Traveling with Twain

In Search of America's Identity

Race and Ethnicity

Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens), like many Americans before and after him, struggled to overcome his disdain for the Other–African Americans, Irish, Chinese and other newly arrived immigrants, and Native Americans. This project focuses on interviewing a wide variety of Americans on issues of race and ethnicity, in anticipation of the 2012 presidential election, during which America’s first African-American president will be seeking re-election.

Posts in Race and Ethnicity

Author Ellis Cose talks about his daughter's approach to race

Author Ellis Cose talks about his daughter’s approach to race

Ellis Cose is a renowned American journalist whose most recent book The End of Anger: A New Generation’s Take on Race and Rage was published May 2011. We interviewed him in his writing apartment in Manhattan. … Read more >>

New York, NY Featured Race and Ethnicity
Occupy Wall Street: Scenes from a sleepy protest

Occupy Wall Street: Scenes from a sleepy protest

One thing about the Occupy Wall Street protest in Lower Manhattan’s Zuccotti Park: Don’t visit too early. Like, before 2 p.m. We made that mistake last week and arrived around 11 a.m. Everyone was still sleeping, … Read more >>

New York, NY Featured Gender Identity More...
Red Rooster restaurant—Multicultural, not monochromatic

Red Rooster restaurant—Multicultural, not monochromatic

From its owner and art to its food, staff and clientele, the Red Rooster Harlem restaurant, our first stop in New York City, sends a multicultural message. Owner-celebrity chef Marcus Samuelsson, born in Ethiopia, orphaned at … Read more >>

New York, NY Race and Ethnicity
Cleveland woman Priscilla Cooper talks poverty and stigma in her city

Cleveland woman Priscilla Cooper talks poverty and stigma in her city

Priscilla Cooper, a former welfare recipient, started the Family Connection Center to empower the impoverished living in Cleveland, Ohio. The lakefront city competes with Detroit for the title of “Poorest Large City in America.” In the … Read more >>

Cleveland, OH Featured Race and Ethnicity
The curious case of Michael Fosberg

The curious case of Michael Fosberg

Michael Fosberg plays the race card, literally. He joked about it as he handed us his business card. “RACE” is emblazoned on the back in big black letters. The other side listed Fosberg’s contact info and … Read more >>

Chicago, IL Featured Race and Ethnicity

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Featured Content from Race and Ethnicity

What Julie Pham learned managing a Vietnamese newspaper in the Pacific Northwest

One day, an elderly Vietnamese man walked into the office of Người Việt Tây Bắc. He wanted to place a classified ad in the largest and oldest newspaper for Vietnamese immigrants in Washington. Julie Pham, 33, … Read more >>

From the Mekong to the Mississippi

On the fortieth anniversary of the Fall of Saigon, Vietnamese immigrants and their children gathered alongside Vietnam War veterans to reflect on the dramatic events that forever changed both of their destinies—the siege of South Vietnam’s … Read more >>

Natalie Sheppard discusses being a black Mormon in the Salt Lake City area

Of all the cities and towns on Mark Twain’s route west that we visited, Salt Lake City honors him least. The city’s magnificent main library, a 240,000-sq.-ft., five-story-tall curved wedge-shaped beauty by Moshe Safdie and other … Read more >>

We drove through memorable-monikered Louisiana towns to get to a "graffiti board" in Little Rock

After a full day of interviewing at Louisiana State Penitentiary, we shot north toward Arkansas through Louisiana towns with memorable monikers: Tallulah (not named for the actress), Water Proof and Transylvania (an enormous black bat adorns … Read more >>

Ben Jaffe, heir to Preservation Hall, philosophizes about New Orleans jazz

I am listening to an intense, muscular Ben Jaffe, 40, creative director of Preservation Hall Jazz Band, talk slowly and thoughtfully about his New Orleans, his brow furrowed, his sprouting Jewfro tied behind his head. But … Read more >>


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