Stephen Middleton, Starkville, Mississippi, is professor of history and director of African American studies at Mississippi State University. He is the author of The Black Laws: Race and the Legal Process in Ohio, 1787-1860.

David R. Roediger, Lawrence, Kansas, is foundation professor of American studies and history at University of Kansas. He is the author of Seizing Freedom: Slave Emancipation and Liberty for All.

Donald M. Shaffer, Starkville, Mississippi, is associate professor of African American studies and English at Mississippi State University. His work has appeared in the Southern Literary Journal and the Western Journal of Black Studies.