Book Talk | Hubert Harrison: Forbidden Genius of Black Radicalism

Book Talk | Hubert Harrison: Forbidden Genius of Black Radicalism 

Speaker and Author of the Book: Dr Brian Kwoba

Friday 6 March 2026, 1pm - 2pm 

Seminar Room 63, Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities

All Welcome

The significance of Hubert Henry Harrison (1883-1927) – as a journalist, activist, and educator – lies in his innovation of radical solutions to grave injustices, especially the staggering luxury for the few alongside the crushing poverty for the many in the first few decades of the twentieth century. White mob violence continually haunted African American communities, while imperial conquest and world wars wrought wanton destruction upon entire nations of people. These conditions sparked a global political awakening to which Harrison gave voice as a leading figure in cutting-edge struggles for socialism, in the free love movement, and in the Harlem Renaissance. He also played a pivotal role in the rise of Marcus Garvey and the establishment of the largest international organization of Black people in modern history. Because of his fierce and fearless radicalism, however, he has been erased from popular memory.

Hubert Harrison presents a historical restoration of Harrison's numerous intellectual and political breakthroughs. Offering a fresh interpretation of his contributions to social movements for economic, racial, and sexual liberation, Brian Kwoba's richly textured narrative highlights the startling and continued relevance of Harrison's visionary thinking across generations.

Biography:

Dr. Brian Kwoba grew up in Boulder, Colorado. After earning his undergraduate degree in philosophy at Cornell University, he spent six years teaching high school and middle school history and getting a Master’s in teaching at Tufts University in Boston before heading to the University of Oxford for his doctoral degree in history.

Dr. Kwoba is currently an associate professor of history and also the director of African and African American Studies at the University of Memphis. Over the past two decades, Dr. Kwoba has been an activist on issues including anti-imperialism, immigrant workers rights, climate justice, Falastin, decolonizing education, pan-Africanism, and the movement for Black lives. In his spare time, he is a big time music lover (especially live jazz), an Afrobeats DJ, and a frequent traveler to Kenya where he visits his dad's side of the family.