DONE

I have now edited Chapter Two of my book, Autobiography of an Ex-White Man, entitled "Mr. Shapiro's Wedding Suit."  It has been uploaded to box.net, accessible by the link at the top of this page.  The chapter is a detailed analysis of the treatment of the story of American slavery in three of the leading 20th century College American History textbooks.  The joint authors of those three books -- Henry Steele Commager, Samuel Elliott Morrison, Allan Nevins, and Thomas Bailey -- were the most distinguished members of their profession.  They won many Pulitzer Prizes, served as Presidents of the Organization of American Historians and the American Historical Association, and -- through their texts -- educated generations of American college students.  Theirs is a familiar story -- America as an exceptional land, a land born in the Idea of Freedom.  That story, with its many emendations and alterations, remains the dominant narrative of America.  And it is wrong, all wrong.

I urge those of you who are professional historians or have a serious interest in American history to read the chapter.

The following chapter, which is not archived, tells the true story.  If there is anyone who is interested in that true story after reading Chapter Two, I will archive it as well.   But sufficient unto the day.