The Travails of "Generation Next"
5/11/2012
Dr. Stacey Floyd-Thomas, Associate Professor of Ethics and Society at Vanderbilt University, intrigued the Groton community on Sunday, May 6 with an evening lecture entitled, "America Eats its Young: The Cause and Effects of Social Sin in the 21st Century."
In the lecture, Dr. Floyd-Thomas argued that 21st century-America has situated the current generation—which she dubbed "Generation Next"—within the crosshairs of three perennial socials ills: racist ideologies, miseducation, and misappropriation of religion. As a result, Generation Next finds itself victim to this bequeathed social reality and challenged to dismantle the troublesome legacy of previous generations. To not only confront, but to transform society, Dr. Floyd-Thomas said that this generation must be "descriptively diagnostic," "dialogically engaged," and "divinely inspired."
Dr. Floyd-Thomas also delivered the Sunday morning chapel sermon, a Monday chapel talk, and spoke with students in a Sacred Texts class. Her visit was sponsored by the 2012 Percy and Eben Pyne Chapel Lecture, established in 2007 by members of the Pyne family to bring distinguished guests to speak to the Groton community.
The esteemed professor earned her B.A. at Vassar College, a M.T.S. from Candler School of Theology at Emory University, and both a Ph.D. and M.A. from Temple University. She serves as executive director of both the Society of Christian Ethics and the Black Religious Scholars Group.