Primary Source Spotlight: NAACP

Primary Source Spotlight: NAACP

Curated set of primary sources and other resources related to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) The NAACP: A Century in the Fight for Freedom primary source set, includes teacher’s guide NAACP image set Historical newspaper coverage National Negro Committee 1910 National Association for the Advancement of Colored People articles from the Broad Ax 1895-1922…

Today in History: Billie Holiday

Today in History: Billie Holiday

Today in History–April 7–the Library of Congress features jazz singer Billie Holiday, born on this date in 1915 in Baltimore, Maryland. Although she had no formal music training, Holiday arranged and composed music in addition to singing. Her 1939 rendition of Lewis Allan’s “Strange Fruit,” a song about lynching, was described in the liner notes to Immortal Sessions of…

Today in History: Frederick Douglass

Today in History: Frederick Douglass

Today in History–September 03–the Library of Congress features the escape from slavery of Frederick Douglass on this day in 1838. Born into slavery, Douglass became a renowned abolitionist, journalist, author, and human rights advocate. Learn more about this remarkable man who never ceased advocating for freedom by visiting the Today in History section, then click the links below to access more primary sources and primary source learning…

Today in History: Plessy v. Ferguson

Today in History: Plessy v. Ferguson

Today in History–May 18–the Library of Congress features the Supreme Court case Plessy v. Ferguson, which ruled on this day in 1896 that separate-but-equal facilities on intrastate railroads were constitutional. The decision gave legal sanction to Jim Crow segregation laws and the decision was not reversed until May 17, 1954 when the Supreme Court unanimously agreed that segregation was unconstitutional in the…