Eduardo Bonilla-Silva | Scholars@Duke

Eduardo Bonilla-Silva
James B. Duke Distinguished Professor of Sociology

I am trained in class analysis, political sociology, and sociology of development (globalization). However, my work in the last 20 years has been in the area of race. I have published on racial theory, race and methodology, color-blind racism, the idea that race stratification in the USA is becoming Latin America-like, racial grammar, HWCUs, race and human rights, race and citizenship, whiteness, and the Obama phenomenon among other things. In all my work, I contend that racism is fundamentally about "racial domination," hence, racism is a collective and structural phenomenon in society (see my 1997 ASR on this matter).

Current Appointments & Affiliations

James B. Duke Distinguished Professor of Sociology, Sociology, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 2018
Professor of Sociology, Sociology, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 2006

Contact Information

Duke Box 90088, Durham, NC 27708-0088
Sociology, Durham, NC 27708
eb48@duke.edu (919) 660-5607

Background
Education, Training, & Certifications
- Ph.D., University of Wisconsin - Madison 1993
- M.A., University of Wisconsin - Madison 1987
- B.A., University of Puerto Rico 1984
Previous Appointments & Affiliations
- Chair in the Department of Sociology, Sociology, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 2012 - 2016
- Professor in the Deaprtment of African and African American Studies, African & African American Studies, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 2010 - 2013
- Research Professor of Sociology, Sociology, Trinity College of Arts & Sciences 2005 - 2006
Recognition
In the News
- JUL 7, 2021
  
  After a Career of Challenging Racial Myths, Eduardo Bonilla-Silva Isn't Slowing Down
- JUN 16, 2020
  
  Living While Black: Raw Discussions on Race at Duke and in America
- MAY 8, 2018
  
  Eduardo Bonilla-Silva: The Strange Career of a Race Scholar
- AUG 4, 2016 The Christian Science Monitor
  
  Eduardo Bonilla-Silva comments: Claims of a new racism, and a new remedy
- JUL 19, 2016 Washington Post
  
  A majority of Americans agree race relations are bad and getting worse
- NOV 30, 2015 The Christian Science Monitor
  
  Eduardo Bonilla-Silva comments: Is there more racism in the U.S., or are we just more candid about it?
- NOV 24, 2015 CNN
  
  Eduardo Bonilla-Silva: Is racism on the rise?
- NOV 12, 2015 USA Today
  
  Eduardo Bonilla-Silva comments: University of Missouri unrest a signal for other schools, experts say
- MAR 13, 2015 MTV
  
  The hashtag campaign #NotJustSAE proves that racism is bigger than one fraternity
- DEC 1, 2014 The New York Times
  
  Eduardo Bonilla-Silva comments: When whites just don't get it, part 5
- DEC 1, 2014 CNN
  
  The new threat: 'Racism without racists'
- SEP 23, 2014 The Seattle Times
  
  Duke professor says a new social movement is needed to combat racism
- AUG 23, 2013 Los Angeles Times
  
