“American Dark Age: Racial Feudalism”

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One would think that a nation born out of the idea “that all men are created equal,” and that fought one of the first revolutionary wars to rid itself of a “tyrant king” would be inherently antithetical to monarchy, serfs and feudal lords.  Yet here we are, in 2025, with the President of the United States gloating “long live the king.”  While conventional history describes the founding of the United States as the embodiment of enlightenment ideals, to African-American critics such as Frederick Douglass, it was apparent that the young nation had not entirely thrown off the yoke of feudalism.  In fact, a current of belief in the divine right of kings has permeated American political thought since its founding.  That’s the central thesis of Harvard Fellow Keidrick Roy’s new book “American Dark Ages: Racial Feudalism and the Rise of Black Liberalism.”  Keidrick Roy joined Monday Buzz host Brian Standing on February 24, 2025.

Featured image: “American Dark Ages” cover courtesy of Princeton University Press Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate here

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