Ben Railton
@americanstudier.bsky.social
Prof of Amer Lit & Studies. Dad to 2 amazing young men. Married. We the People: http://tinyurl.com/yyhxjktb; Of Thee I Sing: http://tinyurl.com/y6hsozjx. #ScholarSunday guru. https://blackwhiteandread.com he/him
Pinned
The Celestials’ Last Game | Ben Railton
Baseball, Bigotry, and the Battle for America
americanstudier.podbean.com
For new followers, here's my latest project, a podcast on sports histories, exclusion & inclusion, & the worst & best of America--& my single favorite moment from American history.
americanstudier.podbean.com
americanstudier.podbean.com
I too loved them, but it was also a very strangely operating commercial market--when I worked at a bookstore, we were required to rip the covers off of older mm paperbacks, send the coves back to the publishers, & trash the books themselves.
I am certainly going to miss mass markets, and cherish some of the ones I have (Cornell Woolrich’s Black novels ftw). But some of the ones I’ve pulled off the shelf lately are virtually unreadable, like a copy of 1984 that looks like it was printed entirely in 8-point bold.
So Long to Cheap Books You Could Fit in Your Pocket
www.nytimes.com
February 6, 2026 at 6:36 PM
I too loved them, but it was also a very strangely operating commercial market--when I worked at a bookstore, we were required to rip the covers off of older mm paperbacks, send the coves back to the publishers, & trash the books themselves.
There are countless problems with our inability to remember anything for very long these days, but high on the list is this:
Donald Trump became a national political figure for the first time as the face & voice of Birtherism. That was all he was in 2011-12, & it made his national political career.
Donald Trump became a national political figure for the first time as the face & voice of Birtherism. That was all he was in 2011-12, & it made his national political career.
Pour one out for every professional political pundit, writer, consultant whatever that has spent the last decade trying to pretend that the Trump phenomenon was about trade or opiates and not a big chunk of white america losing its mind over having a black president bsky.app/profile/kyle...
A screenshot from a video posted on Trump's Truth Social account: truthsocial.com/@realDonaldT...
February 6, 2026 at 2:16 PM
There are countless problems with our inability to remember anything for very long these days, but high on the list is this:
Donald Trump became a national political figure for the first time as the face & voice of Birtherism. That was all he was in 2011-12, & it made his national political career.
Donald Trump became a national political figure for the first time as the face & voice of Birtherism. That was all he was in 2011-12, & it made his national political career.
Happy Aaron Burr Day! Definitely one of my most fraught Memory Day nominees, but one who has so much to tell us about the Revolutionary & Early Republic eras.
memorydaycalendar.blogspot.com/p/february-n...
memorydaycalendar.blogspot.com/p/february-n...
February Nominees
February 1: Langston Hughes , one of America’s most talented poets and writers , and the only one equally adept writing about himself , ent...
memorydaycalendar.blogspot.com
February 6, 2026 at 1:04 PM
Happy Aaron Burr Day! Definitely one of my most fraught Memory Day nominees, but one who has so much to tell us about the Revolutionary & Early Republic eras.
memorydaycalendar.blogspot.com/p/february-n...
memorydaycalendar.blogspot.com/p/february-n...
Reposted by Ben Railton
Over the past six months, Melissa has been working in @yallaintrightco.bsky.social and now it’s live!
@kerileighmerritt.bsky.social @wihorne.bsky.social @tlecaque.bsky.social @americanstudier.bsky.social
Yallaintright.co
@kerileighmerritt.bsky.social @wihorne.bsky.social @tlecaque.bsky.social @americanstudier.bsky.social
Yallaintright.co
Y'all Ain't Right
Y’all Ain’t Right is your go-to shop for sharp, witty political humor. From clever one-liners to bold designs, our merch takes aim at the absurdities of today’s politics with a Southern twist. Perfect...
Yallaintright.co
February 6, 2026 at 11:52 AM
Over the past six months, Melissa has been working in @yallaintrightco.bsky.social and now it’s live!