  Eduardo Bonilla-Silva comments: Whites think race equality is nearer than blacks do, study finds
Awards & Honors
- Cox-Johnson-Frazier Award. American Sociological Association. 2011
- Oliver C. Cox Award, awarded to best book in race and ethnicity by Section of Race and Ethnic Minorities, American Sociological Association.. American Sociological Association. December 2009
Expertise
Subject Headings
- Muser Mentor
Global Scholarship
- Expertise
  - United States of America (Country)
Research
Selected Grants
- STEM Ed PRF: The Alliance for Identity-Inclusive Computing Education-Postdoctoral Research Fellowship (AIICE-PRF) awarded by National Science Foundation 2022 - 2025
- The Black (but not Black) Sheep of the Diaspora: How Dominican Immigrants Understand Racial and Ethnic Identity in the U.S. awarded by Russell Sage Foundation 2022 - 2023
- Doctoral Dissertation Research: Examining Interracial Conduct in an Integrated Neighborhood awarded by National Science Foundation 2011 - 2012
Publications & Artistic Works
Selected Publications
- Books
  - Bonilla-Silva, Eduardo. Racism without Racists Color-Blind Racism and the Persistence of Racial Inequality in America. Rowman & Littlefield, 2017.
  - Bonilla-Silva, Eduardo. Racism without Racists (4th Edition). Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2013.
  - Doane, Ashley W., and Eduardo Bonilla-Silva. White Out: The Continuing Significance of Racism. New York: Routledge, 2013.
  - Jung, Moon Kie, Joao Vargas, and E. Bonilla-Silva. The State of White Supremacy: Racims, Governance, and the USA. Stanford University Press, 2011.
  - Zuberi, Tukufu, and Eduardo Bonilla-Silva. White Logic, White Methods: Race, Epistemology, and the Social Sciences. Rowman and Littlefield, 2008.
  - Darity, W., and E. Bonilla-Silva, eds. International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences. Macmillan, 2007.
  - Bonilla-Silva, Eduardo. White Supremacy and Racism in the Post-civil Rights Era. Lynne Rienner Publishers, 2001.
- Academic Articles
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “Color-Blind Racism in Pandemic Times.” Sociology of Race and Ethnicity 8, no. 3 (July 1, 2022): 343–54. https://doi.org/10.1177/2332649220941024.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E., and C. E. Peoples. “Historically White Colleges and Universities: The Unbearable Whiteness of (Most) Colleges and Universities in America.” American Behavioral Scientist, January 1, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1177/00027642211066047.
    Full Text Open Access Copy
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “What Makes Systemic Racism Systemic?” Sociological Inquiry 91, no. 3 (August 1, 2021): 513–33. https://doi.org/10.1111/soin.12420.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “There is no racism here?: Preliminary notes about racial issues in the Americas.” Revista De Humanidades, no. 42 (December 1, 2020): 419–43.
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “Toward a New Political Praxis for Trumpamerica: New Directions in Critical Race Theory.” American Behavioral Scientist 63, no. 13 (November 1, 2019): 1776–88. https://doi.org/10.1177/0002764219842614.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. ““Racists,” “Class Anxieties,” Hegemonic Racism, and Democracy in Trump’s America.” Social Currents 6, no. 1 (February 1, 2019): 14–31. https://doi.org/10.1177/2329496518804558.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “Feeling Race: Theorizing the Racial Economy of Emotions.” American Sociological Review 84, no. 1 (February 1, 2019): 1–25. https://doi.org/10.1177/0003122418816958.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “What We Were, What We Are, and What We Should Be: The Racial Problem of American Sociology.” Social Problems 64, no. 2 (May 1, 2017): 179–87. https://doi.org/10.1093/socpro/spx006.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “Reply to Professor Fenelon and Adding Emotion to My Materialist RSS Theory.” Sociology of Race and Ethnicity 2, no. 2 (April 1, 2016): 243–47. https://doi.org/10.1177/2332649216628300.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “The Structure of Racism in Color-Blind, “Post-Racial” America.” American Behavioral Scientist 59, no. 11 (October 4, 2015): 1358–76. https://doi.org/10.1177/0002764215586826.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “More than Prejudice: Restatement, Reflections, and New Directions in Critical Race Theory.” Sociology of Race and Ethnicity 1, no. 1 (January 1, 2015): 73–87. https://doi.org/10.1177/2332649214557042.
    Full Text
  - Golash-Boza, T., and E. Bonilla-Silva. “Rethinking race, racism, identity and ideology in Latin America.” Ethnic and Racial Studies 36, no. 10 (October 1, 2013): 1485–89. https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870.2013.808357.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “The last shall be first: Best books in the race field since 2000.” Contemporary Sociology 42, no. 1 (January 1, 2013): 31–40. https://doi.org/10.1177/0094306112468718a.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “The invisible weight of whiteness: the racial grammar of everyday life in contemporary America.” Ethnic and Racial Studies 35, no. 2 (February 1, 2012): 173–94. https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870.2011.613997.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “Examining, Debating, and Ranting about the Obama Phenomenon: Introduction to Special Section on Obama.” Political Power and Social Theory 22 (2012): 3–16.
