Collections Spotlight: African American Perspectives

Collections Spotlight: African American Perspectives

“African American Perspectives” gives a panoramic and eclectic review of African American history and culture and is primarily comprised of two collections in the Rare Book and Special Collections Division: the African American Pamphlet Collection and the Daniel A.P. Murray Collection with a date range of 1822 through 1909. Most were written by African-American authors,…

Primary Source Spotlight: Little Rock Nine

Primary Source Spotlight: Little Rock Nine

Little Rock Nine historical newspaper coverage through 1963 Citizens’ Letters on the Little Rock Crisis Eisenhower Library Daisy Bates to Roy Wilkins on the treatment of the Little Rock Nine December 17, 1957 letter Portrait of Roy Wilkins Little Rock Nine group portrait photo and curator’s note U.S. Troops escort African American students from Central High…

Guided Primary Source Analysis: An Airship with a “Jim Crow” Trailer

Guided Primary Source Analysis: An Airship with a “Jim Crow” Trailer

Explain what you think this political cartoon is trying to say, using details from the illustration to support your conclusions. Jim Crow is the name often used to refer to segregation laws and customs following the U.S. Civil War. Do you think this cartoon is a good argument for or against African American rights? Why? Jump…

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…