David Levering Lewis (born May 25, 1936) is an American historian, a Julius Silver University Professor, and a professor of history at
New York University
New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin.
In 1832, th ...
. He is twice winner of the
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made h ...
for Biography or Autobiography, for part one and part two of his biography of
W. E. B. Du Bois (in 1994 and 2001, respectively). He is the first author to win Pulitzer Prizes for biography for two successive volumes on the same subject.
The author of eight books and editor of two more, Lewis concentrates on comparative history with special focus on twentieth-century United States social history and
civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life of ...
. His interests include nineteenth-century Africa,
twentieth-century France, and
Islamic Spain
Al-Andalus translit. ; an, al-Andalus; ast, al-Ándalus; eu, al-Andalus; ber, ⴰⵏⴷⴰⵍⵓⵙ, label= Berber, translit=Andalus; ca, al-Àndalus; gl, al-Andalus; oc, Al Andalús; pt, al-Ândalus; es, al-Ándalus () was the Mu ...
.
Life
Lewis was born in 1936 in
Little Rock, Arkansas
(The Little Rock, The "Little Rock")
, government_type = council-manager government, Council-manager
, leader_title = List of mayors of Little Rock, Arkansas, Mayor
, leader_name = Frank Scott Jr.
, leader_ ...
to a
middle-class African-American family. His father John Henry Lewis, Sr. had graduated from
Morris Brown College
Morris Brown College (MBC) is a private Methodist historically black liberal arts college in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded January 5, 1881, Morris Brown is the first educational institution in Georgia to be owned and operated entirely by African Ame ...
in Atlanta, and went on to
Yale Divinity School
Yale Divinity School (YDS) is one of the twelve graduate and professional schools of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut.
Congregationalist theological education was the motivation at the founding of Yale, and the professional school has ...
, becoming its first African-American graduate. He also earned an M.A. in
sociology
Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of Empirical ...
from the
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...
. He became principal of
Dunbar Junior and Senior High School and Junior College in Little Rock. Lewis' mother taught high school math in the school.
While the family lived in Little Rock, the young Lewis attended parochial school. Lewis attended Wilberforce Preparatory School and
Xenia High School
Xenia High School is a public high school in Xenia, Ohio, United States.
History
The circa 1957 high school was destroyed by an F5 tornado on April 3, 1974, during what was dubbed the 1974 Super Outbreak. A replacement building was constructed in ...
after his father became Dean of the Theological School at
Wilberforce University
Wilberforce University is a private historically black university in Wilberforce, Ohio. Affiliated with the African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME), it was the first college to be owned and operated by African Americans. It participates in t ...
in
Wilberforce, Ohio
Wilberforce is a census-designated place (CDP) in Greene County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,271 at the 2010 census, up from 1,579 at the 2000 census.
History
After Wilberforce College was established in 1856, the community was a ...
.
When the family moved to
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
after his father became President of Morris Brown College, Lewis attended
Booker T. Washington High School in his junior year. He gained early admission at age fifteen to
Fisk University
Fisk University is a private historically black liberal arts college in Nashville, Tennessee. It was founded in 1866 and its campus is a historic district listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
In 1930, Fisk was the first Africa ...
in
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...
. He graduated
Phi Beta Kappa
The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal a ...
in 1956.
Lewis briefly attended the
University of Michigan Law School
The University of Michigan Law School (Michigan Law) is the law school of the University of Michigan, a Public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Founded in 1859, the school offers Master of Laws (LLM), Master of C ...
but left to attend
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
, where he earned his
M.A.
A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...
in
history
History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the History of writing#Inventions of writing, invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbr ...
in 1959. He went to the
London School of Economics
, mottoeng = To understand the causes of things
, established =
, type = Public research university
, endowment = £240.8 million (2021)
, budget = £391.1 millio ...
for his doctorate, earning his Ph.D. in 1962 in modern European and French history.
["David Levering Lewis"](_blank)
, The History Makers
Organization of American History
In 1961–1962, Lewis served in the
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
as a psychiatric technician and
private first class
Private first class (french: Soldat de 1 classe; es, Soldado de primera) is a military rank held by junior enlisted personnel in a number of armed forces.
French speaking countries
In France and other French speaking countries, the rank (; ) ...
in
Landstuhl, Germany
Landstuhl () is a town in the Kaiserslautern district of Rhineland-Palatinate in Germany. It is the seat of ''Verbandsgemeinde Landstuhl'', a kind of "collective municipality." Landstuhl is situated on the north-west edge of the Palatinate F ...
.
[, Faculty of Arts and Sciences, New York University]
Lewis has three adult children (Eric, Allison, and Jason) from his first marriage.
