Cartography of Hope: W.E.B. Du Bois on “Racial Feeling” and Japan in World History

W.E.B. Du Bois, the great historian, sociologist, novelist, and acute observer of global affairs, is widely recognized as one of the most prolific Black writers on Asia of the twentieth century. Yet even the most sympathetic of Du Bois’ followers have acknowledged the troubling truth that during the critical period of the Asia Pacific War (1931-45) Du Bois hesitated to censure the Japanese empire, at times even explicitly affirming its official propaganda. While most scholars who have commented on this understudied topic have blamed Du Bois’ over-investment in the racial ties among peoples of color, this presentation argues that his decisions were overdetermined by a number of factors that played into what he called “racial feeling.” These included his materialist understanding of the ties between race as an effect, capitalism, war, and imperialism.

 

 

Takashi Fujitani is the Dr. David Chu Chair in Asia Pacific Studies, Emeritus at the University of Toronto. His major works include: Splendid Monarchy (UC Press, 1996); Race for Empire: Koreans as Japanese and Japanese as Americans During WWII (UC Press, 2011); and Perilous Memories: The Asia Pacific War(s) (co-edited, Duke U. Press, 2001). He is editor of the book series Asia Pacific Modern (UC Press) and has held numerous grants and fellowships, including from the John S. Guggenheim Foundation. While he is primarily known as a historian of Japan, his 2011 book was runner-up for the John Hope Franklin Prize (best book in American Studies). He is currently working on several books: The Japanese Empire (under contract with Polity Press); Promise of Freedom: Nation, Empire, and Sovereign in Japan’s Modernity; and Cold War Clint: Asians, “Indians” and Others in an American Political (Un)conscious.  

 

Max Mishler is an Assistant Professor in the Department of History at the University of Toronto. He specializes in the transnational history of the United States, with a focus on slavery, abolition, incarceration, and the history of capitalism. His current book manuscript, entitled "Civil Slavery: Punishment, Abolition, and the Origins of Mass Incarceration," explores the intertwined histories of slave emancipation and penal servitude in the Atlantic world. He is also broadly interested in public humanities, particularly developing educational programs for currently and formerly incarcerated people.