@kerileighmerritt.bsky.social @wihorne.bsky.social @tlecaque.bsky.social @americanstudier.bsky.social
Yallaintright.co
@kerileighmerritt.bsky.social @wihorne.bsky.social @tlecaque.bsky.social @americanstudier.bsky.social
Yallaintright.co
@carlygoodman.bsky.social, is Made By History no longer sharing new pieces? I generally check it consistently for my threads so just checking in. Thanks!
February 5, 2026 at 6:46 PM
@carlygoodman.bsky.social, is Made By History no longer sharing new pieces? I generally check it consistently for my threads so just checking in. Thanks!
Reposted by Ben Railton
Comedy is one of our hardest and most important art forms.
These comedy legends had a loose script of plot points written by Levy and Guest and then improvised a riotously funny film that also confronts questions of existentialism with an optimistic lens of progress for normal people. Geniuses.
These comedy legends had a loose script of plot points written by Levy and Guest and then improvised a riotously funny film that also confronts questions of existentialism with an optimistic lens of progress for normal people. Geniuses.
February 5, 2026 at 2:02 PM
Comedy is one of our hardest and most important art forms.
These comedy legends had a loose script of plot points written by Levy and Guest and then improvised a riotously funny film that also confronts questions of existentialism with an optimistic lens of progress for normal people. Geniuses.
These comedy legends had a loose script of plot points written by Levy and Guest and then improvised a riotously funny film that also confronts questions of existentialism with an optimistic lens of progress for normal people. Geniuses.
It took decades for the Evers family to receive justice for his assassination & for his murderer to be punished.
It took about a year for our fascist white supremacist administration to take us right back through the looking-glass.
It took about a year for our fascist white supremacist administration to take us right back through the looking-glass.
I am speechless.
"The National Park Service has removed visitor brochures from the Medgar & Myrlie Evers Home National Monument. Among the anticipated changes? No longer calling his murderer a 'racist.'" 🗃️ mississippitoday.org/2026/02/05/m...
"The National Park Service has removed visitor brochures from the Medgar & Myrlie Evers Home National Monument. Among the anticipated changes? No longer calling his murderer a 'racist.'" 🗃️ mississippitoday.org/2026/02/05/m...
Medgar Evers’ killer was a Klansman, but Trump administration says stop calling him a racist - Mississippi Today
Among anticipated changes to a new visitor brochure for the Medgar & Myrlie Evers Home National Monument is no longer using "racist" to describe the killer of the civil rights leader.
mississippitoday.org
February 5, 2026 at 5:33 PM
It took decades for the Evers family to receive justice for his assassination & for his murderer to be punished.
It took about a year for our fascist white supremacist administration to take us right back through the looking-glass.
It took about a year for our fascist white supremacist administration to take us right back through the looking-glass.
Happy James Otis Day! A Revolutionary well worth commemorating in this anniversary year.
memorydaycalendar.blogspot.com/p/february-n...
memorydaycalendar.blogspot.com/p/february-n...
February Nominees
February 1: Langston Hughes , one of America’s most talented poets and writers , and the only one equally adept writing about himself , ent...
memorydaycalendar.blogspot.com
February 5, 2026 at 12:56 PM
Happy James Otis Day! A Revolutionary well worth commemorating in this anniversary year.
memorydaycalendar.blogspot.com/p/february-n...
memorydaycalendar.blogspot.com/p/february-n...
Did you know that when he was just 38 years old, James Fenimore Cooper wrote a moving & powerful final novel in the Deerslayer series, with Natty Bumppo continuing to fight for the little guy up until his peaceful death? That & more in today's post in the Last of the Mohicans anniversary series!
So for the next post in my CooperStudying blog series, two profoundly different Deerslayer novels published within a year of one another, & one crucial throughline between them--Natty's willingness to fight for Native Americans.
blackwhiteandread.com/february-4-2...
blackwhiteandread.com/february-4-2...