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “The Invisisble Weight of Whiteness: The Racial Grammar of Everyday Life in America.” Ethnic and Racial Studies 34, no. 12 (2012).
  - Bonilla-Silva, E., and L. Seamster. “The Sweet Enchantment of Color Blindness in Black Face: Explaining the “Miracle,” Debating the Politics, and Suggesting a Way for Hope to be “For Real” in America.” Political Power and Social Theory 22 (2012): 105–39.
  - Seamster, L., and E. Bonilla-Silva. “Introduction: Examining, debating, and ranting about the Obama phenomenon.” Political Power and Social Theory 22 (December 1, 2011): 3–15. https://doi.org/10.1108/S0198-8719(2011)0000022007.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E., and D. Dietrich. “The new racism: The racial regime of post-civil rights America.” Studies in Critical Social Sciences 32 (January 1, 2011): 41–67. https://doi.org/10.1163/ej.9789004203655.i-461.13.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “Review of Racial Justice in the Age of Obama in Ethnic and Racial Studies by Roy L. Brooks.” Ethnic and Racial Studies 33 (October 2010): 1169–70.
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “The hangover is still not over: Obamerica a Year Later.” Humanity and Society 34, no. 3 (July 2010): 280–84.
  - Burton, L. M., E. Bonilla-Silva, V. Ray, R. Buckelew, and E. Hordge Freeman. “Critical race theories, colorism, and the decade's research on families of color.” Journal of Marriage and Family 72, no. 3 (June 1, 2010): 440–59. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3737.2010.00712.x.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “The 2008 Elections and the Future of Anti-racism in 21st Century Amerika Or How We Got Drunk with Obama’s Hope Liquor and Failed to See Reality.” Humanity and Society 34, no. 3 (2010): 222–32.
  - Bonilla-Silva, E., and S. Mayorga. “Si Me Permiten Hablar: Limitations of the human rights tradition to address racial inequality.” Societies Without Borders 4, no. 3 (October 1, 2009): 366–82. https://doi.org/10.1163/187188609X12492771031654.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “Are the Americas 'sick with racism' or is it a problem at the poles? A reply to Christina A. Sue.” Ethnic and Racial Studies 32, no. 6 (July 1, 2009): 1071–82. https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870902883536.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “When Whites LOVE a Black Leader: Race Matters in Obamerica.” Journal of African American Studies, 2009.
  - Burton, Linda, Eduardo Bonilla-Silva, Victor Ray, Rose Buckelow, and Elizabeth Freeman. “The Color of race and Ethnicity in American Families: A Synthesis and Critique (Accepted).” Journal of Marriage and the Family, 2009.
  - Bonilla-Silva, E., and D. R. Dietrich. “The latin americanization of racial stratification in the U.S.,” December 1, 2008, 151–70. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-79098-5_9.
    Full Text
  - Berry, B., and E. Bonilla-Silva. “'They should hire the one with the best score': White sensitivity to qualification differences in affirmative action hiring decisions.” Ethnic and Racial Studies 31, no. 2 (January 1, 2008): 215–42. https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870701337619.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “Where is the love? A Rejoinder on the Latin Americanization Thesis.” Race and Society 5 (2008): 103–14.
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “Review of Black and Blue, African Americans, the Labor Movement, and the Decline of the Democratic Party by Paul Frymer.” Contemporary Sociology 38, no. 1 (2008): 54–55.
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “Prejudice in Politics: Group Position, Public Opinion, and the Wisconsin Treaty Rights Dispute By Lawrence D. Bobo and Mia Tuan Harvard University Press, 2006. $40 (cloth).” Social Forces 86, no. 1 (September 1, 2007): 364–66. https://doi.org/10.1353/sof.2007.0090.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E., and D. G. Embrick. “"Every place has a Ghetto⋯": The significance of whites' social and residential segregation.” Symbolic Interaction 30, no. 3 (June 1, 2007): 323–45. https://doi.org/10.1525/si.2007.30.3.323.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E., C. Goar, and D. G. Embrick. “When whites flock together: The social psychology of white habitus.” Critical Sociology 32, no. 2–3 (June 1, 2006): 229–53. https://doi.org/10.1163/156916306777835268.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, Eduardo, Carla Goar, and David G. Embrick. “When Whites Flock Together: White Habitus and the Social Psychology of Whites’ Social and Residential Segregation from Blacks.” Critical Sociology 32, no. 2–3 (2005): 229–54.
