsti how to hold those values firmly in a church context and over the long term keep pushing those forward so these conversations are easier to have? they become flash points and it is hard to cross the line.get inside the family is tough to get there. >> we have

this tension because i get raises because of it and contracts. i'd love it and there comes t a time where you have to talk to real people. sorry academics.out how do challenge people to think about these categories in ways that make sense? what are you talking about? i am not promoting the artist exclusively as said caveat but if you listen and too little wanes new song about love and in thatbo

context the displays how misdirected love becomes so sabotages and by telling a story also a good job stellate day storytelling in the consequences of the actions. w what we forget about thean power of story andd narrative and in my own work what i have seen is people who are the best that principled arguments are horrible at storytelling. it is a story telling thatac draws people into the principal's so the biblicalrrat narrative so what would haves been if we were bettertual storytellers?

and then presented the so to see the tapestry what it means. just like the book of proverbs. to give a lecture in theity consequences i could do that zero or to say if you don't, i get back. we have to do of better job because it is the story that compose action. so the sister puts herself into the ongoing narrative and i argue that many people ondd the left they inviteling

people into the story, and the utopian story the way things could be and people have these very principles so we begin to wonder about ways to tell the story is in such a way that what is the principle behind that? in terms of pastors and religiousea leaders, it is a s multifaceted vocation and on the one hand there still needs to be the leadership that speaks to social injustice and can highlight to see the way in which society lives in solidarity with the social breakdown of

all of us but then people have stories so we have to know people's stories. that is the consequence of the one size fits all approach of social justice for everyone to have the same story and not in the same position sometimes you have to unpack that story to know how to help them. soho those who are closest to the people like pastors have better information and how to help people so what this f involves an forgive me for using the ancient principle, love your neighbor and to get to know their story in many experience family trauma that affects their brain and

have attachment disorders so they cannot make it. you have to know people. imf the thinking negative pastors need to speak prophetically about the culture and for their own but faith and then to embed ourselves into the ongoing narrative. and then those who will stay stuck in a psycho that the future will be different than the past and those of, us can actually help peopleew

with the different narrative and we need to do more that and more encouragement and uplifting because that recognizes the person has dignity. it is not determined in terms of your own political life. cor how can we inspire to come out of that? the stories are incrediblyreat important in in part this a great tragedy of the current tipoff generation with the in lives of those who lived in jim-crow and slavery. i grew up hearing the stories i hear them again to w

beou reinforced. we don't want to go back. the good old days is the future. i am not going back 21950. i think those things are important. good question. >> you mentioned church. could close disparities what was the effect on the white students?ite and why you think there was a breakdown in the social institutions? that you did not explain why thatha happened. making a similar point* to say civil-rights arguments but after the death of the

king they were relevant. what came first? and why? >> to answer the first question, in the research done it if is interesting, for a suburban white kids, religious involvement versa is non religious involvement did not matter because the types of things that reinforce success are embeddedhell into the community. the difference is in the context of church it speaks against the self sabotage of those living in the community. one that socially reinforces the success, they don't bring year the fact as when no

they are absent but in terms of which came first, the chicken or the egg, i am not an expert enough in those legal arguments to know it has much to do with the understanding justice related to the outcome related to process when they become aligned with people's participation in the free participation in to participate in a process to compete equally when itome comes about outcomes redefine civil-rights. so it comes with economic parity.

when so determine a quality on the basis of economic outcome and material manifestations rather than recognizing on the basis of human dignity. that began to expand in the 1966 and you can see this with the programs initiative it -- initiated by a lbj and the war on poverty which i think they are losing. those began to get people of the great society program to bring the parity within the

public's fear and the paradigm and the measure it became reduced to those that people have versus those that do not. so affirmative action to set aside in terms of contacting for things like that. i personally believe that the process first is resolved to live day virtuous life was the beginning of undermining this distinction between to

whom does the constitution and apply and how? thank you very much. [applause] >> knoll webster is very brash and thinks he knows everything and sometimes he really does. 1785 he decides what is wrong with america and is spot on. the problem is under the articles of confederation the federal government did not have enough power. he writes a pamphlet and when noah webster has an idea he takes it to mount vernon and two washington.

he was a yale man adams was a harvard man very impressed by webster with an interesting idea and a great delegator to say i will give it to mr. madison as soon as possible and the pan play it is instrumental in the drafting of the constitution and in 1787 common these are the moments that are moving into mover and shaker moments then at the constitutional convention the first thing they do is not on the door and is not say delicate but as a journalist and then they realize the talent right after the convention they