Authors Amplified: Dorian Brown Crosby’s Somalis in the Neo-South: African Immigration, Politics and Race

Global Atlanta’s Authors Amplified series highlighting Georgia voices continues with an in-person interview with Dr. Dorian Brown Crosby, Associate Professor of Political Science at Spelman College, on her recently released book, Somalis in the Neo-South: African Immigration, Politics and Race.

We are excited to announce that this event has provided us with the unique opportunity to partner with Refuge Coffee Co., at their first physical location, in Sweet Auburn for an evening event that celebrates refugee communities in Atlanta. As a non-profit organization, their objective is to provide job creation and job training for resettled refugees.

Refuge Coffee Co. began as a coffee truck that was founded and opened in Clarkston, a city where Dr. Crosby has dedicated much of her time working with, and a community that is a central focus in her book.

Tickets for in-person attendance are $15 each and include a free beverage of your choice, so please feel free to order upon arrival and put it on the Global Atlanta tab.

There will be a meet and greet at 5:00 p.m. in advance of the interview at 5:30 p.m. that will be broadcast live to Zoom, just in case you can’t join us in person.

For public health and safety reasons, everyone attending in person must wear masks during the event when not eating. 

Can’t make it? The interview portion of this event will also be broadcast and viewable free of charge via Zoom at 5:30 pm. Please select your preferred option when registering.

Hosted and Sponsored by Refuge Coffee Co. – Sweet Auburn location: 

About the Book

As demographics change and the southern American region grows more multicultural, clashes between mentalities and contemporary population realities increase. Somalis in the Neo-South: African Immigration, Politics and Race offers a balanced and insightful look at Somalis in the southern United States. Politically centered, it is a thought-provoking book that presents an essential and positive alternative to the familiar portrayal of Somalis in the United States as terrorists. It explains the U.S. resettlement process and illuminates the civic engagement and entrepreneurship of Somalis in Clarkston, Georgia, and Nashville, Tennessee.

About the Author

Dr. Dorian Brown Crosby is an Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science at Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia. She is a faculty-mentor and Board Member of the Social Justice Program and the inaugural and former Director of Cultural Orientation in the Gordon-Zeto Center for Global Education at Spelman College. Dr. Brown Crosby graduated Cum Laude from Spelman with a B.A. in Political Science and earned her M.A. in Political Science and International Relations from the University of Delaware in Newark, Delaware.

She earned her Ph.D. in Political Science from Clark Atlanta University in Atlanta, Georgia. Her research focuses on resettled African refugees in the United States’ southeastern region, placing her work in multiple contexts such as Forced Migration Studies, American Government, Women’s Studies, Ethnic and Racial Politics, and International Relations.

Her first book, Somalis in the Neo-South: African Immigration, Politics and Race (2020, Peter Lang), draws upon her research with resettled Somali communities in Clarkston, Georgia, and Nashville, Tennessee. Her current research focuses on the voting patterns and motivations of former African refugees in the Southeastern region of the United States.

About the Series

Georgia’s deep pool of international expertise is sometimes hidden in the ivory towers of academia or overshadowed by looming national figures. Sought-after thought leaders sometimes shine globally while being ignored in their own backyard.

With Authors Amplified, a monthly series of book talks open to subscribers and the public, Global Atlanta showcases authoritative local voices in foreign affairs and international business while highlighting the state’s intellectual contributions to important global conversations.

The Authors Amplified series is presented by the Atlanta Global Studies Center (AGSC), a partnership of Georgia Institute of Technology and Georgia State University, funded in part by a US Department of Education Title VI National Resource Center grant, with a mission to empower the metro region’s global agenda.