Du Bois Fellow Lecture: Scott Henkel
Du Bois Fellow Lecture: Scott Henkel In-Person
Oligarchy in America: Slavery, Democracy, and W. E. B. Du Bois’s Black Reconstruction
Oligarchy in America tells the story of how writers and activists in the 19th and early 20th centuries—W. E. B. Du Bois most prominent among them--saw slavery and its legacies as threats to democracy. Drawing especially from Du Bois’s archival record and Black Reconstruction, this presentation shows how, in the era before fascism was a widely used term, these thinkers understood the threats to democracy as an oligarchy. Du Bois’s archival record shows that he thought about the conflict between democracy and oligarchy throughout his career. Today, when the quality of democracy in America is once again threatened, this work shows a literary and cultural history of repression and resistance, reminding readers of the ideas and language that previous generations used, which can once again serve as a guide.
Bio
Dr. Scott Henkel is an associate professor in the department of English at the University of Wyoming. This presentation draws upon archival research he performed as a fellow at the Du Bois Center during the summer of 2025.
Location: W. E. B. Du Bois Library, Floor 22, Room 2220, W. E. B. Du Bois Center
- Date:
- Thursday, March 26, 2026
- Time:
- 4:00pm - 5:00pm
- Time Zone:
- Eastern Time - US & Canada (change)
- Location:
- W. E. B. Du Bois Library, Room 2220 (Floor 22)
- Audience:
- Alumni Faculty General Public Graduate Students Library Donors Staff Undergraduates
- Categories:
- Lectures Special Collections and University Archives W. E. B. Du Bois Center
