Dr. Manuel Pastor
Distinguished Professor of Sociology and American Studies & Ethnicity, University of Southern California
Dr. Manuel Pastor is a Distinguished Professor of Sociology and American Studies & Ethnicity at the University of Southern California where he currently directs the Equity Research Institute. Pastor holds an economics Ph.D. from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and is the inaugural holder of the Turpanjian Chair in Civil Society and Social Change at USC. In 2022, Pastor was elected to the American Academy for the Arts and Sciences for his work in Public Affairs and Public Policy.
Pastor’s research has generally focused on issues of the economic, environmental and social conditions facing low-income urban communities – and the social movements seeking to change those realities. 2021 saw the publication of two new books, Solidarity Economics: Why Mutuality and Movements Matter (co-authored with Chris Benner) and South Central Dreams: Finding Home and Building Community in South L.A. (co-authored with Pierrette Hondagneu-Sotelo). His previous 2018 book, State of Resistance: What California's Dizzying Descent and Remarkable Resurgence Means for America's Future was lauded in a New York Times review as “concise, clear and convincing.”
Pastor speaks frequently on issues of demographic change, economic inequality, and community empowerment and has contributed opinion pieces to such outlets including the Los Angeles Times, the San Jose Mercury News, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Sacramento Bee, and The Hill, among many others. Pastor received the Liberty Hill Foundation’s Wally Marks Changemaker of the Year award for social justice research partnerships in 2012, and the Champion for Equity Award from the Advancement Project in 2017 for his work with community-based organizations fighting for social change.