May 01 This digital archive of slave voyages details the largest forced migration in history By Philip Misevich, St. John's University, Daniel Domingues, University of Missouri-Columbia, David Eltis, Emory University, Nafees M. Khan, Clemson University, Nicholas Radburn, University of Southern California A new digital archive seeks to track the path of the 12.5 million African slaves who were part of the largest forced oceanic migration in human history. Continue reading
Mar 23 In new presidential exhibits, slavery takes center stage By Alison Thoet Monticello and Montpelier, the former homes of presidents Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, have long been attractions for those looking to learn more about two of America’s founding fathers. But this spring, the two neighboring Virginia presidential museums are looking… Continue reading
Jan 29 Resistance builds against social media ban in Texas prisons By Kamala Kelkar In April, Texas became the latest state to ban people in prisons from having a social media account, saying it could be a threat to security. Continue reading
Dec 19 Watch 7:46 Lynching memorial aims to help U.S. acknowledge a history of terror By PBS News Hour Lynchings -- unlawful executions used to terrorise and subdue black communities into passivity -- are perhaps one of the least discussed legacies of slavery and the Jim Crow South. A new memorial in Montgomery, Alabama, will commemorate victims of these… Continue watching
Dec 18 From media cutoffs to lockdown, tracing the fallout from the U.S. prison strike By Kamala Kelkar On Sept. 9, thousands of inmates began a labor strike across the country. Here's what followed that strike. Continue reading
Nov 13 This year, laws with roots to the Civil War prevented 6.1 million from voting By Kamala Kelkar About 6.1 million people who were convicted of breaking laws could not cast ballots because of policies that keep felons off voter rolls. Continue reading
Nov 06 Electoral College is ‘vestige’ of slavery, say some Constitutional scholars By Kamala Kelkar A lesser-known part of the Electoral College's history: its relationship to slavery in the U.S. Continue reading
Nov 06 In ‘Whitman’s Descendants,’ photographing some of America’s greatest living poets By Corinne Segal Photographer B.A. Van Sise, himself a descendant of Walt Whitman, has set out to create a portrait of his legacy. Continue reading
Oct 25 Watch 8:49 How the n-word became the ‘atomic bomb of racial slurs’ By PBS News Hour Its effect can be explosive and painful: Harvard University professor Randall Kennedy has traced the history of the N-word to understand the evolution of the infamous racial slur. Kennedy joins special correspondent Charlayne Hunter-Gault to discuss this history, including reappropriations… Continue watching
Oct 02 Can DNA tests help repair social ruptures from transatlantic slavery? By Kamala Kelkar Author Alondra Nelson talks about how African-Americans in the past decade are using DNA tests to fill in identity gaps after the Middle Passage. Continue reading