Johnson, Walton R.

Walton R. Johnson was born in 1938. He received his PhD in social psychology from the University of London in 1971. His areas of concentration include African political economy, South African race relations and U.S. race relations. Walton R. Johnson was a Professor of Social Anthropology in the Department of Africana Studies at Rutgers University. Johnson also served as an Admission Counselor as a former Dean of Livingston College. Johnson was teaching on the Livingston Campus during the spring of 1995 when reaction to Rutgers President Francis L. Lawrence's racially insensitive statement surfaced. Johnson was instrumental in the formation of the Coalition of Black and Latino Faculty and Staff, which was a direct response to the situation. He also gathered and saved newspaper articles that were published almost daily on the state of affairs at Rutgers that serves as an important part of the collection chronicling the events of 1995.

Walton R. Johnson was born in 1938. He trained in social anthropology. He received his PhD from the University of London in 1971. His areas of concentration include African political economy, South African race relations and U. S. race relations. Extensive field work in Africa resulted in the creation of some of his major works: Worship and Freedom: A Black American Church in Zambia (1977) and Dismantling Apartheid: A South African Town in Transition (1994). Johnson is also the editor of African Christianity: Patterns of Religious Continuity (1979) and Inside the Mixed Marriage: Accounts of Changing Attitudes, Patterns, and Perceptions of Cross-Cultural and Interracial Marriages (1994).

In addition to his teaching, Johnson as served as an Admission Counselor and as a former Dean of Livingston College. Johnson was teaching on the Livingston Campus during the spring of 1995 when reaction to Rutgers President Francis L. Lawrence's racially insensitive statement surfaced (see Historical Background below). He was instrumental in the formation of the Coalition of Black and Latino Faculty and Staff, which was a direct response to the situation. He also gathered and saved newspaper articles that were published almost daily on the state of affairs at Rutgers that serves as an important part of the collection chronicling the events of 1995.

The Statement:

". . . When you're looking at assessment, you got to look at the input. Do we assess in the same way at Rutgers that we would in an open admissions county college? Do we assess—let's look at the SATs. The average SAT for African-Americans is 750. Do we set standards in the future so that we don't admit anybody with the national test? Or do we deal with a disadvantaged population that doesn't have that genetic hereditary background to have a higher average."

-Francis L. Lawrence to Camden Faculty, November 11, 1994

Francis L. Lawrence became the eighteenth president of Rutgers, in the fall of 1990. His administration was not a popular one. Students and faculty had expressed dissatisfaction on various issues such as tuition and administrative policy during his term in office. However, it was his utterance of three words, "genetic hereditary background," which ignited a firestorm of protest and criticism.

President Lawrence addressed a Camden faculty meeting on November 11, 1994. During his speech, he made comments that included the phrase, "genetic hereditary background," referring to low African-American SAT scores. It was not until January 31, 1995 when Robert Braun, a Rutgers College graduate and a columnist for the Star-Ledger, made the remarks public that the controversy erupted. Reaction was swift and widespread. There were apologies, calls for his resignation, and statements of support for the beleaguered president. Rallies and protests were held both on and off campus. Demonstrations disrupted the Board of Governors meeting, caused the suspension of a February 7th men's basketball game, and blocked traffic on Route 18 leading to the arrest and trial of Rutgers University students. A hunger strike was held. Tensions on campus were high and the situation built up racial divides among the student population. There was an increase in reported bias incidents. The media spotlight was intense and race relations at Rutgers were closely examined in the press. A bomb exploded in the basement of the Mabel Douglass Library on the Douglass College campus of Rutgers and two more explosive devices were found in Rutgers libraries, as numerous bomb threats were received throughout the semester. The calm of the commencement exercises in May 1995 brought the turbulent semester to an end. However, it was not the end of trouble for President Lawrence. A decline in African-American enrollment at Rutgers and fewer black students accepting aid or scholarships to attend Rutgers were attributed to Lawrence's remarks. A diversity program proposed to heal wounds was initiated with the dissemination of a report titled the Multicultural Blueprint. Faculty dissatisfaction with Lawrence on academic issues and the university budget continued. There was a call by the NAACP for Lawrence's resignation in August 1995. The Board of Governors reaffirmed support for Lawrence in September 1995. Lawrence continued as president of Rutgers until his resignation in 2002, after which he stayed at Rutgers in the capacity of University Professor.

President Lawrence's controversial remarks which so inflamed the Rutgers community and beyond were perceived by many as reflecting theories proposed in the The Bell Curve: Intelligence and Class Structure in American Life by R. J. Herrnstein and C. Murray (1994). Their controversial conjectures linking genetics and performance prompted much discussion, articles and research.