Robin Blackburn (born 1940) is a British historian, a former editor of ''

New Left Review The ''New Left Review'' is a British bimonthly journal, established in 1960, which analyses international politics, the global economy, social theory, and cultural topics from a leftist perspective. History Background As part of the emergin ...

'' (1983–1999), and emeritus professor in the department of sociology at

Essex University The University of Essex is a public research university in Essex, England. Established by royal charter in 1965, it is one of the original plate glass universities. The university comprises three campuses in the county, in Southend-on-Sea and ...

Background

Blackburn was educated at Hurstpierpoint College,

Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...

and the

London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. The school specialises in the social sciences. Founded ...

. Between 2001 and 2010, he was distinguished visiting professor of historical studies at

The New School The New School is a Private university, private research university in New York City. It was founded in 1919 as The New School for Social Research with an original mission dedicated to academic freedom and intellectual inquiry and a home for p ...

in New York City. He is an emeritus professor in the department of sociology at

. He has been a regular contributor to ''

'' since 1962, and he was the journal editor from 1983 to 1999. Blackburn has written essays on the collapse of Soviet Communism, on the "

credit crunch A credit crunch (a credit squeeze, credit tightening or credit crisis) is a sudden reduction in the general availability of loans (or credit) or a sudden tightening of the conditions required to obtain a loan from banks. A credit crunch generally ...

" of 2008, and of books on the

history of slavery The history of slavery spans many cultures, nationalities, and Slavery and religion, religions from ancient times to the present day. Likewise, its victims have come from many different ethnicities and religious groups. The social, economic, a ...

and on social policy. Four of his books—''The Reckoning: From the Second Slavery to Abolition, 1776–1888'' (2024), ''American Crucible: Slavery, Emancipation and Human Rights'' (2011), ''The Making of New World Slavery: From the Baroque to the Modern, 1492–1800'' (1997) and ''The Overthrow of Colonial Slavery, 1776–1848'' (1988)—offer an account of the rise and fall of colonial slavery in the Americas, contributing to the emerging field of " Atlantic history". He has also published histories of

Social Security Welfare spending is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specifically to social insurance ...

, and critiques of the " financialisation of everyday life" and of the privatisation of pension provision. In 1997, he was awarded the Deutscher Memorial Prize for his book ''The Making of New World Slavery: From the Baroque to the Modern, 1492–1800''.

Selected works/articles

* *''Towards Socialism'', edited for the ''New Left Review'' (with

Perry Anderson Francis Rory Peregrine "Perry" Anderson (born 11 September 1938) is a British intellectual, political philosopher, historian and essayist. His work ranges across historical sociology, intellectual history, and cultural analysis. What unites An ...

, 1966). *''The Incompatibles: Trade Union Militancy and the Consensus'' (with

Alexander Cockburn Alexander Claud Cockburn ( ; 6 June 1941 – 21 July 2012) was a Scottish-born Irish-American political journalist and writer. Cockburn was brought up by British parents in Ireland, but lived and worked in the United States from 1972. Together ...

, 1967). * *''Student Power: problems, diagnosis, action'' (edited with Alexander Cockburn, 1969). *''Strategy for revolution'' ssays by Régis Debray, translated from the French">Régis_Debray.html" ;"title="ssays by Régis Debray">ssays by Régis Debray, translated from the French(editor, 1970). *''Ideology in Social Science: Readings in Critical Social Theory'' (editor, 1972). *''Explosion in a Subcontinent: India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Ceylon'' (editor, 1975). *''Revolution and Class Struggle: A Reader in Marxist Politics'' (editor, 1977). *''The Overthrow of Colonial Slavery, 1776–1848'' (1988), 550 pp. *"Fin de Siecle", in ''After the Fall: The Failure of Communism and the Future of Socialism'' (editor, 1991). *''The Making of New World Slavery: From the Baroque to the Modern, 1492–1800'' (1997), 600 pp. *''Banking on Death: Or, Investing in Life — The History and Future of Pensions'' (2002), 500 pp. *"Haiti, Slavery and the Age of the Democratic Revolution", ''William and Mary Quarterly'', 2006. *''Age Shock: How Finance Is Failing Us'' (2006), 280 pp. *"Economic Democracy: Meaningful, Desirable, Feasible?", ''Daedalus (journal), Daedalus'', Summer 2007. * * *''The American Crucible: Slavery, Emancipation and Human Rights'' (2011), 460 pp. *''Marx and Lincoln: An Unfinished Revolution'' (2011), 220 pp. * *"Gunboat Abolitionism", ''New Left Review''. II (79). May–June 2013. *"Stuart Hall 1932–2014", ''New Left Review''. II (86). March–April 2014. *''The Reckoning: From the Second Slavery to Abolition, 1776–1888'' (2024), 544 pp.

References

External links

Robin Blackburn

''Guardian'' profileEssex University homepageNew School for Social Research (New York) Homepage''
book review in ''

International Socialism ''International Socialism'' is a British-based quarterly journal established in 1960 and published in London by the Socialist Workers Party which discusses socialist theory. It is currently edited by Joseph Choonara who replaced Alex Callini ...

'' 2:9 (1980)
''Reviewing the millennia''
book review in ''International Socialism'', 2:86 (Spring 2000)
"What really ended slavery?"
an interview with Blackburn in ''International Socialism'', 2:115 (Summer 2007) {{DEFAULTSORT:Blackburn, Robin 1940 births Academics of the London School of Economics Alumni of the London School of Economics British expatriate academics in the United States British historians Deutscher Memorial Prize winners Historians of colonialism Historians of communism Historians of the Caribbean International Marxist Group members Living people The New School faculty