Barack Obama and the American Democratic Tradition

This session examines the ideas of Barack Obama, as expressed in his books Dreams from My Father and The Audacity of Hope, in relation to American historical scholarship and broader changes in American thought an culture since the 1960s.  It brings together intellectual and cultural historians and legal scholars with expertise in the fields of constitutional law, political reform, gender, race, and ethnicity, who will assess Obama's writings in relation to the history of American socio-economic, political, and cultural conflict.