All are welcome to join in the discussion of Black Reconstruction in American 1860-1880 by E.B. Du Bois.

Books are available for $25 from Underground Railroad History Project.

Du Bois published Black Reconstruction (BR) in 1935 with Harcourt, Brace and Company (New York). He completed it after leaving the NAACP and returning to Atlanta University. Its subtitle, “An Essay Toward a History of the Part Which Black Folk Played in the Attempt to Reconstruct Democracy in America, 1860-1880,” neatly summarized his central argument in the book. Accordingly, Black Reconstruction foregrounds several recurring Du Boisian themes: the role of African American agency in the building of the U.S.A. and the significance of promoting African American equality and freedom in order to achieve the promise of democracy.

The book directly chal­lenged dominant views of the time that the Reconstruction era in American history was a disaster for the South and for the country. It received much comment, including criticisms, from across the political spectrum. (http://www.webdubois.org) .

The reading and discussion schedule is as follows –

• January 10 – Introduction, Chapters 1, 2, 3
• February 14 – Returning to Introduction, Chapters 1, 2, 3
• March 13 – Chapters 4, 5
• April 10 – Chapters 6, 7
• May 8 – Chapter 8
• June 12 – Chapters 9, 10
• July 10 – Chapters 11, 12
• August 14 – Chapters 13, 14
• September 11 – Chapters 15, 16, 17