Roy Whitaker
Office: AL-670 | Email: [email protected]
Dr. Roy Whitaker is an Associate Professor of Africana Philosophies of Religions and American Religious Diversity in the Department for the Study of Religion at San Diego State University. He obtained a master’s degree at Princeton Theological Seminary and Harvard Diversity School, and a Ph.D. at Claremont Graduate University.
Dr. Whitaker researches emerging and alternative religiosity and spirituality in Black America. He is currently examining (a) the nexus between hip hop and Afrofuturism; and (b) African Americans incorporation of world religions and philosophies in their search for self-realization. He develops theories and methods like intersectionality and decoloniality that center the ontologies and epistemologies of African diaspora cultures.
His articles appear in the Journal of Contemporary Religion, Journal of Ecumenical Studies, Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, Nova Religio: The Journal of Alternative and Emergent Religions, and San Diego State University Press.
Dr. Whitaker enjoys hiking, playing tennis, running half-marathons, and attending musicals, and live concerts like blues player Keb’ Mo’ and jazz singer Gregory Porter.
- Philosophy of religion
- Martin Luther King, Jr.
- Hip hop religion and philosophy
- Atheist, humanist, and secular studies
- Comparative religions and religious pluralism
- “World Religions” (REL-S 101)
- “American Religious Diversity” (REL-S 103)
- “Christianity” (REL-S 325)
- “Hip Hop and Religion” (REL-S 356)
- “Atheism, Humanism, and Secularism” (REL-S 380)
- “Religion and Revolution” (REL-S 390A/390B)
- “African American Religions” (REL-S 581)
“Black Secular Humanism and Its Significance for Contemporary Methodologies in Religious Studies” in Nova Religio, vol. 27, no. 2 (November 2023).
“Diaspora Sound: The Movement of Transnational Hip-Hop (Freestyle Remix)” in Amir Issaa’s This Is What I Live For: An Afro-Italian Hip-Hop Memoir.
“Through space and rhyme: How hip-hop uses Afrofuturism to take listeners on journeys of empowerment” in The Conversation.
“MLK’s vision of social justice included religious pluralism – a house of many faiths” in The Conversation.
“Do many Americans believe in the ‘great replacement’ theory?” which appeared on June 6, 2022 in The Washington Post.