Frances E. W. Harper: A Call to Conscience

by Utz McKnight

Free Black woman, poet, novelist, essayist, speaker, and activist, Francis Watkins Harper was one of the most important advocates of abolitionism, female suffrage and temperance in the 19th century. A writer of extraordinary versatility and vision, her pioneering work has profound lessons for us today.

In this gripping new book, Utz McKnight shows how Harper's life work inspired her contemporaries to imagine a better America. He seeks to recover her importance as a pioneer and leader in 19th century American society by examining not only her vision of the possibilities (and challenges) of Emancipation, but also her subsequent role in challenging Jim Crow. He argues that engaging with her ideas and writings is vital in understanding not only our historical inheritance, but also contemporary issues ranging from mass incarceration, racial violence, and the role of Christianity.

This lucid and highly readable book is essential reading not only for students of American and African American history, but also all progressive general readers interested in issues of race, politics and society.

240 pages, Paperback

Published December 2, 2020

About the author

Dr. Utz McKnight is chair of the Department of Gender and Race Studies and Professor of Political Science. His research in contemporary racial politics and political theory addresses problems of everyday racism, sovereignty, and violence. His recent publications include Race and the Politics of the Exception: Equality, Sovereignty, and American Democracy (Routledge 2013), and Everyday Practice of Race in America:Ambiguous Privilege (Routledge 2010). He teaches graduate courses in critical race theory, race and popular culture, and contemporary political theory.