in the early 1970's his hometown was still partially segregated by railroad tracks. Because most of the blacks were forced to live in a certain area of the town, his community was labeled "Blacksville" on the town's map.
___ As an African-American boy of 12 years old, he did a seventh grade social science project on "gerrymandering" in his town. He became infuriated at the constructed division between the black and white communities. He also became disgruntled with the lack of dialogue between these communities. At a very early age, he realized that he would like to dedicate his life to issues that help people of different races bridge gaps of mistrust.
___ He did his doctoral dissertation research on intergroup relations and ethnic conflict at the United Nations Research Institute for Social Development in Geneva, Switzerland. In 1993, as a second year doctoral student and a "Presidential Fellow" at USC, he created the acclaimed Colorful Flags program. The tragic death of Latasha Harlins in South Central Los Angeles and his dissatisfaction with race relations prompted him to create this multiethnic human relations module. Today, this program has serviced approximately 130,000 K-12 students in 17 school districts in California. This program has also been implemented in police departments, hospitals, and various other organizations. In 1996, he wrote the play “Bus Stop Soliloquy,” which is a candid depiction of ethnic relations in the U.S. This play was produced as the short film, Life Ain't No Crystal Stair, by Emmy Award winner, Saul Landau.
___Dr. Reese is currently a professor in the political science department at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. He is the author of American Bravado (2007), Prison Race (2006), Leadership in the LAPD: Walking the Tightrope (2005), and American Paradox: Young Black Men (2004). Reese has traveled to 51 countries and has given lectures in many of them.