The articles published in this special issue of The Annals were prepared for a conference titled "The Study of African American Problems" held in February 1999. The articles are a manifestation of the rich scholarly legacy created by W.E.B. Du Bois at the end of the nineteenth century-a legacy that continues to bear fruit at the start of the twenty-first century. While the works in this volume of The Annals are based on Du Bois s prospectus, "The Study of the Negro Problems," originally published in this journal 100 years ago and reprinted in this volume, they follow strongly the spirit rather than the letter of that article.

Du Bois s lifework was to focus the attention of society on the problems of African Americans, and these were centered on the need to develop leadership and social capital for blacks within a wider system that was unwilling to include them. In order to help develop the most complete possible picture of the black community, he identified four broad areas of study: social interpretation, historical study, statistical investigation, and anthropological measurement. The articles in this important issue of The Annals expand these practical categories, adding issues (of gender, for example) to some and broadening the definition of others. However, all the topics fall within the purview of what Du Bois saw as affecting all African Americans.

Du Bois felt that scholars were missing an important opportunity by not studying blacks. He pushed the academic community to take blacks seriously from a scientific perspective, while at the same time making an important contribution to world scholarship. This outstanding volume of The Annals is not a critique of Du Bois, but rather a reflection on the issues that were first raised by him and an effort to relate those themes to work that is being done today. Here scholars write both of their work and of the inspiration provided to them by this seminal and highly regarded thinker."

Although Africa seems to most people a remote and impoverished place remembered for the suffering of its people, it has played an important role in recent history, and it will play a significant role in the future of America and the West in general. This volume of the ANNALS, Perspectives on Africa and the World, provides a unique opportunity for fresh insight into the continent's past, present, and future by examining crucial historical turning points in African history over the past 75 years. The distinguished authors emphasize that understanding the reality of Africa in the twenty-first century requires viewing the continent within a broader context of recent world history. Through the lens of four watershed events-World War II, the end of colonialism, the cold war, and the new global interconnections- they show how much of what happens on the African continent has its origins in Washington, London, Paris, Moscow, or Beijing, just as events in Africa can shape the politics and economies of the world, and that we ignore Africa to our own peril.

This groundbreaking study of South Africa provides a unique look at the interplay of demographic, social and economic processes in a society undergoing rapid change as a result of the collapse of apartheid. It uses data from the first post-apartheid census as the basis for analysis of fertility, mortality within the context of HIV/AIDS, migration, education, employment, and household structure. These census data are complemented by large-scale household surveys and data from a partial registration system to study the relationships among various demographic, economic, and social phenomena. For the first time the demographic consequences of both the longer-term impact of apartheid policies and the policies of the new South Africa are examined and compared. This comprehensive reference links the demographic behavior of South Africa's various population groups to social, economic, and political inequalities created by policies of separate and unequal development. Prepared under the auspices of the Population Studies Center at the University of Pennsylvania, it is an essential resource for all scholars and practitioners in the field.

Tukufu Zuberi offers a concise account of the historical connections between the development of the idea of race and the birth of social statistics. Zuberi describes the ways race-differentiated data is misinterpreted in the social sciences and asks searching questions about the ways racial statistics are used. He argues that statistical analysis can and must be deracialized, and that this deracialization is essential to the goal of achieving social justice for all.

African Independence highlights the important role Africa has played in recent history and the significant role it will continue to play in the future of America and the globe. In a world where much of the power and wealth remains concentrated in the hands of a very few people, this book looks at how the history of African independence has touched all people-from refugees to heads of state. Author Tukufu Zuberi weaves exclusive interview excerpts and stories from many Africans he has met with old newsreels, current news and reports, and research into a larger narrative that takes readers through key events in African history and shows their importance today. The book provides context for understanding connections between events in Africa and the world, such as Nigeria's Boko Haram acts of war against the citizens of Nigeria and neighboring states, China's rise as the main superpower with the largest financial connections to the African continent, and the so-called war against terrorism. Zuberi is also the director of the documentary African Independence, which has won awards including Best Director and Best Documentary at the San Diego Black Film Festival, Best Director at The People's Film Festival, Best African Film at the San Diego Black Film Festival, and more. Both alone and together, the book and film offer a deeper understanding of Africa's central role in world affairs.

