Chapter 1, "Postlude to the Future" Summary and Analysis

The book begins with Du Bois's death and funeral. The time is August 28, 1963.

The executive secretary of the NAACP breaks the news of Du Bois's death to 250,000 people gathered around the Reflecting Pool in Washington D.C. during an important civil rights protest meant to get President Kennedy's attention. Rabbi Joachim Prinz interrupts his planned speech to tell a huge crowd of activists, leftists, civil rights leaders and freedom loving musicians that Dr. W.E.B. Du Bois is in a great part responsible for their gathering on this day.

The author, David Levering Lewis, lists Du Bois's many achievements over his lifetime. Du Bois is the first African American to win a Harvard PhD and serves as one of the founders of the NAACP. This great intellect writes 16 pioneering books...