About the Author

Howard Kester (1904-1977), a committed socialist and devout Christian, grew up in Virginia and West Virginia, studied at Vanderbilt University's divinity school, and spent his life as a social activist. In addition to his association with the STFU, he worked with the YMCA, Fellowship of Reconciliation, the Socialist Party, the NAACP, the Fellowship of Southern Churchmen, and other organizations.

Alex Lichtenstein, assistant professor of history at Florida International University, is the author of Twice the Work of Free Labor: The Political Economy of Convict Labor in the New South.