Cal Poly to Host ‘Dog Whistle Politics’ Lecture Nov. 7

In observance of Constitution Day, UC Berkeley Professor Ian F. Haney López will present “Dog Whistle Politics: Race, Conservatism and a Middle Class in Crisis” from 9 to 10:30 a.m. Friday, Nov. 7, in Engineering IV (Building 192), Room 106 on campus.

Haney López will discuss key aspects of his book, “Dog Whistle Politics: How Coded Racial Appeals Have Reinvented Racism and Wrecked the Middle Class,” which rejects ideas of obvious racism and expands the issue into more complex themes that explain the state of American politics today.

In discussing the Republican Party’s increasing reliance on white voters and the destabilization of the middle class, Haney López will address how politicians deliver hidden racial messages that generate middle-class enthusiasm while maintaining the financial and social health of the rich.

Haney López will also explore how politicians maintain middle-class complacency by promising lower crime rates and protection against imported diseases and undocumented immigrants—all while helping corporations and top earners stay where they are.

Haney López is the John H. Boalt Professor of Law at UC Berkeley, where he teaches in the areas of race and constitutional law. His research emphasizes the connection between racial divisions and the growing wealth inequality in the U.S.

He earned a master’s in history from Washington University, a master’s in public policy from Princeton, and a law degree from Harvard.

Haney López is also the author of “White by Law” and “Racism on Trial.” A book signing will follow the lecture.

This event is free and open to the public. It is sponsored by Cal Poly’s History Department, Office of University Diversity and Inclusivity, and the College of Liberal Arts.