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
Reposted by Ben Railton
Whether you’re most excited for the Super Bowl, the Puppy Bowl, or the Superb Owl, tailgate with my 262nd #ScholarSunday thread of public scholarly writing, podcasts, new & forthcoming books from the past week. Add more below, share widely, & enjoy, team! 🗃️
blackwhiteandread.com/scholarsunda...
blackwhiteandread.com/scholarsunda...
#ScholarSunday Thread 262 (2/8/26) – Black and White and Read All Over
Whether you’re most excited for the Super Bowl, the Puppy Bowl, or the Superb Owl, start tailgating early with my 262nd #ScholarSunday thread of public scholarly writing, podcasts, new & forthcoming b...
blackwhiteandread.com
February 8, 2026 at 12:58 PM
Whether you’re most excited for the Super Bowl, the Puppy Bowl, or the Superb Owl, tailgate with my 262nd #ScholarSunday thread of public scholarly writing, podcasts, new & forthcoming books from the past week. Add more below, share widely, & enjoy, team! 🗃️
blackwhiteandread.com/scholarsunda...
blackwhiteandread.com/scholarsunda...
As the Super Snacking ramps up, so should your #ScholarSunday. Check out all this great public scholarship, & please share widely so it can touch down with everybody, team! @lollardfish.bsky.social 🗃️
Whether you’re most excited for the Super Bowl, the Puppy Bowl, or the Superb Owl, tailgate with my 262nd #ScholarSunday thread of public scholarly writing, podcasts, new & forthcoming books from the past week. Add more below, share widely, & enjoy, team! 🗃️
blackwhiteandread.com/scholarsunda...
blackwhiteandread.com/scholarsunda...
#ScholarSunday Thread 262 (2/8/26) – Black and White and Read All Over
Whether you’re most excited for the Super Bowl, the Puppy Bowl, or the Superb Owl, start tailgating early with my 262nd #ScholarSunday thread of public scholarly writing, podcasts, new & forthcoming b...
blackwhiteandread.com
February 8, 2026 at 5:54 PM
As the Super Snacking ramps up, so should your #ScholarSunday. Check out all this great public scholarship, & please share widely so it can touch down with everybody, team! @lollardfish.bsky.social 🗃️
Happy Kate Chopin Day! One of the most talented turn of the century American authors, & a vital voice for women's perspectives & experiences in particular.
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 8, 2026 at 4:21 PM
Happy Kate Chopin Day! One of the most talented turn of the century American authors, & a vital voice for women's perspectives & experiences in particular.
memorydaycalendar.blogspot.com/p/february-n...
memorydaycalendar.blogspot.com/p/february-n...
@victorerikray.bsky.social, would you be able to share the overall thread as well, to help get all this great work to your followers? Thanks!
bsky.app/profile/amer...
bsky.app/profile/amer...
Whether you’re most excited for the Super Bowl, the Puppy Bowl, or the Superb Owl, tailgate with my 262nd #ScholarSunday thread of public scholarly writing, podcasts, new & forthcoming books from the past week. Add more below, share widely, & enjoy, team! 🗃️
blackwhiteandread.com/scholarsunda...
blackwhiteandread.com/scholarsunda...
#ScholarSunday Thread 262 (2/8/26) – Black and White and Read All Over
Whether you’re most excited for the Super Bowl, the Puppy Bowl, or the Superb Owl, start tailgating early with my 262nd #ScholarSunday thread of public scholarly writing, podcasts, new & forthcoming b...
blackwhiteandread.com
February 8, 2026 at 2:26 PM
@victorerikray.bsky.social, would you be able to share the overall thread as well, to help get all this great work to your followers? Thanks!
bsky.app/profile/amer...
bsky.app/profile/amer...
@larryglickman.bsky.social, would you be able to share the thread as well, to help get all this great work to your followers? Thanks!
bsky.app/profile/amer...
bsky.app/profile/amer...
Whether you’re most excited for the Super Bowl, the Puppy Bowl, or the Superb Owl, tailgate with my 262nd #ScholarSunday thread of public scholarly writing, podcasts, new & forthcoming books from the past week. Add more below, share widely, & enjoy, team! 🗃️
blackwhiteandread.com/scholarsunda...
blackwhiteandread.com/scholarsunda...
#ScholarSunday Thread 262 (2/8/26) – Black and White and Read All Over
Whether you’re most excited for the Super Bowl, the Puppy Bowl, or the Superb Owl, start tailgating early with my 262nd #ScholarSunday thread of public scholarly writing, podcasts, new & forthcoming b...
blackwhiteandread.com
February 8, 2026 at 1:32 PM
@larryglickman.bsky.social, would you be able to share the thread as well, to help get all this great work to your followers? Thanks!
bsky.app/profile/amer...
bsky.app/profile/amer...
@mkn.bsky.social, would you be able to share the thread as well, to help get all this great work to your followers? Thanks!
bsky.app/profile/amer...
bsky.app/profile/amer...
Whether you’re most excited for the Super Bowl, the Puppy Bowl, or the Superb Owl, tailgate with my 262nd #ScholarSunday thread of public scholarly writing, podcasts, new & forthcoming books from the past week. Add more below, share widely, & enjoy, team! 🗃️
blackwhiteandread.com/scholarsunda...
blackwhiteandread.com/scholarsunda...
