A MacArthur Fellow, David Levering Lewis is the author of several books, including W.E.B. Du Bois: The Fight for Equality and the American Century and Du Bois: Biography of a Race. He was awarded the Pulizter for both books, which is unprecedented. A Professor of History at NYU, he has also taught at Rutgers University.

A photo historian, curator, and photographer, Deborah Willis is chair and professor of New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, Department of Photography and Imaging. A Guggenheim, Fletcher, and MacArthur fellow, she lives in New York City.