Civil Rights Movements & the Law

Speech by Dr. Kristopher Burrell, January 16, 2017, St. Paul’s Church — National Historic Site, Mount Vernon, NY Good afternoon,...Read More

The story of Black History Month begins in Chicago during the summer of 1915. An alumnus of the University of Chicago with many friends in the city, Carter G. Woodson traveled from Washington, D.C. to participate in a national celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of emancipation sponsored by the state of Illinois. Thousands of African Americans travelled from across the country to see exhibits highlighting the progress their people had made since the destruction of slavery. Awarded a doctorate in Harvard three years earlier, Woodson joined the other exhibitors with a black history display. Despite being held at the Coliseum, the site of the 1912 Republican convention, an overflow crowd of six to twelve thousand waited outside for their turn to view the exhibits. Inspired by the three-week celebration, Woodson decided to form an organization to promote the scientific study of black life and history before leaving town. On September 9th, Woodson met at the Wabash YMCA with A. L. Jackson and three others and formed the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (ASNLH).

Explore or reconstruct the lives of individuals who were enslaved, owned slaves, or participated in the historical trade.

"Latinx" has emerged as an inclusive term to refer to people of Latin American descent. But a new survey found that even among the people "Latinx" is intended to describe, few have heard of the term -- let alone use it. It's an example of just how complex identity can be for any population.

The long-hidden racist attack on "Black Wall Street" and its residents is finally in the open — and raising questions about all that Americans don’t know and have tried to hide.

Black historians and community members in Maryland pooled resources to reclaim thousands of pages documenting the auction and sale of enslaved Black

'The Black Renaissance is stirring Black people to be themselves. Totally. Unapologetically. Freely.'

Curtis B. Stuckey, the outspoken civil rights attorney who became a champion of the downtrodden though his crusade for justice, died Aug. 10 at his home in Nacogdoches.

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The study of African American Reconstruction leadership has presented a variety of unique challenges for modern historians who struggle to piece together the lives of men, who prior to the Civil War, had little political identity.

Often portrayed as an abolitionist, Hamilton may have enslaved people in his own household

The fact that Raoul Peck’s new HBO film on white supremacy exists shows that something profound about the world is changing.

The magazine invested extraordinary amounts of time and resources into building an intellectual edifice for segregation.

A daughter of slain Black civil rights activist Malcolm X, Malikah Shabazz, died Monday, the New York Police Department told CNN.

Thomas Hagan, the only man who admitted his role in the 1965 assassination of iconic black leader Malcolm X, was paroled Tuesday.

A project about American history, Black life, and the resilience of memory

Slavery has marked everything from the Capitol to the alcohol Americans consume.

Twenty-two years ago, LaTosha Brown ran for State Board of Education in Alabama. Throughout the campaign, the Selma native recalls making speeches at churches and being asked to speak from the floor. The incumbent, a male minister, spoke from the podium. “I sit squarely at the intersection of racism and sexism,” Brown said. “There was

In 1915, at 26 years old, Lillian Hall became the first formally trained Black librarian in Indiana, managing branches in Indianapolis and Evansville.

Colgate, Cream of Wheat and Mrs. Butterworth are the latest brands reckoning with racially charged logos...

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — Long a symbol of pride to some and hatred to others, the Confederate battle flag is losing its place of official prominence 155 years after rebellious Southern states lost a war to perpetuate slavery...

Officers’ groups say 84-year-old Sundiata Acoli, convicted of murder of New Jersey state trooper, poses no threat to public safety

UArizona historian Tyina Steptoe discusses the history of the holiday that recognizes emancipation, and why more people than ever may celebrate it this year and in the future.

For decades, when it was discussed at all, the killing of hundreds of people in a prosperous black business district nearly a century ago was referred to as the Tulsa race riot.

Protesters in Baltimore pulled down a statue of Christopher Columbus and hurled it into the city's Inner Harbor on Saturday night, adding to the list of monuments toppled during nationwide demonstrations against racism and police brutality.

The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) stands firmly with people throughout the world protesting police brutality and systemic oppression following the recent, brutal killings of Black Americans including George Floyd in Minnesota, Ahmaud Arbery in Georgia, and Breonna Taylor in Kentucky.

Asian Americans Out Loud, our project highlighting people who are leading the way forward in the face of trauma and fear in Asian communities across America.

Conversations about cultural property usually revolve around questions of ownership, conservation, national patrimony and public access. From a legal perspective, the origins and provenance of individual artworks or artifacts are of primary importance. Yet from

NEW YORK (AP) — Following a year of professional milestones born of her work on America’s history of slavery, Pulitzer Prize-winning Black journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones said she is clear-eyed about her mission to force a reckoning around the nation’s self-image.