Uncovering Black Folk’s Environmental Legacies in Agriculture

Great news! I have recently signed a book contract with Louisiana State University Press for my manuscript titled Pest Control: Birds, Black Folk, and the History of Environmental Consciousness in the U.S. South. It will be complete in December 2027.

I am thrilled.

From my proposal:

Over the past two decades, there has been a growing recognition that human-environment entanglements have been insufficiently explored, not only in the natural sciences but also in the humanities. The emergence of the environmental humanities, critical avian studies, Anthropocene studies, and similar fields underscores the vast amount of work required to comprehend humanity’s relationship with avian life and habitats. This is particularly true for birds, their ecosystems, and the various phenomena associated with them, which, despite being central to human history, culture, and existence, have often been overlooked in discussions about cultural and social formation, sustainability, and justice — until now.

Tentatively titled Pest Control: Birds, Black Folk, and the History of Environmental Consciousness in the United States South, my book uncovers the pivotal roles enslaved individuals played—not just as rice cultivators, but as knowledgeable stewards of wildlife, particularly in managing Bobolinks, the rice birds that threatened profits for enslaving plantation owners.

In this narrative I embark on an exploration of the dynamic interplay between Black folk, wildlife, and the environment against the backdrop of the American South’s historical land use and agricultural practices. Focusing on the Lowcountry of South Carolina, I will uncover the manifold roles that enslaved individuals played, not only cultivating rice but also managing the Bobolinks, the rice bird that threatened enslaving planter’s harvest. This narrative highlights the resilience of enslaved communities and their evolving relationship with the land, both before and after emancipation. This book will also address the broader implications of a region that has prioritized large-scale agriculture over wildlife conservation. By examining concepts such as sharecropping, pasture conflicts, and the historical ties between farming, deforestation, and changes in wildlife habitats in the southeast, this book sheds light on the emerging divides and redivides of Black folk’s ecological consciousness, economic inequality and complex legacies of land use that continue to shape our environmental relationships today.

MORE NEWS:

My planned giving to the Tompkins County SPCA of Ithaca, New York has transformed into a beautiful way that my Angel Child shall be remembered.

An animal holding room will be named in his memory.

Animals are the purest forms of being still left on this chaotic Earth, it is a real blessing to assist, and a testament to mutual respect for my son to be honored.

Grateful.