McKendree English Professor Poised to Publish New Book
Lebanon, IL (07/10/2025) — Dr. Martha Patterson, professor of English at McKendree University, along with co-editor Henry Louis Gates, Jr., has recently finished her latest book, The New Negro: A History in Documents, 1887-1937. This new work, which was completed while Dr. Patterson was a Hutchins Fellow at Harvard University this spring, has been a passion project in the making since 2018. It is currently available both online and in select independent bookstores and has earned a star review from Library Journal.
This authoritative anthology traces the history of one of the most important concepts Black people drew on - the New Negro - to challenge the brutal, totalizing system of Jim Crow racism. It features dozens of newly unearthed pieces by major figures including W. E. B. Du Bois, Charles S. Johnson, Drusilla Dunjee Houston, and more, which reflect the courage, anger, and eloquence of a people fighting to be treated as equal citizens under the law.
"African American studies is currently under attack by an administration that seeks to paint it as somehow anti-American, when the African American struggle for civil rights is arguably one of the most American moments," said Dr. Patterson. "It is vital that we affirm the importance of this history."
A resident of O'Fallon, Ill., Dr. Patterson collaborated with Gates, Jr., Alphonse Fletcher University professor and director of the Hutchins Center for African & American Research at Harvard University, to make this anthology a reality.
"Working with Gates, Jr., was the most rewarding experience of my academic career," said Dr. Patterson. "He is a beautiful writer and gave me advice about where I might develop ideas in my introduction, how to structure the collection, and what to include. He is the one who picked out the incredibly powerful image of Aaron Freelon for the cover of the book."
Dr. Patterson, who is currently writing a biography of Era Bell Thompson, plans to include discussions of the New Negro and the figure's significance in her future classes at McKendree.
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