James M. McPherson

For the Civil War General of the same name see James B. McPherson

James M. McPherson (born October 11, 1936) is an American Civil War historian, and is the George Henry Davis '86 Professor of United States History at Princeton University. He received the Pulitzer Prize for Battle Cry of Freedom, his most famous book.

Born in Valley City, North Dakota, he received his Bachelor of Arts at Gustavus Adolphus College (St. Peter, Minnesota) in 1958 (from which he graduated cum laude), and his Ph.D. at Johns Hopkins University in 1963. Currently he resides in Princeton, New Jersey, and is divorced with one child.

Scholarship

McPherson's works include The Struggle for Equality, awarded the Anisfield-Wolf Award. In 1989, he published his Pulitzer-winning book, Battle Cry of Freedom. His most recent book, Cause and Comrades, was published in 1998, and received the Lincoln Prize.

McPherson is an outspoken proponent of revisionist history. "Revisionism," he argues, is "what makes history vital and meaningful"[1]

McPherson's Civil War work has come under criticism for a perceived latent pro-North bias to his work and for exhibiting a liberal political bent. His grasp of economic issues in particular are described as poor quality by some including economist and Abraham Lincoln critic Thomas DiLorenzo [2]. According to DiLorenzo, McPherson often relies upon his own reputation as a well known Civil War historian rather than any training in economics (he has none) or qualified examination of statistical data to provide economic analysis that is erroneous. Others have criticized McPherson for exhibiting marxist or revolutionary historiography in some of his work - a complaint that has also been made against Civil War historian Eric Foner.

Politics

In 1998 McPherson joined a group of scholars, most of them law professors, in supporting President Bill Clinton against impeachment charges during the Monica Lewinsky scandal. While serving as president of the American Historical Association he espoused Affirmative Action and criticized the George W. Bush administration's doctrine of preemptive war in Iraq.[3] [4] Responding to comments in 2003 when Bush and Condoleeza Rice criticized revisionist historians, McPherson accused the Bush Administration of using deceptive information to "justify an unprovoked invasion" of Iraq. [5]

McPherson has also espoused the removal of confederate flag imagery from state flags and other government symbols, leading to accusations of an anti-south bias.

Democracy Now interview & Boycott

In 1999 McPherson drew the ire of many Civil War enthusiasts during an interview with leftist activist Ed Sebesta and radio hosts Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzales on the Pacifica Radio network's Democracy Now! program. During the interview McPherson attacked the Sons of Confederate Veterans and United Daughters of the Confederacy - two century old Civil War genealogical groups that are largely seen as benign heritage organizations - as neo-confederate hate groups. McPherson stated:

"I think, I agree a 100% with Ed Sebesta about the motives or the hidden agenda, not too, not too deeply hidden I think of such groups as the United Daughters of the Confederacy and the Sons of Confederate Veterans. They are dedicated to celebrating the Confederacy and rather thinly veiled support for white supremacy. And I think that also is the again not very deeply hidden agenda of the Confederate flag issue in several southern states."

McPherson also remarked that board members of the Museum of the Confederacy in Richmond, Virginia were "undoubtedly neo-Confederate." These comments outraged members of the UDC and SCV, bringing condemnation of McPherson and causing many of their chapters to urge the boycott of his books.[6] A year later McPherson responded to the boycott campaign by elaborating on his comments:

"If I implied that all U.D.C. chapters or S.C.V. chapters or anyone who belongs to those is promoting a white-supremacist agenda, that's not what I meant to say," he said. "What I meant to say is that some of these people have a hidden agenda of white supremacy, (which) they might not even recognize they're involved in"

The UDC and SCV were similarly offended by these comments. The Virginia UDC responded in their newsletter that "Far from apologizing for his baseless accusations of racism, (McPherson) has now added ignorance to the list of sins that we have committed." The groups continue to oppose McPherson. [7]

External links

• Barnes & Noble - Meet the Writers
• Princeton University Biography+
• Democracy Now November 3, 1999: George W. Bush and the Confederacy: Where Does He Stand?
• Virginia UDC: Princeton Educator Maligns UDC