Kathryn Sophia Belle

Kathryn Sophia Belle, formerly known as Kathryn T. Gines, born on July 2, 1978, is an American philosopher and associate professor of philosophy at Pennsylvania State University. Her work significantly focuses on promoting diversity within the field of philosophy, and she is the founder of the Collegium of Black Women Philosophers. Belle earned her bachelor's degree from Spelman College and her master's and doctorate degrees in philosophy from the University of Memphis. Before her tenure at Penn State, she served as an assistant professor in Africana and diaspora studies at Vanderbilt University, with a joint appointment in philosophy. In 2007, Belle established the Collegium of Black Women Philosophers to create a supportive community and identify Black women actively engaged in academic philosophy. Her scholarly contributions include the book *Hannah Arendt and the Negro Question* and the co-edited anthology *Convergences: Black Feminism and Continental Philosophy*. She has published extensively in various peer-reviewed journals and co-founded *Critical Philosophy of Race*. Belle's research interests encompass Africana philosophy, continental philosophy, Black feminist philosophy, and critical philosophy of race, with a particular emphasis on critical analyses of race, racism, feminism, and intersectionality. She has critically examined Hannah Arendt's work, particularly concerning the 'Negro question' and the distinctions between social and political spheres. Belle advocates for the recognition of a unique Black, female identity as crucial for overcoming intersecting systems of oppression and views the preservation of a positive racial identity as an empowering act.