Humanity's Last Stand: Confronting Global Catastrophe, Paperback

Are we as a species headed towards extinction? As our economic system renders our planet increasingly inhospitable to human life, powerful individuals fight over limited resources, and racist reaction to migration strains the social fabric of many countries. How can we retain our humanity in the midst of these life-and-death struggles?

Humanity's Last Stand dares to ask these big questions, exploring the interconnections between climate change, global capitalism, xenophobia, and white supremacy. As it unearths how capitalism was born from plantation slavery and the slaughter of Indigenous people, it also invites us to imagine life after capitalism. The book teaches its readers how to cultivate an anthropological imagination, a mindset that remains attentive to local differences even as it identifies global patterns of inequality and racism.

Surveying the struggles of disenfranchised peoples around the globe from frontline communities affected by climate change, to #BlackLivesMatter activists, to Indigenous water protectors, to migrant communities facing increasing hostility, anthropologist Mark Schuller argues that we must develop radical empathy in order to move beyond simply identifying as "allies" and start acting as "accomplices." Bringing together the insights of anthropologists and activists from many cultures, this timely study shows us how to stand together and work toward a more inclusive vision of humanity before it's too late.

More information and instructor resources (https: //humanityslaststand.org)

About author(s):

MARK SCHULLER is a professor of anthropology and nonprofit and NGO studies at Northern Illinois University. Recipient of the Margaret Mead Award and the Anthropology in Media Award, he has written or co-edited eight books, including Humanitarian Aftershocks in Haiti and Killing with Kindness (both Rutgers University Press).

CYNTHIA McKINNEY is an assistant professor at North South University, Bangladesh. As a member of the Democratic Party, she served six terms in the U.S. House of Representatives. She was the first black woman elected to represent Georgia in the House. She left the Democratic Party and ran in 2008 for president on the ticket of the Green Party of the United States.