Academic career
In 1963, Lewis lectured at the
University of Ghana
The University of Ghana is a public university located in Accra, Ghana. It the oldest and largest of the thirteen Ghanaian national public universities.
The university was founded in 1948 as the University College of the Gold Coast in the Br ...
on medieval African history. After returning to the United States, Lewis taught at
Morgan State University
Morgan State University (Morgan State or MSU) is a public historically black research university in Baltimore, Maryland. It is the largest of Maryland's historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs). In 1867, the university, then known ...
, the
University of Notre Dame
The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin founded the school in 1842. The main campu ...
,
Howard University
Howard University (Howard) is a private, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity" and accredited by the Middle States Commissi ...
, and the
University of the District of Columbia
The University of the District of Columbia (UDC) is a public historically black land-grant university in Washington, D.C. It was established in 1851 and is the only public university in the city. UDC is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall ...
from 1970 to 1980 as associate and full professor. Lewis was professor of history at
University of California at San Diego
The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego or colloquially, UCSD) is a public land-grant research university in San Diego, California. Established in 1960 near the pre-existing Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego is t ...
from 1980 to 1984.
In 1985, Lewis joined
Rutgers University
Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's ...
as the Martin Luther King Jr. Professor of History, where he wrote his Pulitzer Prize-winning two volume-biography of
W. E. B. Du Bois and finished writing ''The Race to Fashoda: European Colonialism and African Resistance in the Scramble for Africa'' during his 18-year tenure.
In spring semester 2001, Lewis served as distinguished visiting professor in Harvard's history department.
In 2003, Lewis was appointed and currently serves as the Julius Silver University Professor and Professor of History at
New York University
New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin.
In 1832, th ...
.
He has received fellowships from the
Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences
The Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences (CASBS) is an interdisciplinary research lab at Stanford University that offers a residential postdoctoral fellowship program for scientists and scholars studying "the five core social a ...
, the
National Humanities Center The National Humanities Center (NHC) is an independent institute for advanced study in the humanities. The NHC operates as a privately incorporated nonprofit and is not part of any university or federal agency. The center was planned under the auspi ...
, the
Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars (or Wilson Center) is a quasi-government entity and think tank which conducts research to inform public policy. Located in the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in Washi ...
, the
John Simon Guggenheim Foundation
The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation was founded in 1925 by Olga and Simon Guggenheim
John Simon Guggenheim (December 30, 1867 – November 2, 1941) was an American businessman, politician and philanthropist.
Life
Born in Philadelphi ...
, the
American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...
, and the
John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
Professional career
Lewis is the author of the first academic biography of
Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...
, which was published in 1970, less than two years after the subject's assassination. His ''Prisoners of Honor: The
Dreyfus Affair
The Dreyfus affair (french: affaire Dreyfus, ) was a political scandal that divided the French Third Republic from 1894 until its resolution in 1906. "L'Affaire", as it is known in French, has come to symbolise modern injustice in the Francop ...
'' was published in 1974; ''The Bicentennial History of the District of Columbia'' was published in 1976; and ''When Harlem Was in Vogue'' in 1980. Lewis wrote his Pulitzer Prize-winning two volume-biography of
W. E. B. Du Bois during his 18-year tenure at Rutgers.
Besides the two Pulitzer Prizes for his volumes on W. E. B. Du Bois, published in 1994 and 2001, Lewis in 1994 won the
Bancroft Prize
The Bancroft Prize is awarded each year by the trustees of Columbia University for books about diplomacy or the history of the Americas.
It was established in 1948, with a bequest from Frederic Bancroft, in his memory and that of his brother, ...
and the
Francis Parkman Prize
The Francis Parkman Prize, named after Francis Parkman, is awarded by the Society of American Historians for the best book in American history each year. Its purpose is to promote literary distinction in historical writing. The Society of American ...
for his first volume. In 2001 he also won the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award for his second volume on Du Bois, published that year.
He is a former trustee of the National Humanities Center, former commissioner of the
National Portrait Gallery, and a former senator of
Phi Beta Kappa
The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal a ...
.
Lewis appeared as a historical expert in the 1999 film ''
New York: A Documentary Film'', directed by
Ric Burns for
PBS
The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...
and ''
The African Americans: Many Rivers to Cross'' 2013 documentary miniseries written and presented by
Henry Louis Gates Jr.
Henry Louis "Skip" Gates Jr. (born September 16, 1950) is an American literary critic, professor, historian, and filmmaker, who serves as the Alphonse Fletcher University Professor and Director of the Hutchins Center for African and African A ...
for PBS.