February 4, 2026: Fenimore Cooper Studying: The Last of the Mohicans & The Prairie – Black and White and Read All Over
[200 years ago Wednesday, James Fenimore Cooper’s The Last of the Mohicans was published. That’s one of many Cooper novels with a lot to tell us about his and our America, so this week I’ll AmericanSt...
blackwhiteandread.com
February 5, 2026 at 1:23 AM
Did you know that when he was just 38 years old, James Fenimore Cooper wrote a moving & powerful final novel in the Deerslayer series, with Natty Bumppo continuing to fight for the little guy up until his peaceful death? That & more in today's post in the Last of the Mohicans anniversary series!
I am not complaining, but this does not make getting up to teach my virtual Grad class in a bit easier.
February 4, 2026 at 10:21 PM
I am not complaining, but this does not make getting up to teach my virtual Grad class in a bit easier.
Reposted by Ben Railton
BLACK HISTORY MONTH CENTENNIAL with the Timothy Thomas Fortune Cultural Center #Blackademics
February 4, 2026 at 3:34 PM
BLACK HISTORY MONTH CENTENNIAL with the Timothy Thomas Fortune Cultural Center #Blackademics
Did you know that Cooper introduced his most iconic character not in The Last of the Mohicans, but three years earlier in his best historical novel & one deeply influenced by his fraught relationship with his own revolutionary founding father? That & more in today’s blog post! 🗃️
So for the next post in my Fenimore Cooper Studying blog series, how Cooper’s third & fourth novels exemplify my categories of historical & period fiction, respectively!
blackwhiteandread.com/february-3-2...
blackwhiteandread.com/february-3-2...
February 3, 2026: Fenimore Cooper Studying: The Pioneers & The Pilot – Black and White and Read All Over
[200 years ago Wednesday, James Fenimore Cooper’s The Last of the Mohicans was published. That’s one of many Cooper novels with a lot to tell us about his and our America, so this week I’ll AmericanSt...
blackwhiteandread.com
February 3, 2026 at 11:21 PM
Did you know that Cooper introduced his most iconic character not in The Last of the Mohicans, but three years earlier in his best historical novel & one deeply influenced by his fraught relationship with his own revolutionary founding father? That & more in today’s blog post! 🗃️
“A missionary trip.” Believe you misspelled “The Crusades Rebooted,” you useful idiots.
As an influencer, Nick Shirley had struggled to expand his reach. But after a missionary trip pushed him to try a new approach, he caused a sensation with a video claiming to expose fraud at Somali-run day care centers in Minnesota. nyti.ms/45GzJi4
February 3, 2026 at 10:05 PM
“A missionary trip.” Believe you misspelled “The Crusades Rebooted,” you useful idiots.
Reposted by Ben Railton
Have you heard of Nellie Francis, a Gospel singer who became of the most successful anti-lynching advocates? Lena Olive Smith, the only Black woman with a law practice in MN in the 20s & 30s? William Hazel, the stained-glass artist who helped desegregate St. Paul hotels? 🗃️ @eddsmitty.bsky.social
So for my latest @satevepost.bsky.social Considering History column, a #BHM special on Minnesota's foundational Black histories, white supremacy, & America's defining diversity! 🗃️
www.saturdayeveningpost.com/2026/02/cons...
www.saturdayeveningpost.com/2026/02/cons...
Considering History: Minnesota’s Black History and America’s Defining Diversity | The Saturday Evening Post
Minnesota’s African American history highlights how much the state has always embodied diversity and the ongoing challenge of living up to our ideals of equality and justice for all.
www.saturdayeveningpost.com
February 3, 2026 at 2:46 PM
Have you heard of Nellie Francis, a Gospel singer who became of the most successful anti-lynching advocates? Lena Olive Smith, the only Black woman with a law practice in MN in the 20s & 30s? William Hazel, the stained-glass artist who helped desegregate St. Paul hotels? 🗃️ @eddsmitty.bsky.social
Reposted by Ben Railton
This week I wrote about how lucky we all were to live at the same time as Catherine O'Hara through a review of Waiting for Guffman (1996).
