Sanjay K. Paul is a doctoral candidate who specializes in the social and economic history of nineteenth-century North America. His interests include the histories of the United States' South, rural labor, racism, and social movements. He is also deeply interested in what literature can tell us about ourselves and our past. Prior to joining the Ph.D. program, Sanjay was a highschool teacher. He received his B.A. in History and Economics from Columbia University and his A.M. in History from Harvard University. Sanjay is currently researching his dissertation which analyzes the famine in the United States South during and after the slaveholders' War for Independence (1861-1868). He can be reached at spaul1@g.harvard.edu.