麻豆影院

CU 麻豆影院 history graduate inspires removal of 鈥楲ost Cause鈥� scholar鈥檚 name from prestigious Civil War book award

After months of waiting, David Varel was thrilled to see his article, 鈥�,鈥� published in the December 2020 issue of .

In the piece, the 2015 麻豆影院 PhD graduate of history argues that the prestigious (OAH) should remove the name of prominent 20th-century historian and former OAH president from its annual award for most original book on the Civil War or Reconstruction.

Craven, Varel writes, was a lifelong promoter of the 鈥淟ost Cause鈥� version of Civil War history that blamed northern abolitionists for the war and claimed that 鈥溾�榮lavery was not a major economic factor in Southern life鈥� and was 鈥榓lmost ready to break down of its own weight.鈥欌��

Rather than honor a historian associated with such now discredited views, Varel suggested that the OAH rechristen the award in honor of Lawrence D. Reddick, a Black scholar and former student of Craven鈥檚 whose research undermined the 鈥淟ost Cause鈥� narrative. The change, he wrote, would 鈥渂etter honor the OAH鈥檚 professed commitment to 鈥榯he equitable treatment of all practitioners of history.鈥欌��

鈥淐raven had a nice, long run,鈥� concluded Varel, an independent scholar and affiliate faculty member at Metropolitan State University of Denver. 鈥淣ow let鈥檚 honor a figure more worthy of our admiration.鈥�

He knew he鈥檇 made a good case, but he was shocked and thrilled when he read a brief that followed his piece: The OAH board had decided at its July meeting 鈥渢o suspend the name of the Avery Craven Award 鈥� as a result of consideration of a powerful article 鈥� that laid out the argument for renaming the award.鈥�

That powerful article was Varel鈥檚.

鈥淚 had no idea,鈥� says Varel, who recently published . 鈥淚 got word that it had been accepted in the summer, but I didn鈥檛 know until December that the board had made that decision.鈥�

鈥淗is article really did prompt the board to think about how prizes are named and to revise its policies,鈥� says Beth English, who took the reins as executive director of the OAH after the July decision. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 a significant contribution.鈥�

Besides suspending the use of Craven鈥檚 name, the board appointed a committee that wrote new guidelines for establishing and naming prizes, English says. In the future, all named OAH awards must have $50,000 in funding to ensure financial viability, and all requests to create named prizes will be investigated by a committee to ensure the person is up to the organization鈥檚 standards, and must be approved by the board.

鈥淭hese honors have real consequences for how an organization honors or dishonors its past and invokes its priorities for those in the present and the future,鈥� the board advisory said.

Varel, who specializes in the history of African American scholar-activists, had never heard of Craven or Reddick until researching his dissertation, which has since been published as .

鈥淐raven wasn鈥檛 some lone individual in his views. His stature through the mid-20th century shows how the 鈥榣ost cause鈥� narrative dominated even professional history for a long time,鈥� Varel says. 鈥淗is career is a case study in just how racist and exclusionary the mainstream history profession was.鈥�

But it was Reddick who really intrigued him.

鈥淗e was a very talented Black scholar who couldn鈥檛 get jobs in the predominately white universities,鈥� he says. 鈥淗e was fascinating, worthy of a biography of his own.鈥�

After earning his bachelor鈥檚 and master鈥檚 degrees from Fisk University, Reddick taught at various colleges and worked as a librarian. In the 1930s, he collected and worked with the Works Progress Administration to systematically compile testimony from former slaves鈥攔esearch that transformed the study of slavery and helped unravel narratives like those espoused by Craven, Varel says.

Later in life, Reddick was part of the famous Montgomery Bus Boycott of the 1950s, helped establish the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and became a close adviser to Martin Luther King Jr.

And, as a PhD student at the University of Chicago, Reddick directly challenged his adviser Craven, who once told a class, 鈥淵ou know, there is a remarkable parallel between the history of the Negro and the history of the mule.鈥�

鈥淒r. A. O. Craven, leading authority on all aspects of Southern History, was lecturing the other day on the 鈥楥rime of Reconstruction鈥欌�攈is very phrase. Well, after I had stood about 30 minutes of the wrongs done the 鈥楽outhern People鈥� by carpet baggers, scalawags and Negroes, I took advantage of a pause to ask: 鈥榃ould it be scientific to consider the scalawags and Negroes as 鈥楽outhern People鈥�?鈥欌�� Reddick wrote in 1937 to , editor of the Journal of Negro History.

鈥淗e tried to stammer out some sort of an explanation. I did not push the point. I kept thinking of a bull in the bull fight reeling over the arena with the hilt buried in his head. The lecture was ruined. 鈥� Altogether it is hopeful when such simple questions can bring down such high 鈥榓uthority.鈥欌��

Reddick鈥檚 1965 book Worth Fighting For, written for younger people, explored the role of African American people in both the Civil War and Reconstruction, facts that 鈥淐raven proved either unable or unwilling to accept,鈥� Varel writes.

The article, Varel says, was not just 鈥渁 great way for me to show that this guy鈥檚 name really shouldn鈥檛 be on the award,鈥� but also gave him the opportunity to showcase a more deserving scholar.

For now, the OAH website is soliciting submissions for the Civil War and Reconstruction Book Award. English says the process to officially rename the award has not yet begun. Whether the board chooses to honor Reddick remains to be seen.

鈥淲hether or not the suggested name (Reddick) put forward will end up being chosen, I can鈥檛 say. The name would go through this process to consider his scholarship, contributions to the field and other long-lasting ramifications,鈥� English says.

Whatever the eventual name of the award, Varel sees the board鈥檚 response as powerful evidence that the work of historians can make a difference.听听

鈥淭hey did exactly what my article called for,鈥� he says. 鈥淚t feels like my听work had a direct impact on the world.鈥