SHAONTA' E. ALLEN
Using social research to facilitate social change!
Research & Publications
RESEARCH
My research draws upon sociological theories and research methods to examine Black socio-political life. I am particularly interested in the various ways Black Americans perceive and respond to social inequality and how Black resistance varies across social and institutional spaces. My research specifically explores Black resistive practices within Religion, Higher Education, and Pop-Culture & Sport to theorize contemporary strategies for navigating racial and gendered hierarchies. My peer-reviewed articles and book chapters are listed below.
- Black Sociology & Black Politics
- Allen, Shaonta’, ““I Can’t Tell You What Freedom is ‘Cause I’ve Never Seen It:” Addressing the Omission of Liberation Narratives in Sociology.” (Accepted at Social Problems)
- Allen, Shaonta’ E., Simone Durham, and Angela Jones. Black Lives Matter: A Reference Handbook (Forthcoming at Bloomsbury).
- Allen, Shaonta’. “The Black Feminist Roots of Scholar-Activism: Lessons from Ida B. Wells-Barnett” in Black Feminist Sociology: Perspectives and Praxis, edited by Zakiya Luna and Whitney Pirtle. (https://blackfeministsociology.com/)
- Allen, Shaonta’, Ifeyinwa Davis, Maretta McDonald, and Candice Robinson. 2020. “New Directions in the Sociology of Black Millennials.” Sociological Perspectives.
- Religion
- Allen, Shaonta’. 2023. “Is the Black Church Dead? Religious Resilience and the Contemporary Functions of Black Christianity.” Religions.
- Allen, Shaonta’ and Saugher Nojan. 2020. “Introduction to the Virtual Special Issue on Religion.” Social Problems.
- Allen, Shaonta’. 2019. “Doing Black Christianity: Reframing Black Church Scholarship.” Sociology Compass.
- Pop-Culture & Sport
- Allen, Shaonta’. “From “We Shall Overcome” to “We Gon Be Alright:” Assessing Black Liberation Movements Through Music” in Theology & Protest Music, edited by Jonathan Harwell and Heidi Altman.
- Allen, Shaonta’. “From Braids & Beads to Catsuits & Tutus: Serena Williams’s Intersectional Resistance Through Fashion in Sport” in Contemporary Perspectives on Athlete Activism, edited by Rory Magrath.
- Allen, Shaonta’ and Brittney Miles. 2020. “Unapologetic Blackness in Action” Embodied Resistance and Social Movement Scenes in Black Celebrity Activism.” Humanity & Society.
Book Projects
My forthcoming co-authored book project titled, Black Lives Matter: A Reference Handbook, offers a comprehensive analysis of the first 10 years of the BLM movement. Readers gain an understanding of how this movement extends the long and broad quest for Black liberation as well as learn about key moments, figures, controversies, and outcomes of the movement to date.
My current book project is titled, “Black, Woke, & Christian: Black Millennials’ Politics of Refusal During Black Lives Matter.” This study draws on qualitative and quantitative data to assess how the Black Christian tradition is impacting collective identity formation, oppositional consciousness development, and political mobilization for Black Christian Millennials amid the current and on-going Black Lives Matter movement. For more details, my book proposal is available upon request.
Community-Based Research Projects
I’ve contributed to a few community-based research projects focused on residents’ perceptions of inequality. Through The Cincinnati Project, I was paired with a local community organization, The Black United Front, to help conduct a comprehensive study which surveyed thousands of Cincinnati residents about their perceptions of community-police relations.
I was also selected as one of the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund Research Fellows to create and implement a study that examines how residents of historically Black neighborhoods perceive urban change and risk of displacement. A full-length report of my findings on Louisville, KY, along with the other Research Fellows’ case-studies, is published here.
I am also a member of the Racial Justice Unity Center collaboration team, a collective of pastors, community leaders, and researchers working together to combat racial inequality. I believe that if we, as scholars, are sincere in our desire to establish equitable conditions on our campuses and in society, we must actively work to bridge the divide between “academia” and the “public” when it comes to our research and other scholarly contributions.
Book & Media Reviews
- FORTHCOMING: Allen, Shaonta’ E. “Book Review: America, Goddam: Violence, Black Women, and the Struggle for Justice.” Contemporary Sociology.
- Allen, Shaonta’ E. 2023. “Book Review: Ida B. the Queen: The Extraordinary Life and Legacy of Ida B. Wells.” Humanity & Society.
- Allen, Shaonta’ E. and Maretta D. McDonald. 2023. “Multimedia Review: Women of the Movement, Season 1.” Humanity & Society.
- Allen, Shaonta’ E. and Maretta D. McDonald. 2023. “Introduction: The New Book & Media Review Sections.” Humanity & Society.
- Allen, Shaonta’. 2021. “Book Review: Kincraft: The Making of Black Evangelical Sociality” in Sociology of Religion.
- Allen, Shaonta’. 2020. “Book Review: Intersectionality as Critical Social Theory” in European Journal of Social Theory.
- Allen, Shaonta’. 2019. “Book Review: God and the Illegal Alien: United States Immigration Law and a Theology of Politics” in Ethnic and Racial Studies.
- Allen, Shaonta’. 2019. “Book Review: Race in Society: The Enduring American Dilemma” in Teaching Sociology.
Academic Blogs & Newsletters
- 2021. Allen, Shaonta’ and Letisha E. C. Brown. “The Audacity of the Black Athlete: How Naomi Osaka’s French Open Protest Exposed Anti-Blackness, Racial Capitalism & Misogynoir in Professional Sports.” The Society Pages: Engaging Sports Blog.
- 2018. “Colin Kaepernick, Black Resistance & Institutionalized Racism in the NFL.” The Official Blog of the North Central Sociological Association.
- 2017. “Partnering with the Black United Front on the Cincinnati Collaborative Agreement.” The Official Blog of the Cincinnati Project: Working for Equity in Cincinnati Through Research.
- 2016. “Reconciling Black Faith with Black Freedom.” The Griot: The Newsletter for the Association of Black Sociologists.
SHAONTA' E. ALLEN 