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “Towards a New Radical Agenda: A Critique of Mainstreamed Sociological Radicalism.” Edited by R. Levine. Contemporary Sociology 35, no. 2 (2005): 111–14.
  - Bonilla-Silva, E., A. Lewis, and D. G. Embrick. “"I did not get that job because of a black man. . .": The story lines and testimonies of color-blind racism.” Sociological Forum 19, no. 4 (December 1, 2004): 555–81. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11206-004-0696-3.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “From bi-racial to tri-racial: Towards a new system of racial stratification in the USA.” Ethnic and Racial Studies 27, no. 6 (November 1, 2004): 931–50. https://doi.org/10.1080/0141987042000268530.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “Racial attitudes or racial ideology? An alternative paradigm for examining actors' racial views.” Journal of Political Ideologies 8, no. 1 (February 1, 2003): 63–82. https://doi.org/10.1080/13569310306082.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “Where is the love? A rejoinder by Bonilla-Silva on the Latin Americanization thesis.” Race and Society 5, no. 1 (December 1, 2002): 103–14. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.racsoc.2003.12.007.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “We are all Americans!: The Latin Americanization of racial stratification in the USA.” Race and Society 5, no. 1 (December 1, 2002): 3–16. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.racsoc.2003.12.008.
    Full Text
  - Aguirre, B. E., and E. Bonilla Silva. “Does race matter among Cuban immigrants? An analysis of the racial characteristics of recent Cuban immigrants.” Journal of Latin American Studies 34, no. 2 (June 19, 2002): 311–24. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0022216X02006430.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “The linguistics of color blind racism: How to talk nasty about blacks without sounding ãƒÆ’ã‚Â¢ãƒÂ¢ã¢â€šÂ¬ã‚Â¡ãƒâ€¦ã¢â‚¬Å“racistãƒÆ’ã‚Â¢ãƒÂ¢ã¢â€šÂ¬ã‚Â¡ãƒâ€šã‚Â.” Critical Sociology 28, no. 2 (January 1, 2002): 41–64. https://doi.org/10.1177/08969205020280010501.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E., and D. G. Embrick. “Are Blacks color blind too? An interview-based analysis of Black Detroiters' racial views.” Race and Society 4, no. 1 (December 1, 2001): 47–67. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1090-9524(02)00034-7.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E., and G. Baiocchi. “Anything but racism: How sociologists limit the significance of racism.” Race and Society 4, no. 2 (January 1, 2001): 117–31. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1090-9524(03)00004-4.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “"This is a white country": The racial ideology of the western nations of the world-system.” Sociological Inquiry 70, no. 2 (January 1, 2000): 188–214. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-682X.2000.tb00905.x.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E., and T. A. Forman. “"I am not a racist but . . .": Mapping White college students' racial ideology in the USA.” Discourse and Society 11, no. 1 (January 1, 2000): 50–85. https://doi.org/10.1177/0957926500011001003.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “Rethinking racism: Toward a structural interpretation.” American Sociological Review 62, no. 3 (January 1, 1997): 465–80. https://doi.org/10.2307/2657316.
    Full Text
- Book Sections
  - Bonilla-Silva, E., and L. Yamashita. “The Problem of Racism in “Post-Racial” America.” In Systemic Racism in America: Sociological Theory, Education Inequality, and Social Change, 23–35, 2022. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003225324-4.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “From bi-racial to tri-racial.” In Theories of Race and Racism: A Reader: Second Edition, 652–68, 2020.
  - Hordge-Freeman, E., S. Mayorga, and E. Bonilla-Silva. “xposing Whiteness Because We Are Free: Emancipation Methodological Practice in Identifying and Challenging Racial Practices in Sociology Departments.” In Rethinking Race and Ethnicity in Research Methods, 95–122, 2016.
  - Bonilla-Silva, E., and T. Brookshire Childers. “The pitfalls and possibilities of prophetic race theory: Cultivating leadership: Race matters in “postracial” Obamerica and how to climb out of the Rabbit Hole.” In Repositioning Race: Prophetic Research in a Postracial Obama Age, 22–48, 2014.
  - Bonilla-Silva, E., and V. E. Ray. “Getting over the obama hope hangover: The new racism in ‘post-racial’ America.” In Theories of Race and Ethnicity: Contemporary Debates and Perspectives, 57–73, 2014. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781139015431.007.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. ““New racism,” Color-Blind racism, and the future of whiteness in America.” In White Out: The Continuing Significance of Racism, 271–84, 2013. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203412107.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, E., and A. Ashe. “The End of Racism? Colorblind-Racism and Popular Media in Post-Civil Rights America.” In Colorblind Screen, edited by S. Nilsen and S. E. Turner, 57–82. NYU Press, 2013.
