Fredrick C. Harris facts for kids

Fredrick Cornelius Harris is an American expert who studies politics. He focuses on how African American people are involved in politics. He is a professor at Columbia University and used to be a leader for social science studies there. He also directs a center at Columbia that studies African-American politics and society.

About Fredrick Harris

Fredrick Harris went to the University of Georgia for his first degree. Later, he earned his advanced degree (a Ph.D.) from Northwestern University. He taught at the University of Rochester from 1994. Then, in 2007, he joined the teaching staff at Columbia University.

His research looks at how people take part in politics. He also studies social movements, which are groups of people working for change. Dr. Harris explores how race and religion connect with politics. He is especially interested in the politics of African Americans.

Awards and Books

In 2013, Fredrick Harris won an important prize. It was the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award for Nonfiction. He won it for his book called The Price of the Ticket: Barack Obama and Rise and Decline of Black Politics.

In this book, Dr. Harris talked about Barack Obama becoming the first African American President. He suggested that Obama became president by not focusing too much on being an "African American candidate." This meant that some social justice issues important to black political groups were not highlighted.

Dr. Harris is also a Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution. This is a group that studies public policy. He also served as a Vice President for the American Political Science Association. This is a big group for political scientists. He was a visiting scholar at the Russell Sage Foundation for a year.

His Writings

• The Price of the Ticket: Barack Obama and Rise and Decline of Black Politics (2012)