The Selma Marches were a series of three marches that took place in 1965 between Selma and Montgomery, Alabama. These marches were organized to protest the blocking of Black Americans’ right to vote by the systematic racist structure of the Jim Crow South. With the leadership of groups such as the Dallas County Voters League (DCVL), the Student … Continue reading Selma: The Marches that Changed America
Today’s post was written by Netisha Currie, Archives Specialist at the National Archives in College Park. This weekend the 87th annual Academy Awards will air, and many of the Best Picture nominees’ subjects are culled from historical events or people. Selma (directed by Ava DuVernay) is a dramatization of the events that happened around the Selma to Montgomery … Continue reading Record of the Week: Selma, Edmund Pettus Bridge FBI Case File
Today’s blog was written by Kaitlin Rogers, Archives Technician at the National Archives at College Park “The Most Dangerous Creation of Any Society is the Man Who has Nothing to Lose.” ~James Baldwin James Arthur Baldwin was born on August 2, 1924, in Harlem, New York. His mother Emma Berdis Jones married David Baldwin when … Continue reading Happy 100th Birthday James Baldwin!
Today’s blog was written by Kaitlin Rogers, Archives Technician at the National Archives at College Park, Maryland. “Knowledge, Leadership, Service“ On July 4th, 1881, Booker T. Washington opened the Tuskegee Normal School for Colored Teachers in Tuskegee, Alabama’s African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church. Five months earlier, the Alabama State legislature had passed a bill to … Continue reading Happy Founder’s Day Tuskegee University
Joy is defined as an emotion of great delight or happiness that is often caused by a positive or an extraordinary experience. Joy can be good for one’s health and wellness. Scientists and psychologists have studied the effects of joy on people, and determined that joy can prevent stress, improve heart health, reduce pain, and … Continue reading Experiencing Black Joy through Federal Records
In 1961, the Freedom Riders purposely challenged a system that ignored a series of civil rights cases, ruling segregation of interstate commerce unconstitutional. The legal battles that inspired the Freedom Rides were fought by a World War II defense contractor, an Army officer, and a law student who, at their pivotal moments in history, were … Continue reading The People v. Jim Crow: Federal Cases that Inspired the Freedom Rides of 1961
March 12, 2021 marked the 89th birthday of a leader that serves as a gatekeeper to our understanding of the most preeminent era in Black History. A pastor who spread the practice of non-violence in the rural South at the risk of being killed. An activist who participated in the most pivotal acts of protest … Continue reading Andrew Young: A Giant Among Us
On December 20, 1958, Bruce Carver Boynton, a black law student at Howard University was on his way home to Selma, Alabama via Trailways bus line for the Christmas Holidays. On his way home, Boynton bus stopped in Richmond, Virginia for a forty-minute layover. While waiting for his bus to leave the terminal in Richmond, … Continue reading Bruce Boynton: The Original Freedom Rider
Today’s post was written by Joshua Schroeder, archives technician at the National Archives in College Park. The National Archives latest Black History portal delves into one of the most important threads of American history: securing the right to vote. Suffrage for Black Americans remains an important aspect of American history because voting is an essential … Continue reading Portal Spotlight: Voting Rights
“It’s about life, and who you are as a human being. Today is a sad day in that we lost two of the most powerful activists we’ve ever had – C.T. Vivian and John Lewis. The impact they had on America is unbelievable…” ~Chris Paul On July 17, 2020, two icons of the Civil Rights … Continue reading In the Long Tradition of Civil Rights: Tribute to C. T. Vivian and John Lewis
