Anthea Butler facts for kids

Anthea Deidre Butler, born in 1960, is a respected professor. She teaches about religion at the University of Pennsylvania. She also leads the Department of Religious Studies there. She holds a special title: the Geraldine R. Segal Professor in American Social Thought.

Early Life and Education

Anthea Deidre Butler was born in Texas in 1960. Her parents were Jesse and Willa Mae Butler. She went to La Marque High School in La Marque, Texas. While there, she won awards for playing the marimba in music contests.

She studied a lot to become a professor. First, she earned a bachelor's degree at the University of Houston–Clear Lake. Then, she got a master's degree in theology from Fuller Theological Seminary. She earned another master's degree in religion from Vanderbilt University. In 2001, she completed her Ph.D. in Religion at Vanderbilt. Her big research project was about "Matriarchy and the Church of God in Christ."

Her Career as a Professor

After finishing her Ph.D., Dr. Butler worked at Princeton University. She was a special researcher there from 2001 to 2002. She also taught at Loyola Marymount University and the University of Rochester.

From 2008 to 2009, she was a scholar at Harvard Divinity School. Since 2009, she has been a professor at the University of Pennsylvania. Today, she is the head of the Religious Studies Department.

Dr. Butler has taught interesting classes. These include classes on the religious ideas of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King. She is also well-known for using social media, like Twitter. She often shares her thoughts on religious topics there. She has written for popular websites like Religion Dispatches, TheGrio, and CNN's Belief Blog.

Her Ideas and Opinions

As an educator, Dr. Butler has shared her views on important topics. For example, she was part of a group that disagreed with Colin Powell getting an honorary degree. This happened at the University of Rochester.

She has also written about American Evangelicalism. In her 2021 book, White Evangelical Racism: The Politics of Morality in America, she explores this topic. She discusses why many white Evangelicals supported former President Donald Trump. She suggests that this group is not just religious. She argues it has become a strong political movement.

Her Personal Life

Anthea Butler is Catholic. For some time, she also identified as an Evangelical.

Awards and Special Recognition

In 2021, Dr. Butler received a special honor. She was named the Geraldine R. Segal Professor in American Social Thought. This professorship is for scholars who study human rights, civil liberties, and race relations. It recognizes her important work in these areas.

Dr. Butler was also a visiting scholar at Yale University in 2019-2020. There, she studied the "prosperity gospel." This is a belief about faith and wealth. She looked at how it affects politics in America and Nigeria.