The picture above shows Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. addressing a crowd with a megaphone in Roxbury, a neighborhood in Boston, Massachusetts, on April 22, 1965. I personally believe that there are different sides to every man and woman in the world. I don’t think that anybody is one way 100% of the time. You […]
For one, in this photo King is praying. I think this is poignant since he was a minister, and since religion and religious imagery were so important to the basis of his ideas and the wording of his speeches. Further, I selected this image because in it, King looks tired or sad or vulnerable. I […]
In the article from Dr. Hobson,”The King of Atlanta: Martin Luther King Jr. and Public Memory,” he has a quote that says “public spaces purportedly transmit notions of what is right and true because they are “authorized by the government” or corporations on behalf of all citizens.” Sadly, this is true, and it even holds […]
After watching this BBC episode, Black and British, last night and giving myself time to think before writing, the thing I found most surprising isn’t necessarily the information itself, but the ideas that spawn from the program. The fact that Britain is whitewashing their history when it comes to the topic is black people is […]
I’d never heard the phrase “America is a melting pot” until I made it to college. A lot of classes I’ve taken have revolved around the idea that, whether or not “The American Dream” is real, it is/was an idea that people from all walks of life bought into, traveling long and far to try […]
In my many years at Georgia State I have been at war with parking. I somehow always managed to be too late to sign up for any sort of prime parking spot on campus, yet always refused to ever pay for any sort of conventional campus parking on the terms that I was already paying […]
Running a few yards from my last apartment building is a creek. It runs under Scott Blvd, and it is hidden by the green tree canopy. This creek’s name might be Peavine Creek, and it flows into Peachtree Creek. The reason I write “might be” is that the particular branch of the creek I lived […]
In the postcolonial world where the history is presented from a white point of view, it is easy to forget that cultures mixing is not a recent history. This white-washing of history leads us to overlook major accomplishments and historical context of all cultures. While watching the BBC documentary Black and British I found myself saying […]
In Strange Kin Kieran Quinlan explores the relationship between Ireland and the American South. Many, such as my self, automatically jump to Scarlett O’hara in Gone With the Wind or find trouble associating the two regions when asked to find such similarities. Quinlan opens by exploring the negative perception of southern states to the world by recounting his […]
Through Frederick Douglass’s creation of his narrative and through him becoming an active public figure with speaking and writing, his words were meant to shape an image of himself. Douglass was always aware of his audiences, including of their prejudices and the things that mattered to them, and he worked to control both his words […]
Clotel, Or the President’s Daughter follows the tragic story of three generations of enslaved women in the American South. Throughout the story, author William Wells Brown harshly critiques the institution of slavery in the United States and calls for its demise. Brown knew the first hand the horrors of enslavement as he was born into slavery. […]
One of the details from the documentary that I found the most interesting was the origin of the medieval depictions of the three wise men, that still persists in some Christian iconography today, with one of the Wise men being pictured as African. It was interesting to hear how the medievalist explained that medieval Brits […]
I have read Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass almost every year since my junior year of high school. Rightfully so; it is a harrowing first-hand account of Douglass’s fight to freedom after a lifetime of enslavement. Every edition I have owned has featured a large photo of Douglass on the cover, but they are […]
In the About South podcast episode, “To Atlanta, with love,” Dr. Calinda Lee discussed her ideas of preserving and representing public history, specifically in Atlanta. An important topic she introduced was the sense of guilt descendants of confederates feel, due to them identifying with their transgressions despite being blameless. She comments, “[they] want to believe [their] […]
When thinking back to when slavery was prominent in the U.S. , one’s self “image” is something that doesn’t ever come to mind. When someone is thinking of all the horrors and suffering that was happening, I feel a person wouldn’t have time to think of this. Frederick Douglass did, however, think of his personal […]
England plays multiple roles in Clotel The most important role would be a “mother.” When I say, mother, I mean as in England created (birthed) America. Even before America was America it referred to England as like a mother. This can be seen in Thomas Paine’s “Common Sense” insinuating England as a mother. The reason this “mother” […]
Forgetfulness is a common human foible effecting how historical figures are remembered and imagined. Their cosmic presence and specific cause related influence often eclipse their unaltered fons et origo. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was many things – an activist, religious leader, and orator. King’s personal life wasn’t particularly confidential, however, it was a victim […]
Martin Luther King’s likeness is one that represents advocacy and peace. The history books will show him marching and making speeches, but never anything that invokes actual rebellion. This mugshot of MLK shows a glimpse of the truth of the Civil Rights Movement and how it was more than peaceful protesting and speeches. It was […]
The picture above is from the Landmark Commencement Address at City College of New York. This is MLK standing next to President Buell Gallagher of CUNY. I chose this image because, I think it shows two people black and white both as accomplished students, nothing more, and nothing less. I like the simplicity in it. […]
In the interview with Brian Ward, He talks about some reasons as to why King would travel all the way to Newcastle despite his busy life. One of the reasons that was given by Dr. Caison that Ward agreed with is that perhaps he just needed a change a scenery and that “there is something […]