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Category: Civil Rights

Image of an ornate clock showing 2:05 with sculpted male figures sitting on each side of the clock face

World War I: Armistice Day

Posted by: Wendi Maloney

This is a guest post by Ryan Reft, a historian in the Manuscript Division, to mark the 100th anniversary of the signing of the armistice ending World War I. “Everything for which America has fought has been accomplished,” wrote President Woodrow Wilson on Nov. 11, 1918, in a statement addressed to his “fellow countrymen.” The …

Image of an ornate clock showing 2:05 with sculpted male figures sitting on each side of the clock face

Hispanic Heritage Month: Mexican-Americans and Baseball

Posted by: Wendi Maloney

This is a guest post by Ryan Reft, a historian in the Manuscript Division. The post celebrates both National Hispanic Heritage Month and the Library’s ongoing exhibition Baseball Americana. “I remember traveling to Lake Elsinore, which was a long way in those days. … [T]he only ride we could get was from a friend who …

Image of an ornate clock showing 2:05 with sculpted male figures sitting on each side of the clock face

Pic of the Week: Mandela Grandson Shares Lessons He Learned from His Grandfather

Posted by: Wendi Maloney

Ndaba Mandela, the grandson of South African leader and humanitarian Nelson Mandela, spoke in the Coolidge Auditorium of the Library of Congress on June 27 with Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden about his recently published memoir, “Going to the Mountain: Life Lessons from My Grandfather.” Drawing on the memoir, Mandela talked about growing up under …

Image of an ornate clock showing 2:05 with sculpted male figures sitting on each side of the clock face

New Online: Rare Photo of Harriet Tubman Preserved for Future Generations

Posted by: Mark Hartsell

This post draws on the article “Building Black History: A New View of Tubman,” published in the January–February issue of LCM, the Library of Congress Magazine. The issue is available in its entirety online. A remarkable photo album brought two major institutions together to restore and preserve an important piece of American history. Today, the …

Image of an ornate clock showing 2:05 with sculpted male figures sitting on each side of the clock face

African-American History Month: Making a Way Out of No Way

Posted by: Wendi Maloney

This is a guest post by Beverly W. Brannan, curator of photography in the Prints and Photographs Division. When the Prints and Photographs Division acquired the collection of Howard University law professor William Henry Richards in 2013, a 1912 campaign flyer included in the collection aroused my curiosity. It promoted the candidacy of George Henry …

Image of an ornate clock showing 2:05 with sculpted male figures sitting on each side of the clock face

World War I: African-American Soldiers Battle More Than Enemy Forces

Posted by: Wendi Maloney

This is a guest post by Ryan Reft, a historian in the Manuscript Division. “Interpreters were brought from everywhere to instruct our men in the French methods of warfare because be it known that everything American was taken from us except our uniform.” —Noble Sissle, 369th “Harlem Hell Fighters” Regiment The Library of Congress exhibition Echoes …

Image of an ornate clock showing 2:05 with sculpted male figures sitting on each side of the clock face

African-American History Month: Curating Black History

Posted by: Wendi Maloney

In this post, historians from the Library and the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture highlight how collection items shed light on the black experience. The post is reprinted from the January–February issue of LCM, the Library of Congress Magazine. The entire issue is available online. Adrienne Cannon is the Afro-American history …