W.E.B. Du Bois and the Antisemitic Blindspot
Format
Oral Presentation
Faculty Mentor Name
Jeffrey Hole
Faculty Mentor Department
English
Abstract/Artist Statement
Every year the Anti-Defamation League releases a detailed statistical analysis of anti-Semitism in the United States. In 2017, they reported a 57% increase in anti-Semitic incidents nationwide. In light of these statistics and the long history of anti-Semitism in the United States, my scholarship broadly asks how have studies of race and ethnicity adequately or inadequately responded to anti-Semitism? In this research presentation, I specifically recall the work of renown African American activist and intellectual W.E.B. Du Bois. Even as Du Bois’ had attempted to articulate an anti-racist project and depict the racist treatment of African Americans, I argue, he nevertheless drew upon anti-Semitic discourse. Further reading of Du Bois’ 1903 edition of The Souls of Black Folk, specifically the chapter “Of the Black Belt,” reveals his use of anti-Semitic slurs. Drawing further on the works of Mark H. Gelber, Michael P. Kramer, and David N. Smith, among others, I ask how, with his famed “double consciousness,” Du Bois still suffered from a sort of racial-ethnic blindness. Despite this egregious blind spot, many race theorists and academics, who have been inspired by Du Bois’ theorization of race, have also been ignorant of (or silent on) his shortcomings. It is my hope that attendees of my presentation will leave with a better understanding of how anti-Semitism functions in the U.S.
Location
DeRosa University Center, Room 211
Start Date
28-4-2018 11:00 AM
End Date
28-4-2018 11:20 AM
W.E.B. Du Bois and the Antisemitic Blindspot
DeRosa University Center, Room 211
Every year the Anti-Defamation League releases a detailed statistical analysis of anti-Semitism in the United States. In 2017, they reported a 57% increase in anti-Semitic incidents nationwide. In light of these statistics and the long history of anti-Semitism in the United States, my scholarship broadly asks how have studies of race and ethnicity adequately or inadequately responded to anti-Semitism? In this research presentation, I specifically recall the work of renown African American activist and intellectual W.E.B. Du Bois. Even as Du Bois’ had attempted to articulate an anti-racist project and depict the racist treatment of African Americans, I argue, he nevertheless drew upon anti-Semitic discourse. Further reading of Du Bois’ 1903 edition of The Souls of Black Folk, specifically the chapter “Of the Black Belt,” reveals his use of anti-Semitic slurs. Drawing further on the works of Mark H. Gelber, Michael P. Kramer, and David N. Smith, among others, I ask how, with his famed “double consciousness,” Du Bois still suffered from a sort of racial-ethnic blindness. Despite this egregious blind spot, many race theorists and academics, who have been inspired by Du Bois’ theorization of race, have also been ignorant of (or silent on) his shortcomings. It is my hope that attendees of my presentation will leave with a better understanding of how anti-Semitism functions in the U.S.