John Hope Franklin, Ph.D.

1976 Solomon Carter Fuller Award Recipient

Lecture Title: Toward a Second American Revolution

Professor Franklin was a distinguished American historian renowned for his leadership roles in prominent academic organizations. Notably, he served as president of Phi Beta Kappa, the Organization of American Historians, the American Historical Association, and the Southern Historical Association. His seminal work, From Slavery to Freedom, initially published in 1947 and continuously updated, has sold over three million copies. In recognition of his outstanding contributions, Franklin was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the United States, in 1995.

Born in Oklahoma, Franklin pursued his education at Fisk University and later at Harvard University, where he earned his doctorate in 1941. He began his academic career as a professor at Howard University and later assumed the role of head of the history department at Brooklyn College, part of the City University of New York, in 1956. In 1964, he was recruited to the University of Chicago, where he eventually led the history department and held a named chair. Subsequently, in 1983, Franklin joined Duke University, where he was appointed to another named chair in history.

Throughout his career, Franklin remained committed to incorporating the African American experience into the broader narrative of American history, striving to ensure that the story of the United States was told comprehensively and impartially. In acknowledgment of his scholarly achievements, he was honored with the Solomon Carter Fuller Award from the APA in 1976 and received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1995.

"My challenge," Franklin said, "was to weave into the fabric of American history enough of the presence of blacks so that the story of the United States could be told adequately and fairly."