Author to speak on new book about Russell Long

Born into politics as the son of one of the most famous Louisiana governors, Russell Long’s career is brought to life in a talk to be held at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 20 at the Jeanerette Museum located at 500 E. Main St.
UL-Lafayette Professor Michael Martin, author of the new book, “Russell Long: A Life in Politics” will discuss the Long family and how they have affected Louisiana politics.
The Long family and its followers pervaded Louisiana politics from the late 1920s through the 1980s. Being a Long—especially a son of Huey Long—preordained Russell for a political life. His father’s assassination set the wheels in motion for his eventual political career. The book examines Long’s public life and places it within the context of twentieth-century Louisiana, southern, and national politics.
Martin who is the director of the Center of Louisiana Studies and associate professor in UL-Lafayette’s Department of History, leads courses at the university on Louisiana, Public History, and the U. S. South, and supervises graduate student research in those fields. He also serves as managing editor of the state’s historical journal, Louisiana History.
Martin’s research interests focus on twentieth-century Louisiana and southern history. Besides this book, his publications include an edited volume entitled “Louisiana Beyond Black and White: Recent Interpretations of Twentieth-Century Race and Race Relations” and a pictorial history of Lafayette, “Historic Lafayette.”
He is a native of Lafayette and earned both his B.A. (1994) and M.A. (1997) in history from the then-University of Southwestern Louisiana. Martin earned his Ph.D. in American History at the University of Arkansas and, for two years prior to returning to UL-Lafayette, worked as a research associate at the Albert Gore, Sr. Research Center of Middle Tennessee State University. He has taught at-UL Lafayette since 2003.
Following Martin’s talk, he will autograph copies of his new book. This program is suitable for adults and is being held free of charge. For more information visit the museum online at www.jeanerettemuseum.com; email jeanerettemuseum@yahoo.com, visit the museum on Facebook or call the museum 337-276-4408 Tuesdays through Fridays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.