It is not uncommon for people who live in Iowa to mention that they grew up knowing very few people of color. As we are often reminded around caucus time, Iowa remains the 6th whitest state in the nation. How and why did that happen?

Dr. Charles Connerly will walk us through Iowa’s history—from the Indigenous nations who resided here until the land was taken from them to the establishment of “black codes” that restricted who could move here. He will highlight the ways that Iowa has at times welcomed and also excluded different groups of color. We’ll look at some of the milestone civil rights decisions in Iowa as well as some of the decisions and events that serve more as millstones, weighing us down and holding us back from becoming a place where every Iowan can thrive.

Dr. Charles Connerly

Charles Connerly joined the University of Iowa School of Urban and Regional Planning (recently renamed the School of Planning and Public Affairs) in 2008 as professor and director. His most recent book, Green, Fair, and Prosperous: Paths to a Sustainable Iowa (University of Iowa Press, 2020, September 1) is an assessment (part history, part contemporary analysis) of Iowa's sustainability challenges and responses. Dr. Connerly will be presenting on the research that went into chapter 4: "Why is Iowa So White?"