​hephzibah v. strmic-pawl, PhD, EMBA
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​Social change advocate and passionate about working with you to improve our world.

Writer
Educator and Facilitator
Consulting & Public Speaking

As a writer, educator, consultant, and facilitator, I have been invested for over a decade in initiatives that address social inequality. Having written four books, multiple articles, organizational web content, and publications in many other outlets, I am adept at reaching diverse audiences. I have served as a keynote speaker and facilitator on a range of topics such as anti-racism, sexual assault and harassment, LGBTQ+ rights, and social justice collaboration. 

I'm available for writing, consulting, workshops, and speaking engagements. This website provides an overview of my work; please contact me with further questions. 

TEDx Speaker: Understanding Our Roots: White Supremacy is More Than the KKK

The year 2000 was the first time the US Census permitted respondents to choose more than one race. Although the US has long recognized that a “mixed-race” population exists, the contemporary “multiracial population” presents different questions and implications for today’s diverse society.
This book is the first overview to bring a systematic critical race lens to the scholarship on mixedness. Avoiding the common pitfall of conflating “mixed” with “multiracial,” the book reveals how identity forms and fluctuates such that people with mixed heritage may identify as mixed, monoracial, and/or multiracial throughout their lives. It analyzes the dynamic and various manifestations of mixedness, including at the global level, to reveal its complex impact on both the structural and individual levels. Multiracial critically examines topics such as family dynamics and racial socialization, multiraciality in media and popular culture, and intersections of race, gender, class, and sexual orientation. 
Integrating diverse theories, qualitative research, and national-level data, this accessible and engaging book is essential for students of race and those looking to understand the new field of multiraciality.
“Multiracial tackles the momentous field of mixedness studies in a highly engaging and accessible manner. strmic-pawl provides critical reflection on what studies have shaped our understandings of how mixed-race is defined, whose experiences are highlighted, and the role of social institutions such as family and media. It is an important read for race scholars, as well as anyone interested in issues of mixedness and multiracialism.”
Erica Chito Childs, Hunter College, CUNY Graduate Center

“strmic-pawl not only offers a comprehensive overview of the growing literature on multiracial people, she delivers an indisputable critique of the purported celebration of multiracialism by elucidating how anti-Blackness and White dominance prevail in insidious ways. She engages with important questions about what factors impact racial identity, how institutions shape understandings of multiracial people, and what these patterns indicate about the future of multiracial people. An outstanding contribution to the literature.”
Chandra D. L. Waring, University of Massachusetts–Lowell

“[A] thorough and up-to-date overview of multiraciality and mixed-race studies […T]hrough careful examination of several decades’ worth of scholarship, strmic-pawl emphasizes the significance of multiraciality in the understanding of race as a social construction and how mixedness provides insight into the fluidity of racial identity, race, and racism.”
Ethnic and Racial Studies
hephzibah strmic-pawl is the founder of the initiative to create a federal holiday in honor of the Civil Rights Era icon, Ella Baker.  Since 2011, Strmic-Pawl has coordinated events for Ella Baker Day that have honored the contributions and highlighted the work of contemporary women of color activists.  Examples of previous speakers include Rose Clemente,  Bree Newsome, Kenrya Rankin, Ruby Sales, and Akiba Solomon.  Proclamations of support have been issued by George Latimer of the Office of the Westchester County Executive (NY), Senator Adriano Espaillat, and Speaker of the New York City Council Adrienne Adams.
hephzibah strmic-pawl is a proud sponsor of the SAGE Keith Roberts Teaching Innovations Award—enabling graduate students and early career faculty to attend the annual ASA pre-conference teaching and learning workshop.
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Understanding Racism systematically examines the theories and theorists that have contributed the most to our contemporary understanding of racism in its various forms—making it easier for students to understand the multiple dynamics of how racism operates. In every chapter, activist and award-winning sociologist hephzibah strmic-pawl describes the emergence of a theory and the problem it addresses; discusses the scholars who are most closely associated with the theory; and explores the strengths and limitations of the theory. From foundational theories such as Prejudice and White Privilege to contemporary theories such as Color-Blind Racism, Understanding Racism is the first text to present thirteen approaches for explaining racism in one book. The book's systematic organization and pedagogical features will help students think theoretically about race and racism at different levels of analysis, as well as reflect and discuss how to challenge racism.