Walter Williams

Walter E. Williams’ impressive education includes a BA in economics from California State University; MA and PhD degrees in economics from UCLA; a Doctor of Humane Letters from Virginia Union University and Grove City College; a Doctor of Laws from Washington and Jefferson College; and an Honorary Doctor of Social Sciences from the Universidad Francisco Marroquin in Guatemala, where he is also an honorary professor.

Williams has served on the faculty of George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, as John M. Olin Distinguished Professor of Economics, since 1980 and from 1995 to 2001, he served as department chairman. He has also served on the faculties of Los Angeles City College, California State University Los Angeles, Temple University in Philadelphia, and Grove City College in PA.

Williams is the author of over 150 publications which have appeared in scholarly journals such as Economic Inquiry, American Economic Review, Georgia Law Review, Journal of Labor Economics, Social Science Ouarterly, and the Cornell Journal of Law and Public Policy, as well as popular publications such as Newsweek, Ideas on Liberty, National Review, Reader's Digest, Cato Journal, and Policy Review. He has authored six books: America: A Minority Viewpoint, The State Against Blacks, which was later made into the PBS documentary Good Intentions; All It Takes Is Gut; South Africa's War Against Capitalism, which was later revised for South African publication; Do the Right Thing: The People's Economist Speaks; and More Liberty Means Less Government.

He has made many radio and television appearances on shows such as Nightline, Firing Line, Face the Nation, Milton Friedman's Free to Choose, Crossfire, MacNeil/Lehrer, and Wall Street Week. He was a regular commentator for Nightly Business Report and is an occasional substitute host for the “Rush Limbaugh Show.” In addition, Williams writes a nationally syndicated weekly column that is carried by approximately 140 newspapers and several websites.

Williams serves on several boards of directors, including Grove City College, Reason Foundation, and Hoover Institution. He serves on numerous advisory boards, including the Cato Institute, the Landmark Legal Foundation, the Institute of Economic Affairs, and the Heritage Foundation. He has received numerous fellowships and awards including: the Foundation for Economic Education Adam Smith Award, the Hoover Institution National Fellow, the Ford Foundation Fellow, the Valley Forge Freedoms Foundation George Washington Medal of Honor, the Veterans of Foreign Wars US News Media Award, the Adam Smith Award, the California State University Distinguished Alumnus Award, the George Mason University Faculty Member of the Year, and the Alpha Kappa Psi Award. Williams has frequently given expert testimony before Congressional committees on public policy issues ranging from labor policy to taxation and spending. He is a member of the Mont Pelerin Society, and the American Economic Association.