A view to the north of the university campus including the Du Bois Library, Old Chapel and GRC taken from a high floor of Herter Hall

Feinberg Series to Explore Historical Roots of Oligarchy and Present-day Political Crises

2026 Feinberg Series graphic "Escape from Oligarchy"

The Department of History and partners will launch the 2026-27 Feinberg Series, a free public event series that brings together students, scholars, organizers and community members, on Monday, Sept. 28.

Throughout the academic year, this year’s series, “Escape from Oligarchy: The History and Future of Rule by the Rich,” will trace the global history of oligarchy as well as the popular movements that have fought back.

One of the founding premises of the Feinberg Series is that history can help make sense of current political conflicts. As the series directors write, “The consolidation of oligarchic rule, in the United States and around the world, lies at the heart of today’s crises of war, resurgent fascism, and climate destruction, and it poses severe obstacles to addressing those crises in peaceful and equitable ways. Now more than ever, we find it essential to study how we got into this predicament and how we might extricate ourselves from it.”

The series launches at 6 p.m. on Sept. 28 with “Exit Strategies: Contesting the Future of Capitalism,” an online plenary panel with Jeanelle K. Hope, Tristan Hughes, and Clara E. Mattei. Panelists will examine the authoritarian futures envisioned by today’s far-right thinkers and tech billionaires. They will also analyze some of the alternative democratic visions that could ensure the survival of all humanity, not just the rich.

The series continues through April with lectures, panels, workshops, a community-wide read, a student-curated exhibit, a professional development series for teachers and a number of affiliated courses.

The Feinberg Family Distinguished Lecture Series is offered every other academic year by the UMass Amherst History Department thanks to the generosity of Kenneth R. Feinberg ’67 and associates. Each iteration of the series focuses on a “big issue” of clear and compelling concern, grounding it in historical context.

The 2026–27 series is presented in collaboration with more than a dozen community and university partners, including numerous UMass and Five College academic departments, programs, and initiatives.

All events are free, open to the public and will be recorded.

For a complete schedule, full details, or to register to attend any or all events, visit www.umass.edu/feinberg.

For questions, contact [email protected].