France Winddance Twine facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
France Winddance Twine
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France Winddance Twine in 2022
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| Born | 1960 (age 64–65) |
| Nationality | Muscogee Nation, American |
| Alma mater | St. Thomas Aquinas Dominican H.S. Northwestern University University of California Berkeley |
| Occupation | Sociologist, filmmaker |
| Known for | Racial literacy, geek capital, photo elicitation interviews visual sociology; critical race theory; whiteness studies; racial, gender and class inequalities; interracial families |
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| Institutions | Duke University Stanford University University of California, Berkeley University of Washington University of California, Santa Barbara London School of Economics |
France Winddance Twine (born 1960) is a Black and Native American sociologist, artist, and documentary filmmaker. A sociologist is a person who studies how people live and interact in groups. Twine is also an ethnographer, which means she learns about people by living with and observing them.
Twine has traveled to Brazil, the UK, and the United States to research race, racism, and how to fight against racism. She has written 11 books and over 100 articles about what she has learned. Her work has helped people better understand topics like gender, feminism, and technology.
In 2020, the American Sociological Association gave her the Distinguished Career Award for her important work in sociology. She was also the first sociologist to write a book about everyday racism in the countryside of Brazil after the country returned to a democratic government.
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Family and Early Life
France Winddance Twine was born in Chicago, Illinois. She comes from a family of activists who fought for fairness and equality.
Her grandfather, Paul Q. Twine Sr., was a Civil Rights activist. He helped start the Catholic Interracial Council of Chicago. This group brought together people of different backgrounds, like Irish, Italian, and Black Catholics, to work for racial justice.
Her great-grandfather was William Henry Twine. He was a lawyer for the Creek Nation and a civil rights leader. He started the first newspaper run by a Black person in what was then called Indian Territory. Twine is a registered member of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation.
Education and Teaching
Twine went to college at Northwestern University. She later earned her M.A. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of California, Berkeley. A Ph.D. is the highest degree a person can get from a university.
She has taught at many famous universities, including:
- Duke University
- University of Washington
- University of California, Santa Barbara
- London School of Economics
Twine has also been a part of the editorial boards for important academic journals. These are magazines where experts share their latest research. Being on the board means she helped decide which articles were good enough to be published.
Career and Important Ideas
Twine is a feminist race theorist. This means she studies how race and gender affect people's lives and opportunities. She has written many books and articles on this topic. Her research has been supported by major groups like the Rockefeller Foundation.
Some of her well-known books include:
- A White Side of Black Britain: Interracial Intimacy and Racial Literacy (2010)
- Girls with Guns: Firearms, Feminism and Militarism (2012)
- Geek Girls: Inequality and Opportunity in Silicon Valley (2022)
What is Racial Literacy?
One of Twine's most important ideas is racial literacy. This is the ability to understand and talk about race and racism in a smart and constructive way.
Her book, A White Side of Black Britain, explores this idea. She studied the white mothers of mixed-race children in the United Kingdom. She wanted to see how they learned to understand racism to help their children navigate the world. Racial literacy helps people recognize, respond to, and counter racism.
Major Awards and Honors
Throughout her career, Twine has received many awards for her work.
- 2020: Distinguished Career Award from the American Sociological Association.
- 2019: An honorary doctorate degree from Colorado College. She received this honor at the same time as Oprah Winfrey.
- 2008: Fellow at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University. This is a special honor for top researchers.
- 2001: Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center Fellowship, which allowed her to work on her research in Italy.
