John Gleb, Author at Not Even Past

IHS Book Roundtable: The Moderate Bolshevik: Mikhail Tomsky from the Factory to the Kremlin, 1880-1936

The Moderate Bolshevik: Mikhail Tomsky from The Factory to The Kremlin, 1880-1936
Brill Publishing (Hard Cover): 2022; and Haymarket Books (Paperback): May 2023
by Charters Wynn

This first English-language biography of Mikhail Tomsky reveals his central role in all the key developments in early Soviet history, including the stormy debates over the role of unions in the self-proclaimed workers’ state. Charters Wynn’s compelling account illuminates how the charismatic Tomsky rose from an impoverished working-class background and years of tsarist prison and Siberian exile to become both a Politburo member and the head of the trade unions, where he helped shape Soviet domestic and foreign policy along generally moderate lines throughout the 1920s. His failed attempt to block Stalin’s catastrophic adoption of forced collectivization would tragically make Tomsky a prime target in the Great Purges.

“This is an excellent, deeply researched, and well-written book that will be required reading for those interested in Soviet history and will be useful for others in labor history.”
—J. Arch Getty, The Russian Review

Dr. Charters Wynn is Associate Professor of History and Director of the Frank Denius Normandy Scholar Program on World War II at the University of Texas at Austin. The American Historical Association awarded his book, Workers, Strikes, and Pogroms: The Donbass-Dnepr Bend in Late Imperial Russia, 1870-1905 (Princeton University Press, 1992), the Herbert Baxter Adams Prize.

Discussants:

H. W. Brands
Professor of History and Jack S. Blanton Sr. Chair in History
The University of Texas at Austin
https://liberalarts.utexas.edu/history/faculty/brandshw

Judith G. Coffin
Professor of History
The University of Texas at Austin
https://liberalarts.utexas.edu/history/faculty/jcoffin

David Crew
Professor of History, and Distinguished Teaching Professor
The University of Texas at Austin
https://liberalarts.utexas.edu/history/faculty/crewdf

The views and opinions expressed in this article or video are those of the individual author(s) or presenter(s) and do not necessarily reflect the policy or views of the editors at Not Even Past, the UT Department of History, the University of Texas at Austin, or the UT System Board of Regents. Not Even Past is an online public history magazine rather than a peer-reviewed academic journal. While we make efforts to ensure that factual information in articles was obtained from reliable sources, Not Even Past is not responsible for any errors or omissions.

IHS Discussion: They Were There: Martin Luther King’s Visit to UT Austin in 1962

This month, exactly 61 years ago, Martin Luther King Jr. visited UT to speak out against racism and segregation. We will interview former UT students who were here back then, when they worked for The Daily Texan, to discuss Dr. King’s visit and that historical moment in the struggle for integration, on campus, in businesses on the Drag (Guadalupe St.), and beyond, even in Mississippi, reporting that black students were suspended, student government was eliminated, and reporters were being beaten because of protests against segregation.

Featuring:

Jeanne Reinert Graves
Past Reporter and Editor for The Daily Texan
Writer for Science Digest (NYC)
Co-Founder of Zinn, Graves & Field Public Relations Firm

David Crossley
Past Reporter for The Daily Texan
Founder and Past President of Houston Tomorrow
Co-Founder of Blueprint Houston

Edmund T. Gordon, Discussant
Executive Director of Commemorative and Contextualization Projects in the
Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost; and
Associate Professor of African and African Diaspora Studies
The University of Texas at Austin
https://liberalarts.utexas.edu/aads/faculty/gordonet

Alberto A. Martínez, Moderator
Professor of History
The University of Texas at Austin
https://liberalarts.utexas.edu/history/faculty/aam829

This Is Democracy: Auschwitz-Birkenau

This week, Jeremi and Zachary are joined by Pawel Sawicki to discuss the history of Auschwitz-Birkenau, and what lessons can be learned from its past.

Zachary sets the scene with his poem entitled, “Neue Synagoge, Oranienburger Straße.”

Guest

Pawel Sawicki is the press and public relations officer at the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum in Poland.

About This Is Democracy

The future of democracy is uncertain, but we are committed to its urgent renewal today. This podcast will draw on historical knowledge to inspire a contemporary democratic renaissance. The past offers hope for the present and the future, if only we can escape the negativity of our current moment — and each show will offer a serious way to do that! This podcast will bring together thoughtful voices from different generations to help make sense of current challenges and propose positive steps forward. Our goal is to advance democratic change, one show at a time. Dr. Jeremi Suri, a renowned scholar of democracy, will host the podcast and moderate discussions.

