w.e.b. du bois and anna julie cooper, which she says were often marginalized. however, recently, they have been looked to for insights into the history of race relations in the united states. this talk is part of the great lives lecture series presented by the university of mary washington which provided the video. >> dr. marsh is the chair of the department of sociology at the university of mary washington where she has taught for 20 years. she teaches courses in a ride -- wide range of areas. -- a wide range of areas. central concerns include a focus on the ways that race and class, gender and other categories of inequality are structured to reproduce through social institutions. in light of her background, i can think of no one better qualified to speak on this subject so it is a great pleasure to introduce dr. kristin marsh. dr. marsh: hello. i went to thank bill crawley for inviting me this year. it is a real opportunity for the faculty to get to share some interests. also, thank you to hersche

du bois even globalized the new negro, w.e.b. du bois first man to get a ph.d. from harvard in history. du bois curated the negro exhibit and he took 363 photographs of black people, many of whom were not even visibly black because he wanted to show the genetic diversity of the african-american community and they're all, of course, upper class black people. he's trying to defeat this racist image that had been created by the redemptionist movement with the rise of white supremacy. it was true in art. it was true in novels. it was true in folklore. even if you read joel chandler harris' tales. and he had a lot to preserve traditional black folk tale. times he's put words in their mouth like, our people don't need the right to vote, or we don't need all that education. that's a real mistake. a waste of emergency. it was true in the social sciences and it was true at the racial science. you know about the science of eugenics. louie agassi, a person who claims that they're a descendent is suing harvard for using those. but agassi was a professor, he was a stone-cold

if there is to be a canon in the social sciences, w.e.b. du bois and anna julie cooper clearly to be -- clearly deserved to be included. >> exploring the american story, since 2011, we have been to more than 200 communities across the nation. our staff is staying close to home because of the coronavirus. next, a look at one of our visits. >> one, two, three. the national finals of the rodeo. >> there's no place better to be the second week of july than sheridan, wyoming. we put on a world-class event, and we just love to invite you all to come to sheridan. >> ♪ oh, say can you see by the dawn's early light what so proudly we hailed by the twilight's last gleaming ♪ >> i will tell you what. this week is the biggest week in sheridan, economically and entertainment wise. we feel good about that because 89 years ago, sheridan was dead as a doornail. there was absolutely nothing going on. so some citizens decided we needed to have a rodeo to provide some economic opportunity and entertainment. and that was their charter, and it still is. so here we are

that's important, lisa, because i actually am a believer in w.e.b. du bois statement that as the south goes, , so goes the nation. i believe we have to make change happen in the south. i want us to focus our efforts in working with our partners on the ground in the south to make the change happen. i think it will support efforts across the country. >> since you bring that up and we know you're from tennessee as you mentioned in your opening remarks, can you tell us about how your own upbringing contributed to your decisions to work in civil rights? and then i'm also wondering if you encounter any racism yourself growing up in a place like tennessee? >> i don't think you'll be surprised to that of course i encountered racism growing up in east tennessee. my father is regionally from china. my mother is originally from new england, and when they met and got married in 1965, it was still illegal for them to be married in many parts of the country. they chose to raise me in east tennessee because they were both professors and they taught at universities in the t

. >> kristin marsh discusses the contributions of civil rights activists w.e.b. du boisnd anna julie cooper, which she says were often marginalized. however, recently, they have been looked to for insights into the history of race relations in the united states. this talk is part of the great lives lecture series presented by the university of mary washington which provided the video. >> dr. marsh is the chair of the department of sociology at the university of mary washington where she has taught for 20 years. she teaches courses in a ride -- wide range of areas. -- a wide range of areas. central concerns include a focus on the ways that race and class, gender and other categories of