Harvey J. Kaye

Harvey J. Kaye (born October 9, 1949) is an American historian. He has written and edited over a dozen books, many of which focus on the radical tradition in American history and thought.

Education Kaye received a B.A. at Rutgers University in 1971. During his undergraduate years, he participated in a six-month study abroad program at the National University of Mexico. In it he analyzes the writings of Maurice Dobb, Rodney Hilton, Christopher Hill, Eric Hobsbawm, and E.P. Thompson. Kaye then edited anthologies of the works of two other British leftist historians, George Rudé and Victor Kiernan. Kaye's 1992 volume, The Education of Desire: Marxists and the Writing of History, won the Deutscher Memorial Prize.

Next, he shifted focus to America's progressive and radical roots, with two books on the author of Common Sense, specifically, Thomas Paine: Firebrand of the Revolution (2000) and Thomas Paine and the Promise of America (2005). He later wrote about the era of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt in The Fight for the Four Freedoms (2014) and FDR on Democracy (2020).

Kaye has appeared as a commentator on current affairs programs such as Bill Moyers Journal, Moyers & Company, The Thom Hartmann Program, The Hill's Rising web series, The Majority Report with Sam Seder, and That's Jacqueline! Life & Politics Gloves Off. Kaye was a frequent guest on the listener-supported podcast, The David Feldman Show as well as The Michael Brooks Show, with the late Michael Brooks citing Kaye as one of his three primary mentors, along with Adolph L. Reed Jr. and Richard D. Wolff

Kaye has taught many years at the University of Wisconsin–Green Bay (UW-Green Bay), where he is the Ben & Joyce Rosenberg Professor Emeritus of Democracy and Justice Studies. He is also the Founding Director of the University's Center for History and Social Change. His 2015 commencement address at UW-Green Bay was covered in the news. He hosts the Harvey J. Kaye State of Democracy Speaker Series at the university, which has invited speakers such as Democratic Party presidential candidate Marianne Williamson. Kaye served as an advisor to Williamson's 2024 presidential campaign.

Kaye was an Organization of American Historians Distinguished Lecturer (2007-2013),

Personal life Kaye was born in Englewood, New Jersey. He and his wife Lorna live in Green Bay, Wisconsin.