New Haven Independent

The debate was entitled “Black Responsibility: By Whom and for What?” It focused on the state of Black America: the state of its leadership, and the best strategies — self-reliance and individual responsibility? broad-based movements for social change? — to life the underclass out of poverty. It was sparked by controversial remarks by Bill Cosby, but it also hearkened back to an ongoing debate since the early days of Booker T. Washington and William E. B. DuBois. (Click here for background on that.)

Held before an overflow crowd at the Yale Law School Tuesday night, the debate featured Harvard Law Professor Lani Guinier (who earned fame when she was chosen, then abandoned, by then-President Clinton for a top Justice Department post) and NPR commentator and author Juan Williams. Former Baltimore Mayor Kurt Schmoke moderated.

Click on the play arrows to watch some of the highlights Tom Ficklin videotaped at the event. (Click here for an account from the Yale Daily News.)