Du Bois, double consciousness, and the "Jewish question".

This essay examines whether and how the spectre of nineteenth century Western Europe's "Jewish question" haunts W.E.B. Du Bois's concept of double consciousness. I argue that Du Bois's time as a student at the University of Berlin exposed him to the intellectual and political roots of nineteenth century German antisemitism, and in turn helped shape his theorizing of Black double consciousness in the United States. Attending to this important but to date missing context in the intellectual development of Du Bois helps reveal the consistencies and contingencies between Du Bois's understanding of Western European Jews' duality and that of Black Americans. This context also provides fruitful ways to consider a comparative framework through which to better theorize the relationship between what have often been treated as distinct racial projects: Western European antisemitism and American anti-Black racism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]