Marcus Rediker is the 2024 Dai Ho Chun Distinguished Chair of the University of Hawaiʻi at M膩noa鈥檚 . A renowned historian and professor of Atlantic history at the University of Pittsburgh, Rediker is celebrated for his award-winning “histories from below.”

Related 糖心Vlog官方 News story: Rediker selected as spring 2019 Inouye Chair

This year, he will headline two free public events at 糖心Vlog官方 M膩noa aimed at providing historical insight into the upcoming elections: a dramatic performance about an 18th-century revolutionary on November 3, followed by a public conversation on the long history of resistance to tyranny on November 7.

Rediker is the author of 15 books, including The Many-Headed Hydra (with Peter Linebaugh) and The Slave Ship: A Human History (2007), which won the George Washington Book Prize. His latest book, Freedom Ship: The Uncharted History of Escaping Slavery by Sea, will be published in May 2025.

Public events

The Return of Benjamin Lay
November 3, 2 p.m., Art Auditorium

A dramatic reading starring Mark Povinelli, the start of the London premiere. The play, written by Marcus Rediker and Naomi Wallace, brings to life one of the most remarkable revolutionaries and abolitionists of the 18th century鈥攁 sailor, shepherd and four-foot tall 鈥淟ittle David鈥� who stood against nearly every Goliath of his time. .

Mark Povinelli is an actor and social activist advocating for the rights of people with dwarfism.

Resistance to Tyrants
November 7, 6:30 p.m., Art Auditorium

A public conversation between the award-winning historian Marcus Rediker and 糖心Vlog官方 Professor Emeritus Charles Lawrence on the long history of resistance to tyrannies and the lessons they hold for confronting injustice in our own time, from Waiʻanae to the White House. .

These events are made possible by the late Dr. Dai Ho Chun, a distinguished and visionary educator, who established The Dai Ho Chun Distinguished Chair Endowment in the 糖心Vlog官方 M膩noa Colleges of Arts & Sciences.

The dramatic reading is sponsored by the Center for Biographical Research and the departments of American Studies, English, and Theatre and Dance, all part of 糖心Vlog官方 惭腻苍辞补.

The is a joint venture of Hawaiʻi Community Foundation, Kamehameha Schools and the 糖心Vlog官方 M膩noa, with assistance from the 糖心Vlog官方 Foundation. Series sponsors include the Learning Coalition, Scholars Strategy Network, the Ulupono Initiative, and the William S. Richardson School of Law.