Audrey Kerr discusses The Paper Bag Principle November 12, 2008

In The Paper Bag Principle: Class, Colorism, and Rumor in the Case of Black Washington, D.C. Kerr treats controversial issues with great sensitivity and insight as she considers the function of oral history in shaping community dynamics among African American residents. The Paper Bag Principle looks at the divide that has existed between the black elite and the black “folk” and how belief systems influenced the black community’s institutions, organizations and neighborhoods. Kerr records lore related to the “paper bag principle,” investigates the impact this “principle” had on the development of black community consciousness and links this material to the power that results from proximity to whiteness. Audrey Kerr is associate professor of English at Southern Connecticut State University.

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