Introduction

W. Rand Smith is the Irvin L. and Fern D. Young Presidential Professor of Politics at Lake Forest College. He received his B.A. with Honors from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and M.A. and Ph.D. from The University of Michigan. He has been at Lake Forest since 1977, regularly teaching Western European Politics, Latin American Politics, U.S. Energy and Environmental Policy, and a First Year Studies course, Roots Music and American Society. He has taught at The University of Michigan, Northwestern University, l’École Supérieure des Mines de Paris (Fulbright Lectureship), l’Institut d’Études Politiques de Grenoble (Fulbright Lectureship), and the Florence (Italy) Program of the Associated Colleges of the Midwest. Professor Smith’s research focuses on political economy, labor, and the politics of the left in Western Europe. He is currently completing his third book, entitled “Enemy Brothers: Socialists and Communists in France, Italy, and Spain,” which is based on field work in all three countries. At Lake Forest, he has also served as Associate Dean of the Faculty (1995-2000) and Interim Provost and Dean of the Faculty (2004-05).