Why Identity Politics Distracts Us From Economic Inequalities

By WALTER BENN MICHAELS

President Shirley M. Tilghman's announcement of Princeton University's recent decision to build up its African-American-studies program, developing a new major and adding a number of faculty positions, begins with the statement that "of all the challenges that confront America, none is more profound than the struggle to achieve racial equality." It goes on to say that, although Princeton's scholars have made their own important contributions to African-American studies, the university has in