Luther Adams is a native of Kentucky, and Associate Professor at the University of Washington Tacoma. He earned a B.A. in history at the University of Louisville (1994), and a Ph.D. in history at the University of Pennsylvania (2002). Since 2002, he has taught courses on United States history and African American history and culture, with an emphasis on the intersection of race and class. His past research has focused on African American migration, Civil Rights and the transformation of the Post-WWII urban landscape. His work has been published in a variety of forums including the Register of the Kentucky Historical Society, Ohio Valley History Journal, the Journal of Social History and the Journal of Urban History. His book Way Up North in Louisville: African American Migration in Louisville, Kentucky, 1930-1970 was published by the University of North Carolina Press. His current research project, "Black and Blue: Toward a History of Police Brutality," historicizes the origins and impact of police brutality on African American communities. This study focuses on police violence as a means to pose larger questions about citizenship and national belonging, while examining the shifting cultural, political and economic contexts in which African Americans defined, discussed and ultimately challenged police misconduct.