O'Hara, Levy, Guest, Willard, McKean, Shearer, and Posey? I'm so glad these brilliant, funny people found each other and made such perfect films about humanity.
O'Hara, Levy, Guest, Willard, McKean, Shearer, and Posey? I'm so glad these brilliant, funny people found each other and made such perfect films about humanity.
Catherine's Talent isn't O'Fair-a – Black and White and Read All Over
A Contemporary History Approach to Waiting for Guffman (1996)
blackwhiteandread.com
February 3, 2026 at 6:27 PM
This week I wrote about how lucky we all were to live at the same time as Catherine O'Hara through a review of Waiting for Guffman (1996).
O'Hara, Levy, Guest, Willard, McKean, Shearer, and Posey? I'm so glad these brilliant, funny people found each other and made such perfect films about humanity.
O'Hara, Levy, Guest, Willard, McKean, Shearer, and Posey? I'm so glad these brilliant, funny people found each other and made such perfect films about humanity.
Have you heard of Nellie Francis, a Gospel singer who became of the most successful anti-lynching advocates? Lena Olive Smith, the only Black woman with a law practice in MN in the 20s & 30s? William Hazel, the stained-glass artist who helped desegregate St. Paul hotels? 🗃️ @eddsmitty.bsky.social
So for my latest @satevepost.bsky.social Considering History column, a #BHM special on Minnesota's foundational Black histories, white supremacy, & America's defining diversity! 🗃️
www.saturdayeveningpost.com/2026/02/cons...
www.saturdayeveningpost.com/2026/02/cons...
Considering History: Minnesota’s Black History and America’s Defining Diversity | The Saturday Evening Post
Minnesota’s African American history highlights how much the state has always embodied diversity and the ongoing challenge of living up to our ideals of equality and justice for all.
www.saturdayeveningpost.com
February 3, 2026 at 2:46 PM
Have you heard of Nellie Francis, a Gospel singer who became of the most successful anti-lynching advocates? Lena Olive Smith, the only Black woman with a law practice in MN in the 20s & 30s? William Hazel, the stained-glass artist who helped desegregate St. Paul hotels? 🗃️ @eddsmitty.bsky.social
Happy Elizabeth Blackwell Day & Norman Rockwell Day! Ain’t that America?
memorydaycalendar.blogspot.com/p/february-n...
memorydaycalendar.blogspot.com/p/february-n...
February Nominees
February 1: Langston Hughes , one of America’s most talented poets and writers , and the only one equally adept writing about himself , ent...
memorydaycalendar.blogspot.com
February 3, 2026 at 1:38 PM
Happy Elizabeth Blackwell Day & Norman Rockwell Day! Ain’t that America?
memorydaycalendar.blogspot.com/p/february-n...
memorydaycalendar.blogspot.com/p/february-n...
Reposted by Ben Railton
Give the rare gift of learning Black history in Minnesota. #TwinCities
So for my latest @satevepost.bsky.social Considering History column, a #BHM special on Minnesota's foundational Black histories, white supremacy, & America's defining diversity! 🗃️
www.saturdayeveningpost.com/2026/02/cons...
www.saturdayeveningpost.com/2026/02/cons...
Considering History: Minnesota’s Black History and America’s Defining Diversity | The Saturday Evening Post
Minnesota’s African American history highlights how much the state has always embodied diversity and the ongoing challenge of living up to our ideals of equality and justice for all.
www.saturdayeveningpost.com
February 3, 2026 at 12:12 AM
Give the rare gift of learning Black history in Minnesota. #TwinCities
Did you know that James Fenimore Cooper’s second novel, & first work of American historical fiction, featured none other than George Washington as an in-disguise Revolutionary spy? That & more in today’s debut post in my CooperStudying blog series! 🗃️
Starting with today's post on three anxieties of influence that together help explain the origins of Cooper's career & his first two novels, Precaution (1820) & The Spy (1821)--from his wife to England to his own legendary Founding Father!
blackwhiteandread.com/february-2-2...
blackwhiteandread.com/february-2-2...
