Jun 23 Watch 10:10 How should the South see its Confederate past? By PBS News Hour As more politicians and governments call for the removal of the Confederate flag from public life, and retailers like Amazon and Walmart bar the sale of flag memorabilia, Judy Woodruff talks to Jack Hunter of Rare.us, author Isabel Wilkerson and… Continue watching
May 07 Twitter chat: Are you benefiting from modern day slavery? By Nora Daly Twenty-one million people are currently victims of modern day slavery. And most Americans use or consume products produced by slave labor--everything from pet food to sushi to cell phone parts--on a daily basis. Continue reading
Apr 15 Watch 10:22 How America moved on in the days after the Civil War By PBS News Hour President Abraham Lincoln died 150 years ago, just days after Gen. Robert E. Lee surrendered at Appomattox, ending the Civil War after four years. To discuss the lasting effects of both events, Jeffrey Brown talks to Martha Hodes, author of… Continue watching
Apr 15 Rhiannon Giddens performs 'Julie,' a song inspired by a slave's story By Frank Carlson, Mike Fritz Singer-songwriter Rhiannon Giddens is the first to admit she's big into history, and in particular the history of the South and the Civil War. Continue reading
Feb 26 Watch 4:18 African captives rise up against slavery in Talladega murals By PBS News Hour In 1938, the historically black Talladega College commissioned artist Hale Woodruff to create a series of paintings telling the story of the Amistad, when 53 Africans revolted on a Spanish ship carrying them to slavery one century earlier. A traveling… Continue watching
Feb 13 How the West got rich and modern capitalism was born By Sven Beckert "We need to qualify the fairy tale we like to tell about capitalism and free labor," argues Harvard historian Sven Beckert, author of the new book, "Empire of Cotton." In part two of his essay on Making Sen$e, he explores… Continue reading
Feb 12 America's first big business? Not the railroads, but slavery By Sven Beckert For too long, historian Sven Beckert argues, historians have depicted slavery as a non-capitalist "Southern pathology." In his new book, "Empire of Cotton," Beckert shows how slavery was actually at the very roots of modern American capitalism. Continue reading
Jan 15 '12 Years' writer on how Hollywood does a 'poor job' depicting slavery By Victoria Fleischer At Sunday's Golden Globes ceremony, the movie won Best Motion Picture Drama and was nominated for six other awards, including best screen play. Screenwriter John Ridley spoke to PBS NewsHour's Jeffrey Brown in November about his film, adapted from the… Continue reading
Dec 02 Watch James McBride's 'The Good Lord Bird' offers 'room to laugh' at difficult history By PBS News Hour James McBride talks about the National Book Award winner in fiction, "The Good Lord Bird."… Continue watching
Dec 02 Watch 5:51 James McBride's 'The Good Lord Bird' offers 'room to laugh' at difficult history Author James McBride talks about slavery and humor in "The Good Lord Bird."… Continue watching