The Syllabus is Here!
Check out the schedule, books, and info on how to stay up to date!
Anti-Confederate Southern History Book Club Syllabus
June 1 - July 22 w/ Nathan Evans Fox
Welcome!
Howdy! So tickled you’re here. The South is dope as hell, and it’s worth fighting for. This reading club will study the histories of folks who fought for the South we love. Over the next 2 months, we will read the better part of three books that, I believe, offer a well-rounded foundation to anti-Confederate Southern history. Every week in June and July I will go live (usually on Wednesday nights at 8 CST and usually with a guest!) to talk about the week’s readings. Afterwards, I will leave questions in the chat as a starting point for folks to discuss what’s coming up for them in the text. Please make as much use of the chat as you would like–the more conversation, the better. (As a reminder, I am a dad and a touring musician, so I may have to flex my availability to accommodate work and parenting, but I’ll do my best to be as consistent as possible.)
How to Follow Along
I’m still learning Substack, so please bear with me. Book club updates and resources will go out under the Anti-Confederate Southern History Book Club section on my main page. To make sure you can follow along with every new update, go to manage subscriptions and turn on email notifications for the Anti-Confederate Southern History Book Club.
What to Expect
Guests. I want this bookclub to be more than an opportunity to scratch an intellectual itch. My hope is that these stories compel you, that they spark equal parts rage and hope, wisdom and courage. What we’re studying is living history, and in an effort to bring us into that dynamic life, I will be bringing in guests (musicians, organizers, activists, etc.) to talk about how they are organizing, conceptualizing, and fighting for the South. I’m still finalizing guests, so stay tuned!
Learning together. In-fighting, name-calling, and bad-faith soapboxing is fed behavior. The vast majority of us are raised in more American propaganda than we know. The fact that we’re even here suggests a commitment to learning our way out of it. So I have a two-part ask: 1) give one another grace for the messy ways we are deprogramming, and 2) don’t use your own messiness as an excuse to avoid accountability. If somebody says something ain’t it, apologize, do better next time, and move on. Being anonymous and online isn’t an excuse to be uncomradely. Learning happens in contexts of trust and belonging, so please try to cultivate a trustworthy space as you engage your peers in the chat.
While I don’t expect harmful behavior to pop up here, it should be clear that I’ll boot and block anybody who ends up being racist, homophobic, transphobic, fatphobic, misogynistic, classist, ableist, or engaging in any other kinds of cop behavior. If I haven’t caught it already, shoot me a DM if you come across anybody using slurs, name-calling, etc. We genuinely don’t have time for that shit.
This is not capitalist learning. This is an anti-capitalist book club, y’all. The point isn’t achievement, performance, or competition. Admittedly, the amount of reading I’ve laid out is ambitious, but I’m making this schedule with the expectation that you will participate in whatever way works for you. Some weeks, you may not be able to do any of the reading. Other weeks, you may read more than what’s been laid out. Either way, these resources will remain available online for when you’re ready to engage them. Think of this group as a structure to help facilitate your learning rather than a set of demands you must meet.
Big tent. These readings draw from a number of approaches to anti-Confederate politics–anarchist, communist, Black liberationist, even electoral. My overarching aim is to undermine the myth of the right-wing South. Just because right-wing politics are dominant doesn’t mean those politics are organic, settled, or representative of the entire South. If you end up joining a specific tradition or party as a result of this group, great, but at the very least, I want to leave you with a sense that the South has always been contested. This reading group isn’t an endorsement of any one tradition–the sides are yours to take.
The Texts!
To start off, we will be reading Dixie be Damned and Hammer and Hoe, both considered keystone Southern anti-capitalist texts. They each have their own interests, historiographies, and implicit politics. We will conclude by reading At the Dark End of the Street.
I don’t often hear At the Dark End of the Street lifted up in the same canon, but I believe it touches on gender, Southern religion, and strategy in ways that are vital to any conversation about anti-Confederate politics. It also tells a deeper story of the activism of Civil Rights figures like Rosa Parks, further contributing to a richer, demythologized understanding of Southern life.
A gentle note: these texts deal with immense violence and trauma. We cannot talk about the plantation South without acknowledging the universe of horrors it spawned. Please take care of yourself when engaging with these histories.
Finding the Books
Dixie Be Damned: 300 Years of Insurrection in the American South by Neal Shirley and Saralee Stafford
Purchase this cool shirt/book combo from our friends at Punk Truck Stop.
Hammer and Hoe: Alabama Communists During the Great Depression by Robin D.G. Kelley
Purchase from The University of North Carolina Press.
At the Dark End of the Street: Black Women, Rape, and Resistance–A New History of the Civil Rights Movement from Rosa Parks to the Rise of Black Power by Danielle L. McGuire
Purchase from the Zinn Education Project.
I think this is the whole PDF.
Schedule
Week 1: Jun 3
Dixie Be Damned
For discussion: Ch 1 “A Subtle yet Restless Fire,” Ch 2 “Ogeechee Till Death”
Recommended: Introduction
Week 2: June 10
Dixie Be Damned
For discussion: Ch 5 “Wild Hearts in the Southern Mills,” Ch 7 “‘We Asked for Life’!”
Recommended: Ch 3 “The Lowry Wars,” Conclusion
Week 3: June 17
Hammer and Hoe Ch 1-2
Week 4: June 24
Hammer and Hoe Ch 3-5
Week 5: July 1
Hammer and Hoe Ch 6-9
Week 6: July 8
Hammer and Hoe Ch 10-11
Week 7: July 15
At the Dark End of the Street Ch 1-2
Week 8: July 22
At the Dark End of the Street Ch 3
Coming Soon.
I’ve had wayyy more interest in this than I initially anticipated, so I’m working fast to make this a good spot to be. I’ll be giving updates as I know more about guests, logistics, etc. Expect a list of resources including orgs to join, extra articles to read, and other media to engage.
This looks like an amazing set of books. I'll be heading to my local independent tomorrow to order some hard copies!
Hey, I can’t upgrade/pay you right now, but I love this project. I’ve helped run groups like this/email classes etc. if you need help with admin, I would love to contribute.