Who is a Hillbilly Hellraiser? Phi Alpha Theta, the history honors society, invites you to find out at 4:15 p.m. Friday, Feb. 23, at a talk by J. Blake Perkins, assistant professor of history at Williams Baptist College. His talk will shed light on a steadfast culture of Ozarks rural defiance and anti-government sentiment by exploring the relationships between small farmers, capitalist elites and the federal government during the 19th and 20th centuries.

While focused on the Ozarks, professor Perkins' work also touches on big themes in American history. He believes "that the experience in the Ozarks is, in many ways, a historical microcosm that raises important questions about working-class relations with liberal-state power more generally, in the United States and perhaps globally."

The talk will be based on a recent book, Hillbilly Hellraisers: Federal Power and Populist Defiance in the Ozarks (University of Illinois, 2017).

This event is free and open to the public.

It will be at 4:15 p.m. Friday, Feb. 23, in the Honors Auditorium in Gearhart Hall (GEAR 26).