February 2, 2026: Fenimore Cooper Studying: Precaution & The Spy – Black and White and Read All Over
[200 years ago Wednesday, James Fenimore Cooper’s The Last of the Mohicans was published. That’s one of many Cooper novels with a lot to tell us about his and our America, so this week I’ll AmericanSt...
blackwhiteandread.com
February 3, 2026 at 12:11 AM
Did you know that James Fenimore Cooper’s second novel, & first work of American historical fiction, featured none other than George Washington as an in-disguise Revolutionary spy? That & more in today’s debut post in my CooperStudying blog series! 🗃️
Reposted by Ben Railton
Do we recall how Judge Frollo dies in The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)?
While trampling laws to enact his genocidal, rapist will, he attacks an asylum seeker in a church and dies for it.
I wrote about it in this review from October, my most read ever because of its resonance with today.
While trampling laws to enact his genocidal, rapist will, he attacks an asylum seeker in a church and dies for it.
I wrote about it in this review from October, my most read ever because of its resonance with today.
February 2, 2026 at 10:38 PM
Do we recall how Judge Frollo dies in The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)?
While trampling laws to enact his genocidal, rapist will, he attacks an asylum seeker in a church and dies for it.
I wrote about it in this review from October, my most read ever because of its resonance with today.
While trampling laws to enact his genocidal, rapist will, he attacks an asylum seeker in a church and dies for it.
I wrote about it in this review from October, my most read ever because of its resonance with today.
Every day I get to share something that reminds me of why & how I AmericanStudy, but today was one of those days where the cup really runneth over. So I wanted to reflect on the quartet of public scholarly pieces I got to share today, & what they help me remember & highlight in this work. 🗃️ +
February 2, 2026 at 9:35 PM
Every day I get to share something that reminds me of why & how I AmericanStudy, but today was one of those days where the cup really runneth over. So I wanted to reflect on the quartet of public scholarly pieces I got to share today, & what they help me remember & highlight in this work. 🗃️ +
200 years ago Wednesday, James Fenimore Cooper published The Last of the Mohicans. Ever since Mark Twain came at his "Literary Offences," Cooper's gotten a bad rap, & he's not much read here in the 21C. But while his prose is a lot (it was the early 19C!), his novels still have a lot to tell us. +
February 2, 2026 at 5:59 PM
200 years ago Wednesday, James Fenimore Cooper published The Last of the Mohicans. Ever since Mark Twain came at his "Literary Offences," Cooper's gotten a bad rap, & he's not much read here in the 21C. But while his prose is a lot (it was the early 19C!), his novels still have a lot to tell us. +
@drsepinwall.bsky.social, would you be able to share the new column as well, to help get it to your followers? Thanks!
bsky.app/profile/amer...
bsky.app/profile/amer...
So for my latest @satevepost.bsky.social Considering History column, a #BHM special on Minnesota's foundational Black histories, white supremacy, & America's defining diversity! 🗃️
www.saturdayeveningpost.com/2026/02/cons...
www.saturdayeveningpost.com/2026/02/cons...
Considering History: Minnesota’s Black History and America’s Defining Diversity | The Saturday Evening Post
Minnesota’s African American history highlights how much the state has always embodied diversity and the ongoing challenge of living up to our ideals of equality and justice for all.
www.saturdayeveningpost.com
February 2, 2026 at 4:15 PM
@drsepinwall.bsky.social, would you be able to share the new column as well, to help get it to your followers? Thanks!
bsky.app/profile/amer...
bsky.app/profile/amer...
No setting embodies America in Feb 2026 more than Minnesota. Much of what's happening there might feel strikingly contemporary, driven by changing late 20C & early 21C realities, from newer immigrant communities to our current fascist regime. But MN Black history tells a far different story. +
February 2, 2026 at 4:06 PM
No setting embodies America in Feb 2026 more than Minnesota. Much of what's happening there might feel strikingly contemporary, driven by changing late 20C & early 21C realities, from newer immigrant communities to our current fascist regime. But MN Black history tells a far different story. +