Jason Sokol is a historian of the civil rights movement. He is the author of three books: There Goes My Everything: White Southerners in the Age of Civil Rights (Alfred A. Knopf), which was named one of the 10 best books of 2006 in the Washington Post Book World; All Eyes Are Upon Us: Race and Politics from Boston to Brooklyn (Basic Books, 2014); and The Heavens Might Crack: The Death and Legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr. (Basic Books, 2018).
Sokol was raised in Springfield, Massachusetts (the birthplace of basketball). He graduated from Oberlin College, and received his doctorate in history from the University of California, Berkeley.He is the recipient of post-doctoral fellowships from Harvard University, the University of Pennsylvania, and Cornell University. He was also awarded a Public Scholar grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities.
He has published articles in a variety of scholarly journals as well as popular publications including The New York Times, The Boston Globe, The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Politico, and The Root.
Courses Taught
- HIST 406: History of Modern US
- HIST 440A: Honors/MLK:StruggleRacial Just
- HIST 616/816: United States Since WWII
- HIST 690: Seminar: Historical Expl
- HIST 690/890: Sem/Rethink Civil Rights Mvmt
- HIST 695: Independent Study
- HIST 890: Seminar: Historical Expl
- HIST 940: Read/Modern American History
- HIST 990: Research Sem Modern Amer Hist
- HIST 999: Doctoral Research
- JUST 701/801: SenSem/CivlRightsMove&RacialJs
Research Interests
- 20th century U.S.
- African-American History
- Civil Rights movement
- Political history
Selected Publications
Sokol, J. (2018). The World Stands Aghast: The Death of Martin Luther King, Jr. in Global Perspective. Journal of African American History, 103(3).
Sokol, J. (2018). The Heavens Might Crack The Death and Legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.. Basic Books.
Sokol, J. (2014). All Eyes are Upon Us Race and Politics from Boston to Brooklyn. Basic Books.
Sokol, J. (2006). There Goes My Everything White Southerners in the Age of Civil Rights, 1945-1975. Knopf.
Sokol, J. (2018, April 12). Historical Perspectives on the Democratic Party. In Organization of American Historians Annual Meeting. Sacramento, CA.
Sokol, J. C. (2018, April 6). Responses to the Death of Martin Luther King Jr.. In MLK: Life, Loss, Legacy. Harvard University.
