Description
Book SynopsisA critical investigation into the associational culture of African American freemasonry
Trade Review“Recommended.”--Choice
"An astounding reinterpretation of the roots of the black Masonic movement."--
The Journal of American History"A valuable contribution to our understanding of the relationship between Masonic cultural and institutional forms and the struggle for democracy among African Americans."--
Journal of African American Studies"This very important work is extraordinarily well researched, theoretically sophisticated, and well written. A major intervention and valuable contribution to the fields of Africana and American studies, cultural studies, and political theory."--Anthony Bogues, author of
Black Heretics and Black Prophets: Radical Political Intellectuals"Walker's attention to freemasonry expands the terrain of analysis of black civil society. His retelling of the story of the beginning of the association--foregrounding the black Atlantic context--recasts how scholars in the field think of the Masons and their place in African American history. Superb scholarship."--Eddie S. Glaude Jr., author of
In a Shade of Blue: Pragmatism and the Politics of Black AmericaTable of ContentsPreface: A Note on Freemasonry vii
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction: Secret Rites, Public Power 1
1. The Specter of Democracy 23
2. A Cartography of Democracy 45
3. Ritual and Revolution 86
4. A New Political Ideology 128
5. The Democratic Uses of Ritual and Secrecy 175
Epilogue: Race, Ritual, and the Struggle for Democracy in America 219
Notes 227
Index 281
