Category: Guest Bloggers

Jason Morgan Ward: The Short Distance from Civil War to Civil Rights

This year marks two momentous and inseparable moments in the history of American race relations: the 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War and the 50th anniversary of the Freedom Rides. That most commemorations of the former have neglected to mention the latter reveals a nagging reluctance to connect too directly the Civil War and the modern civil rights movement. But for white southerners in the mid-20th century, the link between Civil War and civil rights was crystal clear. Continue Reading Jason Morgan Ward: The Short Distance from Civil War to Civil Rights

Michael H. Hunt: Republicans on foreign policy: Regional powers and regional problems

Regional issues continue to tie politicians in knots. Michael Hunt responds to the GOP debate on foreign policy, as both an historian and as a citizen. Continue Reading Michael H. Hunt: Republicans on foreign policy: Regional powers and regional problems

J. Samuel Walker: Why ACC Basketball Fans Should Care about the Early History of the Conference

The first two decades of ACC basketball laid the foundations for the success on a national stage that the league has enjoyed ever since. Continue Reading J. Samuel Walker: Why ACC Basketball Fans Should Care about the Early History of the Conference

James Edward Miller: Greece and the EU Face Their Walt Kelly Moment

Foreign policy historian James Edward Miller provides background on the current financial and political predicament of Greece and the European Union. Continue Reading James Edward Miller: Greece and the EU Face Their Walt Kelly Moment

Rose Stremlau: History’s Definition of an American Family

The majority of human civilizations across time and place have not organized themselves into nuclear family units based on monogamous, heterosexual coupling. Native North American societies provide hundreds of alternative examples. Continue Reading Rose Stremlau: History’s Definition of an American Family

The New Southern-Latino Dinner Party: the Grand Finale!

Food bloggers try recipes from Sandra Gutierrez’s The New Southern-Latino Table: Chile-Cheese Biscuits with Avocado Butter, Carrot Escabeche & Jalapeño Deviled Eggs, & Pumpkin Seed Brittle Continue Reading The New Southern-Latino Dinner Party: the Grand Finale!

Michael H. Hunt: American prospects: Confessions of a conflicted historian

U.S. politics threatens to become an endless, self-defeating round of missions impossible with each failure pushing public frustration ever higher. Yet for the historian, there is hope. Continue Reading Michael H. Hunt: American prospects: Confessions of a conflicted historian

Karen L. Cox: You Don’t Know Dixie—And If You Do, You Should Be Paying Attention to Pop Culture

Author Karen L. Cox evaluates The History Channel show You Don’t Know Dixie and challenges southern historians to participate in pop culture discussions. Continue Reading Karen L. Cox: You Don’t Know Dixie—And If You Do, You Should Be Paying Attention to Pop Culture

Tanya Harmer: Thirty-Eight Years after Chile’s 9/11

For Chile, Latin America, & the world beyond, understanding what happened on 11 September 1973 has been a slow process of discovery, debate, & forensic science. Continue Reading Tanya Harmer: Thirty-Eight Years after Chile’s 9/11

Michael Bowen: Obama, Truman, and the Challenge of Running against Congress

Heeding lessons from the 1948 election, historian Michael Bowen assesses the challenges Obama faces in trying to capitalize on current GOP disunity. Continue Reading Michael Bowen: Obama, Truman, and the Challenge of Running against Congress

Jay Barnes: Before & After Hurricane Irene

September 1, 2011 As I write this, electric power is just now returning in the last remaining North Carolina neighborhoods darkened by Hurricane Irene’s pole-cracking winds last weekend. Chainsaws are still buzzing, landfills are just beginning to be overrun with truckloads of debris, and people flooded out of their homes are returning, exhausted from the ordeal. Hatteras Island, isolated by… Continue Reading Jay Barnes: Before & After Hurricane Irene

Jill Ogline Titus: Back-to-School Reflections

Jill Ogline Titus reflects on how Prince Edward Co., VA, responded to Brown vs. BoE by closing all public schools for 5 years to avoid integrating them. Continue Reading Jill Ogline Titus: Back-to-School Reflections