Ruby Barker as Marina Thompson in the first season of Bridgerton

The “Tragic Mulatta” of Bridgerton

While colorblind casting increases opportunities for diverse casts, colorblindness after casting can result in the perpetuation of stereotypes.
Five female literacy volunteers return to Havana at the end of the literacy campaign in December 1961.

Rosa Hernández Acosta habla sobre la Campaña de Alfabetización Cubana

Armada solamente con unos cuantos libros de texto y una lámpara de queroseno, Rosa Hernández Acosta alfabetizaba en la Cuba rural sin electricidad, agua corriente ni carreteras asfaltadas.
Five female literacy volunteers return to Havana at the end of the literacy campaign in December 1961.

Rosa Hernández Acosta on the Cuban Literacy Campaign

Armed with just some textbooks and a kerosene lantern, Rosa Hernández Acosta taught literacy in rural Cuba without electricity, running water, or paved roads.
The 135th St Branch of the New York Public Library

JSTOR Companion to the Schomburg Center’s Black Liberation Reading List

JSTOR has created an open library to support readers seeking to engage with BIPOC+Q-authored reading lists like the one developed by the New York Public Library.
Fredi Washington and Louise Beavers in a scene from Imitation of Life

Why Didn’t Movies about Passing Cast Black Actors?

"Social problem" films were all the rage after World War II. So how could movies about racism be so conservative?
An illustration for Jesse James at Long Branch in the magazine Log Cabin Library, 1898.

The Murder Ballad Was the Original True Crime Podcast

The 1896 version of crime sensationalism also taught the victim-blaming lesson “Stay Sexy, Don’t Get Murdered.”
Zora Neale Hurston, 1937

Zora Neale Hurston

In a controversial letter, the versatile author expressed frustration with critics of segregation.
African Phantasy : Awakening by Winold Reiss

The New Negro and the Dawn of the Harlem Renaissance

In 1925, an anthology of Black creative work heralded the arrival of a movement that had been years in the making.
a caricature of three women whose depicted clothing satirizes the beginnings of neo-classical fashion influences in England.

Why Are So Many Romances Set in the Regency Period?

The British Regency era lasted less than a decade, but it spawned a staggering number of unlikely fictional marriages.
Vintage engraving of an old fisherman drinking a cup of tea, 1900

What’s the Difference between a Shanty and a Sea Song?

“Soon May the Wellerman Come” is the heart of ShantyTok—but it’s not a sea shanty at all. Two authoritative essays roil the waters.