He was president of the
Society of American Historians
The Society of American Historians, founded in 1939, encourages and honors literary distinction in the writing of history and biography about American topics. The approximately 300 members include professional historians, independent scholars, jou ...
in 2002, and is a board member of the magazine ''
The Crisis
''The Crisis'' is the official magazine of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). It was founded in 1910 by W. E. B. Du Bois (editor), Oswald Garrison Villard, J. Max Barber, Charles Edward Russell, Kelly Mi ...
'', published by the
NAACP
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E.&nb ...
. He is a fellow of the
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and ...
and the
American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...
.
He was an Ellen Maria Gorrissen Fellow at the
American Academy in Berlin
The American Academy in Berlin is a private, independent, nonpartisan research and cultural institution in Berlin dedicated to sustaining and enhancing the long-term intellectual, cultural, and political ties between the United States and Germany ...
, Germany, in spring 2008.
President
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...
awarded him the 2009
National Humanities Medal
The National Humanities Medal is an American award that annually recognizes several individuals, groups, or institutions for work that has "deepened the nation's understanding of the humanities, broadened our citizens' engagement with the human ...
at the
White House
The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...
on February 25, 2010. Lewis delivered the inaugural convocation lecture at
New York University Abu Dhabi
New York University Abu Dhabi (NYUAD, ar, جامعة نيويورك أبوظبي) is a degree granting, portal campus of New York University serving as a private, liberal arts college, located in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Together with ...
in the United Arab Emirates on September 19, 2010.
Books by David Levering Lewis
* ; Univ. of Illinois Press, 1979.
* ''Prisoners of Honor: The Dreyfus Affair'', William Morrow, 1974.
* ''District of Columbia: A Bicentennial History'', W.W. Norton, 1976.
* ''The Race for Fashoda: European Colonialism and African Resistance in The Scramble for Africa.'' New York: Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1987
* David L. Lewis (ed.) ''The Portable Harlem Renaissance Reader'', Viking, 1994,
*
* ''When Harlem Was in Vogue'' New York: Knopf, 1981,
* Winner of the 1994 Pulitzer Prize for Biography, and winner also of the Bancroft and Parkman prizes.
* Winner of the 2001 Pulitzer Prize for Biography and the
Anisfield-Wolf Book Award The Anisfield-Wolf Book Award is an American literary award dedicated to honoring written works that make important contributions to the understanding of racism and the appreciation of the rich diversity of human culture. Established in 1935 by Clev ...
*
* (with
Deborah Willis) ''A Small Nation of People: W. E. B. Du Bois & African American Portraits of Progress,'' HarperCollins, 2003.
* ''God's Crucible: Islam and the Making of Europe, 570-1215,'' (New York: W. W. Norton and Company, 2008)
*
* ''The Implausible Wendell Willkie: Leadership Ahead of Its Time'' in
Walter Isaacson
Walter Seff Isaacson (born May 20, 1952) is an American author, journalist, and professor. He has been the President and CEO of the Aspen Institute, a nonpartisan policy studies organization based in Washington, D.C., the chair and CEO of CNN, ...
(ed.) ''Profiles in Leadership'' (
W. W. Norton & Company, 2011)
*
References
External links
"W.E.B. DuBois as a Historical Novelist"Audio recording: David Levering Lewis at the
Key West Literary Seminar
The Key West Literary Seminar is a writers' conference and festival held each January in Key West, Florida. It draws an international audience for readings, panel discussions, and workshops.
History
The Seminar was founded in 1983 by David Kaufe ...
, 2009
"Pulitzer Prize for Biography: David Levering Lewis" with Gwen Ifill, ''PBS Newshour,'' 23 April 2001
PBS WNET, New York
*
Interview with Lewis ''
In Depth
''In Depth'' is a program that airs monthly on C-SPAN 2 as part of their Book TV programming, and features a different writer each month. Each interview covers the breadth of that author's writing career, and incorporates viewer calls and e-mails ...
'', 3 February 2008,
C-SPAN
Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network (C-SPAN ) is an American cable and satellite television network that was created in 1979 by the cable television industry as a nonprofit public service. It televises many proceedings of the United States ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lewis, David Levering
1936 births
African-American academics
African-American educators
Living people
Historians of race relations
21st-century American historians
21st-century American male writers
American biographers
Bancroft Prize winners
Pulitzer Prize for Biography or Autobiography winners
MacArthur Fellows
Fisk University alumni
University of Michigan Law School alumni
Columbia University alumni
Rutgers University faculty
Alumni of the London School of Economics
Writers from Arkansas
Writers from New York (state)
Writers from Little Rock, Arkansas
University of Ghana faculty
Howard University faculty
University of California, San Diego faculty
Harvard University faculty
New York University faculty
National Humanities Medal recipients
New York University Abu Dhabi faculty
Academics from Arkansas
United States Army soldiers
American male non-fiction writers
21st-century African-American writers
20th-century African-American people
African-American male writers