Marxism and Politics Summer Lecture Series: Matt Karp

Summer Lecture Series: "Millions of Abolitionists: The Early Republican Party and the Political War Against Slavery" with Matt Karp

The abolition of slavery and the tragically short-lived democratic experiment of Reconstruction was the only social revolution in American history. The central institution of Southern society was destroyed virtually overnight, and by the 1870s, black elected officials (many former slaves) filled Southern state legislatures. The leading political force in both these events was the Republican Party, founded just over a decade before. How was the anti-slavery cause, which had struggled for decades on the political margins, able to triumph and destroy the “Slave Oligarchy”? Join historian and Jacobin contributing editor Matt Karp for a talk on anti-slavery politics and the early Republican Party.

Background Readings (Suggested):

Philip Foner, History of the Labor Movement, Vol I, "Northern Labor and Slavery"

William Gienapp, "The Republican Party and the Slave Power"

Join PHL DSA for our Marxism and Politics Summer Lecture Series. Throughout June, July, and August, we are bringing political analysts and writers to Philadelphia to give seminars on their recent work. These lectures cover a variety of topics, but they share a common historical materialist lens by which to understand and analyze political struggles. Ahead of the talks, the Marxism and Politics Reading Group will read texts assigned by the upcoming lecturer and discuss.