White Logic, White Methods shows the ways that a reigning white ideological methodology has poisoned almost all aspects of social science research. The only way to remedy these prevailing inequalities is for the complete overhaul of current methods, and a movement towards multicultural and pluralist approaches to what we know, think, and question. With an assemblage of leading scholars, this collection explores the possibilities and necessary dethroning of current social research practices.

The articles published in this special issue of The Annals were prepared for a conference titled "The Study of African American Problems" held in February 1999. The articles are a manifestation of the rich scholarly legacy created by W.E.B. Du Bois at the end of the nineteenth century-a legacy that continues to bear fruit at the start of the twenty-first century. While the works in this volume of The Annals are based on Du Bois s prospectus, "The Study of the Negro Problems," originally published in this journal 100 years ago and reprinted in this volume, they follow strongly the spirit rather than the letter of that article.

Du Bois s lifework was to focus the attention of society on the problems of African Americans, and these were centered on the need to develop leadership and social capital for blacks within a wider system that was unwilling to include them. In order to help develop the most complete possible picture of the black community, he identified four broad areas of study: social interpretation, historical study, statistical investigation, and anthropological measurement. The articles in this important issue of The Annals expand these practical categories, adding issues (of gender, for example) to some and broadening the definition of others. However, all the topics fall within the purview of what Du Bois saw as affecting all African Americans.

Du Bois felt that scholars were missing an important opportunity by not studying blacks. He pushed the academic community to take blacks seriously from a scientific perspective, while at the same time making an important contribution to world scholarship. This outstanding volume of The Annals is not a critique of Du Bois, but rather a reflection on the issues that were first raised by him and an effort to relate those themes to work that is being done today. Here scholars write both of their work and of the inspiration provided to them by this seminal and highly regarded thinker."

White Logic, White Methods shows the ways that a reigning white ideological methodology has poisoned almost all aspects of social science research. The only way to remedy these prevailing inequalities is for the complete overhaul of current methods, and a movement towards multicultural and pluralist approaches to what we know, think, and question. With an assemblage of leading scholars, this collection explores the possibilities and necessary dethroning of current social research practices.

African Independence highlights the important role Africa has played in recent history and the significant role it will continue to play in the future of America and the globe. In a world where much of the power and wealth remains concentrated in the hands of a very few people, this book looks at how the history of African independence has touched all people-from refugees to heads of state. Author Tukufu Zuberi weaves exclusive interview excerpts and stories from many Africans he has met with old newsreels, current news and reports, and research into a larger narrative that takes readers through key events in African history and shows their importance today. The book provides context for understanding connections between events in Africa and the world, such as Nigeria's Boko Haram acts of war against the citizens of Nigeria and neighboring states, China's rise as the main superpower with the largest financial connections to the African continent, and the so-called war against terrorism. Zuberi is also the director of the documentary African Independence, which has won awards including Best Director and Best Documentary at the San Diego Black Film Festival, Best Director at The People's Film Festival, Best African Film at the San Diego Black Film Festival, and more. Both alone and together, the book and film offer a deeper understanding of Africa's central role in world affairs.

Although Africa seems to most people a remote and impoverished place remembered for the suffering of its people, it has played an important role in recent history, and it will play a significant role in the future of America and the West in general. This volume of the ANNALS, Perspectives on Africa and the World, provides a unique opportunity for fresh insight into the continentAEs past, present, and future by examining crucial historical turning points in African history over the past 75 years. The distinguished authors emphasize that understanding the reality of Africa in the twenty-first century requires viewing the continent within a broader context of recent world history. Through the lens of four watershed eventsuWorld War II, the end of colonialism, the cold war, and the new global interconnectionsu they show how much of what happens on the African continent has its origins in Washington, London, Paris, Moscow, or Beijing, just as events in Africa can shape the politics and economies of the world, and that we ignore Africa to our own peril.