#ScholarSunday Thread 262 (2/8/26) – Black and White and Read All Over
Whether you’re most excited for the Super Bowl, the Puppy Bowl, or the Superb Owl, start tailgating early with my 262nd #ScholarSunday thread of public scholarly writing, podcasts, new & forthcoming b...
blackwhiteandread.com
February 8, 2026 at 1:26 PM
@mkn.bsky.social, would you be able to share the thread as well, to help get all this great work to your followers? Thanks!
bsky.app/profile/amer...
bsky.app/profile/amer...
@marcusrediker.bsky.social, would you be able to share the overall thread, to help get all this great work to your followers? Thanks!
bsky.app/profile/amer...
bsky.app/profile/amer...
Whether you’re most excited for the Super Bowl, the Puppy Bowl, or the Superb Owl, tailgate with my 262nd #ScholarSunday thread of public scholarly writing, podcasts, new & forthcoming books from the past week. Add more below, share widely, & enjoy, team! 🗃️
blackwhiteandread.com/scholarsunda...
blackwhiteandread.com/scholarsunda...
#ScholarSunday Thread 262 (2/8/26) – Black and White and Read All Over
Whether you’re most excited for the Super Bowl, the Puppy Bowl, or the Superb Owl, start tailgating early with my 262nd #ScholarSunday thread of public scholarly writing, podcasts, new & forthcoming b...
blackwhiteandread.com
February 8, 2026 at 1:19 PM
@marcusrediker.bsky.social, would you be able to share the overall thread, to help get all this great work to your followers? Thanks!
bsky.app/profile/amer...
bsky.app/profile/amer...
Whether you’re most excited for the Super Bowl, the Puppy Bowl, or the Superb Owl, tailgate with my 262nd #ScholarSunday thread of public scholarly writing, podcasts, new & forthcoming books from the past week. Add more below, share widely, & enjoy, team! 🗃️
blackwhiteandread.com/scholarsunda...
blackwhiteandread.com/scholarsunda...
#ScholarSunday Thread 262 (2/8/26) – Black and White and Read All Over
Whether you’re most excited for the Super Bowl, the Puppy Bowl, or the Superb Owl, start tailgating early with my 262nd #ScholarSunday thread of public scholarly writing, podcasts, new & forthcoming b...
blackwhiteandread.com
February 8, 2026 at 12:58 PM
Whether you’re most excited for the Super Bowl, the Puppy Bowl, or the Superb Owl, tailgate with my 262nd #ScholarSunday thread of public scholarly writing, podcasts, new & forthcoming books from the past week. Add more below, share widely, & enjoy, team! 🗃️
blackwhiteandread.com/scholarsunda...
blackwhiteandread.com/scholarsunda...
I wish I could share this post with Dad. But I’m honored to get to share these glimpses into his writing & voice & self as a young scholar—& one about to be a father! 🗃️ @c19podcast.bsky.social
So for a special weekend follow-up to my weeklong CooperStudying blog series, on three inspiring moments from the Preface to Dad's book on James Fenimore Cooper's life & imagination, including one quote featuring a future me!
blackwhiteandread.com/february-7-8...
blackwhiteandread.com/february-7-8...
February 7-8, 2026: Fenimore Cooper Studying: Dad’s Book – 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’ve AmericanSt...
blackwhiteandread.com
February 7, 2026 at 10:40 PM
I wish I could share this post with Dad. But I’m honored to get to share these glimpses into his writing & voice & self as a young scholar—& one about to be a father! 🗃️ @c19podcast.bsky.social
Happy Laura Ingalls Wilder Day! One of the most influential YA authors, & also a reflection of how fraught American literature & culture have always been.
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 7, 2026 at 2:03 PM
Happy Laura Ingalls Wilder Day! One of the most influential YA authors, & also a reflection of how fraught American literature & culture have always been.
memorydaycalendar.blogspot.com/p/february-n...
memorydaycalendar.blogspot.com/p/february-n...
Did you know that when James Fenimore Cooper passed away, he was in the middle of work on an epic history of New York City, subtitled The Towns of Manhattan? That and more in the final post in my weeklong CooperStudying blog series! 🗃️ @hcrichardson.bsky.social
So for the final post in my CooperStudying blog series, on three ways to put Cooper's nonfiction in conversation with his fiction, including nautical, national, & New York nonfiction!
blackwhiteandread.com/february-6-2...
blackwhiteandread.com/february-6-2...
February 6, 2026: Fenimore Cooper Studying: Complementary Nonfiction – 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 7, 2026 at 2:29 AM
Did you know that when James Fenimore Cooper passed away, he was in the middle of work on an epic history of New York City, subtitled The Towns of Manhattan? That and more in the final post in my weeklong CooperStudying blog series! 🗃️ @hcrichardson.bsky.social
Before this first week of Black History Month concludes, here's my latest Considering History column once more, on a series of impressive & inspiring figures from Minnesota's Black history we should all better remember, today more than ever! @markanthonyneal.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 6, 2026 at 8:55 PM
Before this first week of Black History Month concludes, here's my latest Considering History column once more, on a series of impressive & inspiring figures from Minnesota's Black history we should all better remember, today more than ever! @markanthonyneal.bsky.social 🗃️
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! 🗃️