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “Are the Americas ‘Sick with Racism’ or is it a Problem at the Poles? A Reply to Christina A. Sue.” In Latino Identity in Contemporary America, edited by martin Bulmer and John Solomos. Rouledge, 2012.
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “Race Matters In “Post-Racial” Obamerica and How to Climb Out Of the Rabbit Hole”.” In Edited by Sandra Barnes, Past President of ABS, 2011.
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “Beyond Obama’s Historical Symbolism: The Heavy Weight of Being Black/Brown in a Racist Society: A Conversation with Eduardo Bonilla-Silva.” In Rethinking Race, Class, Language, and Gender: A Dialogue with Noam Chomsky and Other Leading Scholars, edited by Pierre Orelus, 147–60. Lanham, CO: Rowman and Littlefield, 2011.
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “Exposing Whiteness Because We Are Free: Emancipation Methodological Practice in Identifying and Challenging Racial Practices in Sociology Departments.” In Rethinking Race and Ethnicity in Research Methods, edited by John Stanfield, 95–122. Left Coast Press, 2011.
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “¿Qué es el racismo?” In Debates Sobre Ciudadanía y Políticas Raciales En Las Américas Negras, edited by Claudia Mosquera. Colección CES, serie Idcarán del Centro de Estudios Sociales de la Facultad de Ciencias Humanas, 2011.
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “La verdadera historia de la caza: hacia una sociología con consciencia de raza de la estratificación racial.” In Debates Sobre Ciudadanía y Políticas Raciales En Las Américas Negras., edited by Claudia Mosquera. Colección CES, serie Idcarán del Centro de Estudios Sociales de la Facultad de Ciencias Humanas, 2011.
  - Bonilla-Silva, E., and V. Ray. “It's real! Racism, color blindness, Obama, and the urgent need for social movement politics.” In Studies in Critical Social Sciences, 17:47–58, 2010.
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “The Latin Americanization of US Race Relations: A New Pigmentocracy.” In Shades of Difference, edited by Evelyn Nakano Glenn, 40–60. Stanford University Press, 2009.
  - Bonilla-Silva, E., and D. Dietrich. “New Racism.” In Covert Racism, edited by R. Coates, 56–76. New York: Oxford University Press, 2008.
  - Bonilla-Silva, Mica, and David G. Embrick. “Fight the Power! Racism, Revolution, and the Role of Education in the Anti-Racism Movement.” In Everyday Antiracism: Concrete Ways to Successfully Navigate the Relevance of Race in School, edited by Mica Pollack, 334–36. New Press (From New School), 2008.
  - Bonilla-Silva, E., and G. Baiocchi. “Anything but Racism: How Sociologists Limit the Significance of Racism.” In Handbooks of Sociology and Social Research, 79–100, 2007. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-70845-4_6.
    Full Text
  - Bonilla-Silva, Eduardo. “Look, A Negro! Reflections on the Human Rights Approach to Racial Justice.” In Race, Human Rights & Inequality, edited by Angela Hattery, Earl Smith, and David G. Embrick. Rowman and Littlefield, 2007.
  - Bonilla-Silva, E. “Introduction—‘Racism’ and 'New Racism’—The Contours of Racial Dynamics in Contemporary America.” In Critical Pedagogy and Race, edited by Z. Leonardo, 1–36. London: Blackwell, 2005.
  - Bonilla-Silva, Marc, and David G. Embrick. “Black, Honorary White, White: The Future of Race in the United States?” In Negotiating the Color Line: Doing Race in the Color-Blind Era and Implications for Racial Justice, edited by David Brunsma, 33–49. Lynn Rienner, 2005.
  - Bonilla-Silva, Mica, and David G. Embrick. “The (White) Color of Color Blindness in 21st Century Amerika.” In Race, Ethnicity, and Education (Volume 4: Colorblind Racism: Racism/Anti-Racist Action), edited by E Wayne Ross and Valerie Ooka Pang, 1–26. New York: Praeger, 2005.
  - Bonilla-Silva, Z., and David G. Embrick. “The Race Problem in the Critical Pedagogy Community.” In Re-Inventing Critical Pedagogy: Widening the Circle of Anti-Oppression Education, edited by Cesar Rossatto, Ricky L. Allen, and Marc Pruyn, 21–35. Rowman and Littlefield, 2005.
  - Bonilla-Silva, E., and K. S. Glover. “"We are all americans": The Latin Americanization of race relations in the United States.” edited by M. Krysan and A. E. Lewis, 149–83. RUSSELL SAGE FOUNDATION, 2004.
    Link to Item
Teaching & Mentoring
Recent Courses
Scholarly, Clinical, & Service Activities
Presentations & Appearances
Service to the Profession
- Reviewer for Many Journals. December 10, 2009 2009

Some information on this profile has been compiled automatically from Duke databases and external sources. (Our About page explains how this works.) If you see a problem with the information, please write to Scholars@Duke and let us know. We will reply promptly.

Education, Training, & Certifications

Previous Appointments & Affiliations

In the News

Awards & Honors

Subject Headings

Global Scholarship

Expertise

Selected Grants

Selected Publications

Books

Academic Articles

Book Sections

Recent Courses

Presentations & Appearances

Service to the Profession