Robert Perkinson is an American historian and Associate Professor of

American Studies American studies or American civilization is an interdisciplinarity, interdisciplinary field of scholarship that examines American literature, History of the United States, history, Society of the United States, society, and Culture of the Unit ...

at the

University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa The University of Hawaii at Mānoa is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Honolulu, Hawaii, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Hawaiʻi system and houses the main offic ...

. He is the author of '' Texas Tough: The Rise of a Prison Empire'' (2010) which received the 2011

PEN/John Kenneth Galbraith Award The PEN/John Kenneth Galbraith Award for Nonfiction is awarded by PEN America (formerly PEN American Center) biennially "to a distinguished book of general nonfiction possessing notable literary merit and critical perspective and illuminating impo ...

Education and academic career

Perkinson attended Jackson Hole High School in Jackson, Wyoming and graduated with honors in 1987. Between 1985 and 1986, he participated in International Student Exchange at the Colegio Concepcion in Concepcion, Chile. At the

University of Colorado at Boulder The University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder, CU, or Colorado) is a Public university, public research university in Boulder, Colorado, United States. Founded in 1876, five months before Colorado became a Federated state, state, it is the fla ...

, Perkinson received his Bachelor of Arts with honors in History, with a minor in

Ethnic Studies Ethnic studies, in the United States, is the interdisciplinary study of difference—chiefly race, ethnicity, and nation, but also sexuality, gender, and other such markings—and power, as expressed by the state, by civil society, and by indivi ...

in 1994. He attended

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

and earned his Master of Arts and Ph.D. in American Studies, where he also co-founded the Student Legal Action Movement. His dissertation is title
The Birth of the Texas Prison Empire, 1865-1915
He also served as a political columnist for the

Boulder Weekly ''Boulder Weekly'' is an alternative newsweekly that publishes every Thursday in Boulder, Colorado. The paper is a member of the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies (AAN) and is owned and published by Stewart Sallo. Overview After the Loma ...

and editorial assistant fo
Critical Asian Studies
in Boulder, Colorado. Perkinson joined the American Studies department at the

in 2001. He teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in areas such as crime and punishment, Southern and Western history, race and class, and American empire. His book, Texas Tough, addresses the history of American punishment, race, economy, and politics in the United States, with an emphasis on Texas—the most locked down state in the United States. The book was reviewed in many publications including ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', ''

The New Republic ''The New Republic'' (often abbreviated as ''TNR'') is an American magazine focused on domestic politics, news, culture, and the arts from a left-wing perspective. It publishes ten print magazines a year and a daily online platform. ''The New Y ...

'', ''

Columbia Journalism Review The ''Columbia Journalism Review'' (''CJR'') is a biannual magazine for professional journalists that has been published by the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism since 1961. Its original purpose was "to assess the performance ...

'', and ''

Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe,'' also known locally as ''the Globe'', is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Boston Globe'' is the oldest and largest daily new ...

''. In 2014, he was involved with the State of Hawai‘i's and the

’s efforts to host the Obama Presidential Center in

Honolulu Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...

Awards and honors

In 2011, his book ''Texas Tough'' was awarded the

for nonfiction. November 11, 2011 was officially declared "Robert Perkinson day" in the state of Hawai'i by governor

Neil Abercrombie Neil Abercrombie (born June 26, 1938) is an American politician who served as the seventh governor of Hawaii from 2010 to 2014. He is a member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party. Born in Buffalo, New York, Abercrombie is a ...

and lieutenant governor

Brian Schatz Brian Emanuel Schatz ( ; born October 20, 1972) is an American educator and politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from Hawaii, a seat he has held since 2012. A member ...

Recent Publications

"Rick Perry, Criminal Justice Reformer?"
''

''. 17 September 2011
"Nightmares of My Grandfather."
''

Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (''The Huffington Post'' until 2017, itself often abbreviated as ''HPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and covers ...

.'' 26 May 2010
"The 'Jim Crow' Injustice of Crack Cocaine Continues."
''

The Root "The Root" is a song by American recording artist D'Angelo. It is the eighth track on his second studio album, '' Voodoo'', which was released on January 25, 2000, by Virgin Records. "The Root" was recorded and produced by D'Angelo at New York's ...

.'' 13 May 2010
"‘Hell Exploded’: Prisoner Music and Memoir and the Fall of Convict Leasing in Texas."
''

Prison Journal ''The Prison Journal'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal that publishes papers in the field of Criminology. The journal's editor is Rosemary L. Gido ( Indiana University of Pennsylvania). It has been in publication since 1921 and is currently ...

.'' 89, no. 1, March 2009
"The Prison Dilemma: Getting Past the Punitive Turn."
''

The Nation ''The Nation'' is a progressive American monthly magazine that covers political and cultural news, opinion, and analysis. It was founded on July 6, 1865, as a successor to William Lloyd Garrison's '' The Liberator'', an abolitionist newspaper ...

.'' 6 July 2009
"American Race Relations in the Age of Obama."
''Journal of English and American Studies'' (South Korea). 7, December 2008
"Guarded Hope: Lessons from the History of the Prison Boom."
''

Boston Review ''Boston Review'' is an American quarterly political and literary magazine. It publishes political, social, and historical analysis, literary and cultural criticism, book reviews, fiction, and poetry, both online and in print. Its signature form ...

''. July/August 2008 *"Angola and the Agony of Prison Reform." '' Radical Philosophy Review.'' 3, no. 1 (2000) *"'Between the Worst of the Past and the Worst of the Future': Reconsidering Convict Leasing in the South" (review) ''

Radical History Review ''Radical History Review'' is a scholarly journal published by Duke University Press. The journal describes its position as "at the point where rigorous historical scholarship and active political engagement converge".

'' 71 (Spring 1998) *"Adjusting the World Bank."
Critical Asian Studies
' (formerly, ''

Bulletin of Concerned Asian Scholars The Committee of Concerned Asian Scholars (CCAS) was founded in 1968 by a group of graduate students and younger faculty as part of the opposition to the American participation in the Vietnam War. They proposed a "radical critique of the assumptio ...

)''. 27, no. 3 (October–December 1995) *"Introduction to the Korean Nuclear Crisis."
Critical Asian Studies
'' 26, nos. 1–2 (January–June 1994)

External links

Big Think interviewC-SPAN interviewOpen Society Foundations interviewUniversity of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, Department of American Studies bio

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Perkinson, Robert Year of birth missing (living people) Living people 21st-century American historians 21st-century American male writers American male non-fiction writers University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa faculty