This Is Democracy: Ukraine War

This week, Jeremi and Zachary are joined by Dr. Michael Kimmage to discuss the current state of the Ukraine War, and potential paths for it going forward.

Zachary sets this scene with his poem entitled, “For Yegor.”

Guest

Dr. Michael Kimmage is a professor of history at the Catholic University of America in Washington DC. He is also a fellow at the German Marshall Fund, and chair of the Advisory Council for the Kennan Institute at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington DC. From 2014 to 2017, Kimmage served on the Secretary’s Policy Planning Staff at the U.S. Department of State, where he held the Russia/Ukraine portfolio. He publishes widely on international affairs, U.S.-Russian relations and American diplomatic history. Kimmage is the author of: The Conservative Turn: Lionel Trilling, Whittaker Chambers and the Lessons of Anti-Communism (2009); In History’s Grip: Philip Roth’s Newark Trilogy (2012); The Abandonment of the West: The History of an Idea in American Foreign Policy (2020). He writes frequently for Foreign Affairs and other major publications. He has a forthcoming book on the history of the Ukraine War, Collisions.

About This Is Democracy

This Is Democracy: Evangelical Religion

This week, Jeremi and Zachary discuss evangelical religion’s role and history in U.S politics with Dr. Daniel Hummel.

Zachary sets the scene with his poem, “A Dispensation For The Dispensationalists.”

Guest

Dr. Daniel Hummel is the Director for University Engagement at Upper House, a Christian study center serving the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Daniel is the author of The Rise and Fall of Dispensationalism: How the Evangelical Battle Over the End Times Shaped a Nation and Covenant Brothers: Evangelicals, Jews, and U.S.-Israeli Relations. Daniel has written about religion, politics, and foreign policy for the Washington Post, Christianity Today, and Religion News Service. His academic research has been published in Religion & American Culture and Church History.

About This Is Democracy

This Is Democracy: Birchers and Right-Wing Extremism

Guest

Matthew Dallek is a historian and professor of political management at George Washington University’s College of Professional Studies. He is the author of: The Right Moment: Ronald Reagan’s First Victory and the Decisive Turning Point in American Politics; Defenseless Under the Night: The Franklin Roosevelt Years and the Origins of Homeland Security; and, most recently, Birchers: How the John Birch Society Radicalized the American Right. Dallek’s writings frequently appear in the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, Politico, and other publications.

About This Is Democracy

This Is Democracy: Presidential Law-Breaking

Jeremi and Zachary sit down with Jeffrey Engel to discuss the recent indictments on former president Trump, and other instances of presidential law-breaking.

Zachary sets the scene with his poem, “Some Messes Can Only Be Cleaned Up With Time.”

Guest

Jeffrey Engel is a professor of history at Southern Methodist University, where he is the founding director of the Center for Presidential History. He is the author and editor of at least 10 books, including: Cold War at 30,000 Feet: The Anglo-American Fight for Aviation Supremacy, Impeachment: An American History, and When the World Seemed New: George H.W. Bush and the End of the Cold War.

About This Is Democracy

This Is Democracy: Iraq War: Lessons and Legacies

Guest

Dr. Melvyn P. Leffler is the Edward Stettinius Professor of History Emeritus at the University of Virginia. He is one of the leading historians of U.S. foreign policy. Professor Leffler is the author of numerous prize-winning books, including: A Preponderance of Power: National Security, The Truman Administration, and the Cold War; For the Soul of Mankind: The United States, the Soviet Union, and the Cold War; Safeguarding Democratic Captialism; and, most recently, Confronting Saddam Hussein: George W. Bush and the Invasion of Iraq.

About This Is Democracy

This is Democracy: Art of Strategy

Guest

Benjamin Griffin is the Chief of the Military History Division in the History Department at the United States Military Academy at West Point, where he is a Major in the U.S. Army. Ben holds a PhD in History from the University of Texas at Austin. He is the author of: Reagan’s War Stories: A Cold War Presidency.

About This Is Democracy

This Is Democracy: Jimmy Carter

Guest

Jonathan Alter is an award-winning author, political analyst, documentary filmmaker, columnist, television producer, and radio host. Alter’s most recent book is “His Very Best: Jimmy Carter, a Life.” (2020), which received uniformly favorable reviews. His earlier books include three New York Times bestsellers: “The Center Holds: Obama and His Enemies” (2013), “The Promise: President Obama, Year One” (2010) and “The Defining Moment: FDR’s Hundred Days and the Triumph of Hope” (2006), also one of the Times’ “Notable Books” of the year.

About This Is Democracy

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