New Books Network

About Derek Litvak

Derek Litvak is a PhD candidate at the University of Maryland—College Park. His dissertation, "The Specter of Black Citizens: Race, Slavery, and Citizenship in the Early United States," examines how citizenship was used to both bolster the institution of slavery and exclude Black Americans from the body politic.

NBN Episodes hosted by Derek:

History December 14, 2020

The World Colonization Made

The Racial Geography of Early American Empire

Brandon Mills

Hosted by Derek Litvak
Brandon Mills is the author of The World Colonization Made: The Racial Geography of Early American Empire, published by the University of Pennsylvania Press in 2020. The World Colonization Made …
African American Studies October 16, 2020

An Intimate Economy

Enslaved Women, Work, and America’s Domestic Slave Trade

Alexandra J. Finley

Hosted by Derek Litvak
Alexandra J. Finley is the author of An Intimate Economy: Enslaved Women, Work, and America’s Domestic Slave Trade, published by the University of North Carolina Press in 2020. An Intimate …
American Studies September 1, 2020

Free Justice

A History of the Public Defender in Twentieth-Century America

Sara Mayeux

Hosted by Derek Litvak
Sara Mayeux is the author of Free Justice: A History of the Public Defender in Twentieth-Century America, published by the University of North Carolina Press in 2020. Free Justice explores …
African American Studies August 19, 2020

Contagions of Empire

Scientific Racism, Sexuality, and Black Military Workers Abroad, 1898-1948

Khary Oronde Polk

Hosted by Derek Litvak
Khary Oronde Polk is the author of Contagions of Empire: Scientific Racism, Sexuality, and Black Military Workers Abroad, 1898-1948, published by the University of North Carolina Press in 2020. Contagions …
American Studies August 18, 2020

Beneath the Backbone of the World

Blackfoot People and the North American Borderlands, 1720-1877

Ryan Hall

Hosted by Derek Litvak
Ryan Hall is the author of Beneath the Backbone of the World: Blackfoot People and the North American Borderlands, 1720-1877, published by the University of North Carolina Press in 2020 …
African American Studies August 17, 2020

Black Market

The Slave's Value in National Culture after 1865

Aaron Carico

Hosted by Derek Litvak
On the eve of the Civil War, the estimated value of the U.S. enslaved population exceeded $3 billion--triple that of investments nationwide in factories, railroads, and banks combined, and worth …
American Studies July 27, 2020

Migrant Citizenship

Race, Rights, and Reform in the U.S. Farm Labor Camp Program

Verónica Martínez-Matsuda

Hosted by Derek Litvak
Verónica Martínez-Matsuda about her book Migrant Citizenship: Race, Rights, and Reform in the U.S. Farm Labor Camp Program (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2020). Migrant Citizenship exams the Farm Security Administration’s …
Film July 24, 2020

White Balance

How Hollywood Shaped Colorblind Ideology and Undermined Civil Rights

Justin Gomer

Hosted by Derek Litvak
Justin Gomer is the author of White Balance: How Hollywood Shaped Colorblind Ideology and Undermined Civil Rights, published by the University of North Carolina Press in 2020. White Balance explores …
African American Studies June 15, 2020

How the Suburbs Were Segregated

Developers and the Business of Exclusionary Housing, 1890-1960

Paige Glotzer

Hosted by Derek Litvak
Paige Glotzer is the author of How the Suburbs Were Segregated: Developers and the Business of Exclusionary Housing, 1890-1960, published by Columbia University Press in 2020. How the Suburbs Were …
African American Studies April 2, 2020

William’s Gang

A Notorious Slave Trader and his Cargo of Black Convicts

Jeff Forret

Hosted by Derek Litvak
Jeff Forret is the author of William’s Gang: A Notorious Slave Trader and his Cargo of Black Convicts, published by Cambridge University Press in 2020. William’s Gang explores the career …
American Studies March 16, 2020

Thomas Jefferson’s Education

Alan Taylor

Hosted by Derek Litvak
Alan Taylor is the author of Thomas Jefferson’s Education published by W. W. Norton & Company in 2019. Thomas Jefferson’s Education tells the story of how Jefferson’s vision for educating …
African American Studies March 12, 2020

Standard-Bearers of Equality

America’s First Abolition Movement

Paul J. Polgar

Hosted by Derek Litvak
Paul J. Polgar is the author of Standard-Bearers of Equality: America’s First Abolition Movement, published by University of North Carolina Press in 2019. Standard-Bearers of Equality tells the story of …