Why the Black National Anthem is Lifting Every Voice to Sing
Source: Smithsonian Magazine
This song, endowed with its deep history of Black pride, speaks to the universal human condition.
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The Black sorority that faced racism in the suffrage movement but refused to walk away
Source: Washington Post
These African American women fought for decades against racism within their movement and took their rightful place in history.
The Courage And Ingenuity Of Freedom-Seeking Slaves In America
Source: NPR
In their desperation, runaway slaves found creative ways to hide and escape. This article tells the stories of slaves who shipped themselves to freedom in crates and of others who found safe haven in the Great Dismal Swamp of North Carolina.
Frederick Douglass On How Slave Owners Used Food As A Weapon Of Control
Source: NPR
This article examines some of Frederick Douglass’s writings in which he describes how slave owners made use of food (and hunger) as a way of manipulating their slaves.
Activist Ida B. Wells Gets Pulitzer Prize 137 Years After Refusing to Exit ‘Whites Only’ Train
Source: People Magazine
Born a year before emancipation, journalist Ida B. Wells is getting some overdue recognition for her brave and powerful reporting on injustice.
What Does It Mean for America to Put Harriet Tubman on the $20 Bill?
Source: The Atlantic
The U.S. Treasury recently decided to put Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill. Click on this link to read a discussion by several writers and editors from The Atlantic about the significance of this change to American currency.
The Most “Realistic” Civil War Novel Was Written Three Decades After It Ended
Source: Smithsonian
Stephen Crane’s novel The Red Badge of Courage is so realistic that readers tend to assume it’s based on his own experiences in the war. Spoiler alert: It isn’t.
A Free Man’s Letter to A Former Slaveowner in 1865
Source: Smithsonian Magazine
In 1865, former slave Jourdon Anderson was asked to return to the farm where he had been held captive for 32 years. Read this article to learn more about Anderson’s witty, sarcastic response and to read excerpts from his letter.
Jefferson Davis Statue Comes Down at University of Texas
Source: NPR
Jefferson Davis never asked for a pardon for leading the government of the Confederacy in its rebellion against the United States. Statues of the Confederate president have become increasingly controversial in recent years, including one that was removed from the campus of the University of Texas in 2015.
10 Things You Didn’t Know About the Statue of Liberty
Source: Parade
Did you know that this famous lady could have ended up in Boston or Philadelphia, or further afield? These ten interesting facts might surprise you.
Buffalo Soldiers
Source: HISTORY
Learn about some of the many accomplishments of the “buffalo soldiers,” 19th-century regiments of African American troops formed after the Civil War.
Crispus Attucks, Martyr for Freedom and Champion of Liberty
Source: Mental Floss
This article explains who Crispus Attucks was, what he did, and why he is still remembered today as a champion and a martyr for freedom.
St. Landry Parish Catholic School Reflecting on Role in Slavery
Source: KATC News
A Catholic school acknowledges its role in the slave trade and pays tribute to the slaves who worked on its property and their ancestors to bring recognition, respect, and a sense of closure to the pain caused by slavery.
10 Facts about the Emancipation Proclamation
Source: Civil War Trust
Read ten facts about the 1863 Proclamation, one of the most important documents in the history of the United States.
“12 Years a Slave” based on true story
Source: CNN
The film 12 Years a Slave is hailed as one of the most accurate portrayals of slavery to come to the movie screen. In this short clip, you will see some scenes from the film and meet the screenwriter.
Robert Smalls: A Daring Escape
Source: PBS
An enslaved man named Robert Smalls went undercover for one of the most daring escapes of all time. Find out how he saved himself and saved dozens of other enslaved people as well!
Did Black Rebellion Win the Civil War?
Source: JSTOR Daily
Historians are giving credit to sociologist, W.E.B. DuBois’s idea that enslaved workers coordinated a general strike, which helped end the Civil War.
6 Southern Unionist Strongholds During the Civil War
Source: HISTORY
It’s easy to think of the two sides in the Civil War as monoliths, in which everyone supported the side where they lived. But many Southerners opposed secession and even fought as part of the Union Army.
Stop making second American Civil War clickbait
Source: Vox
Pundits from both political extremes sometimes bring up the idea of the United States having a new civil war. Here’s why that’s not going to happen.
Children of the Civil War: On the Home Front
Source: American Battlefield Trust
The Civil War wasn’t only confined to battlefields. Find out how the war directly affected the lives of children on both sides of the battle lines.
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