Transformation of the African American Intelligentsia, 1880–2012

“A sweeping yet provocative account of the history of the African American intellectual elite.”—Touré F. Reed, Journal of American History

“A passionate argument for the ongoing necessity of Black leaders in the tradition of W. E. B. Du Bois… Kilson also asserts that a revival of commitment to communitarian leadership is essential for the continued pursuit of justice at home and around the world.”—Journal for Pan African Studies

“Kilson issues a bracing call to arms in which African American scholars re-embrace a ‘Du Bosian moral leadership obligation’… His description of current conditions of our brick-and-mortar intellectual establishment—in which prisons have a greater custodial and educational function than schools—is detailed, damning, and up to date.”—Ben Keppel, Reviews in American History