The History of Black-Owned Record Labels
Decades before Motown ruled the radio, labels like Black Swan and Black Patti put out records that didn't stereotype African American music.
George Washington Williams and the Origins of Anti-Imperialism
Initially supportive of Belgian King Leopold II’s claim to have created a “free state” of Congo, Williams changed his mind when he saw the horrors of empire.
Policing Intersex Americans’ Sex and Gender
Assigning one sex to people with ambiguous genitalia has a long history in medicine and law.
The Global History of Labor and Race: Foundations and Key Concepts
How have workers around the world sought to change their conditions, and how have racial divisions affected their efforts?
How Commonly Was Smallpox Used as a Biological Weapon?
Once introduced into the Americas, smallpox spread everywhere. Is it possible to know how often that was done intentionally to kill people?
The Mathematical Pranksters behind Nicolas Bourbaki
Bourbaki was gnomic and mythical, impossible to pin down; his mathematics just the opposite: unified, unambiguous, free of human idiosyncrasy.
This Forgotten Female Orator Broke Boundaries for Women
At a time when respectable women rarely spoke to the public, Anne Laura Clarke was a star lecturer.
How Sculptor Meta Warrick Challenged White Supremacy
A 1907 exhibition on the founding of Jamestown featured the work of an artist determined to counter demeaning stereotypes.
How Annie Lee Moss Survived McCarthyism
Moss, a Black government employee with activist experience, was hauled in front of Congress on suspicion of being a Communist.
“Hard Times Tokens” Were Not One Cent
The counterfeit currencies issued in response to 1837’s coin shortage were worthless—or were they?