People

Tony Clark, PhD

Tony Clark
Assistant Professor, American Indian Studies
Office: American Indian Studies, Room 2000
Phone: 217-265-0421
Email: dantclar@illinois.edu

Research Interests

Professor Clark's interdisciplinary program of research works at confluences joining contemporary political and cultural theory with American Indian Studies to explore topics ranging from the twentieth-century history of grassroots political thought to considerations of concepts like representation, justice, and freedom in the domains of law, culture, and the political. What unites these uncommon research directions under the rubric of American Indian Studies is their concern for the future of group relations, with Indian tribes at the center. Asking how groups could live together differently – probing possibilities for what new social order, collectively, we might aspire toward – the work is out of necessity situated in the intellectual traditions of critical theory. Clark's research is not first and foremost always descriptive or explanatory – not primarily concerned with which groups actually wield political power with or at the expense of other groups. Rather, proceeding from the idea that antagonisms are both foreseeable in social relations and from the notion that efforts to restrain, oppress, or hierarchically-value differences ought to be approached skeptically, Clark's research program seeks ways to think through how power should be exercised in group relations, under what conditions, and what ideals and institutional arrangements might best secure the often contrasting demands of justice.

Approach to Teaching

Clark's teaching philosophy is rooted in anti-colonial/anti-racist pedagogies, which stress critical analyses of relations of power and draw upon interdisciplinarity and dialogue as key textures for a social justice-oriented education.

Courses Taught

Future Courses