Clio and the Contemporary

10/6/1841, the first African American convention in Maine was held in Portland. Throughout antebellum and continuing for 30 years past the Civil War, these political gatherings offered opportunities for free-born and formerly enslaved African Americans to organize and strategize for racial justice.

#ScholarSunday Thread 244 (10/5/25) – Black and White and Read All Over Here it is, my 244th #ScholarSunday thread of great public scholarly writing & work, podcast episodes, new & forthcoming books from the past week. Add more in comments below, share as widely as possib...

Here it is, my 244th #ScholarSunday thread of great public scholarly writing & work, podcast episodes, new & forthcoming books from the past week. Add more in comments below, share as widely as possible, & thanks, all! 🗃️

blackwhiteandread.com/scholarsunda...

+ featuring contributions from @leannareneehieber.bsky.social @urbanhistorya.bsky.social @historyworkshop.org.uk @literaryhub.bsky.social @cliocontemporary.bsky.social @jakeromm.bsky.social & @lareviewofbooks.bsky.social @pghreviewofbooks.bsky.social @inverting-vision.bsky.social +

“They asked for a sword, and we said, ‘Well, we do have swords, but we can’t give them away because they’re museum artifacts,’” said Todd Arrington, forced to resign as head of Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library.”

#academicsky 🗃️
For when you need something smart to read to distract you from the news.

The “Thrilla in Manila” at 50: A Retrospective on Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier, and the Power of Their “Calculated Blaze” At the 50th anniversary of the fight, the “Thrilla in Manila” emerges as not only the story of two extraordinary boxers’ pushing themselves to their physical limits, but also embodies creativity an…

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Today is the 50th anniversary of the "Thrilla in Manila" fight between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier. Suzuko Morikawa shows their face-off to be a "crucible cultural conflict" that extended beyond the ring and captured the tensions of the mid-1970s. 🗃️
clioandthecontemporary.com/2025/10/01/t...

Actual history teachers: um, no

"Being respectful of our history" means not lying about it.

There are not, actually, "a lot of questions" about this grisly massacre

You should put your "confidence and trust" in the nonpartisan scholars who have studied this extensively instead of a right-wing Fox & Friends propagandist

Here it is, my 243rd #ScholarSunday thread of great public scholarly writing & work, podcast episodes, new & forthcoming books from the past week. Add more below, please share widely, & enjoy, all! 🗃️

blackwhiteandread.com/scholarsunda...

Citizen historians document Smithsonian exhibits under White House scrutiny The Smithsonian Institution is the world’s largest museum, education and research complex. It's a public-private trust that has long operated at arm's length from the White House, but now finds…

We are so excited to hear our partners, Citizen Historians for the Smithsonian, on PBS today. The #SaveOurSigns crew & DRP steering comm were active in helping them gear up their project! We love supporting citizen preservation efforts.

Have an idea? Come chat with us!

A poster announcing a teach-in in washington DC. Sunday, October 26th - Sunup to Sundown Washington, DC - The National Mall “AMERICA’S FRONT YARD” FEATURING KELLIE CARTER JACKSON, NICOLE HEMMER, DEREK MUSGROVE, NATE DIMEO, TRESSIE MCMILLAN COTTOM, AMANDA SEALES, JODY AVIRGAN, JAMES FALLOWS, MARTHA JONES, MARCIA CHATELAIN, PAUL BUTLER, NATHAN CONNOLLY, AND MORE

Announcing a good ol’ fashioned Teach-In in Washington, DC on Sunday, October 26th.

We’ll convene for a series of lectures, stories, and conversations to celebrate and stand up for the work of history and museums.

Shoutout to @natedimeo.bsky.social for bringing this idea to us.

See you in DC!

Pete Hegseth: history is settled
Historians: aww, bless his heart.

Advice | Sometimes We Resist AI for Good Reasons Why higher ed needs to listen to the contrarians in setting policies on using tools like ChatGPT in faculty work.

My latest column for the Chronicle of Higher Ed is now live. It's an argument for including AI-critical voices in campus conversations and policymaking workgroups, and I'm proud to get this dissenting piece into the mainstream genAI/higher ed discourse. Please read and share if you're so inclined 🙂

#ScholarSunday Thread 242 Published on September 21, 2025

From Nashville for one more Family Weekend, here’s my 242nd #ScholarSunday thread of great public scholarly writing & work, podcast episodes, new & forthcoming books from the last week. Add more below, share as widely as possible, & enjoy, all! 🗃️

americanstudier.substack.com/p/scholarsun...

This.
I told a student group that I declined their debate invitation but that I would love to read something together and have a conversation. The response: crickets.
Let's stop debating and try to talk with each other instead.

I think this comparison is largely right.

Yes, it’s a replay of McCarthyism’s ugliest aspects but that was fueled by a widespread sense that the country faced dire external dangers while this is about a deeply unpopular president’s grudges.

This is the biggest attack on free speech since the McCarthy era but it also has significantly less popular consensus behind it than the second Red Scare. It's being done on behalf of a minority faction led by the most unpopular president in modern history. Organizing against this can win.

This week’s blog posts need a lot more love. The histories & issues of censorship in America have never been more relevant. Please share widely! @kevinmkruse.bsky.social 🗃️

“Are you now or have you ever been a member of the Tom Hanks fan club?”: Modern McCarthyism in America Recent attacks on Tom Hanks and American universities highlight parallels between our 2025 and the McCarthy era. But our moment has something the Cold War Red Scare didn’t: the benefits of hi…

McCarthyism in your news feed? Check out @gvaughnjoy.bsky.social's latest, "'Are you now or have you ever been a member of the Tom Hanks fan club?': Modern McCarthyism in America," which explores recent echoes of the McCarthy era in Hollywood and academia.

🗃️ McCarthyism is back and it’s coming for Tom Hanks. @gvaughnjoy.bsky.social with an excellent piece about the echoes of the Red Scare in today’s Hollywood.

The new TOC from academia dot edu. By creating an Account with Academia.edu, you grant us a worldwide, irrevocable, non-exclusive, transferable license, permission, and consent for Academia.edu to use your Member Content and your personal information (including, but not limited to, your name, voice, signature, photograph, likeness, city, institutional affiliations, citations, mentions, publications, and areas of interest) in any manner, including for the purpose of advertising, selling, or soliciting the use or purchase of Academia.edu's Services.

If you’re on academia dot edu, let me suggest that you strongly consider deleting your account.

Re-upping this list of "Against GenAI" resources - updated, with more links! catherinedenial.org/blog/uncateg...

& for a very clear indication of some of the many, many ways in which we have returned to & far surpassed the Sedition Act era in our own period, check out @gvaughnjoy.bsky.social's vital new @cliocontemporary.bsky.social article:

bsky.app/profile/clio...

'In both the Cold War Red Scare & today’s sequel, culture has been key to gaining public support for escalations that trample civil liberties. Both...have relied on nebulous philosophies as catchalls for political, social, cultural, & ideological views—McCarthy’s “communism” and Trump’s “woke”.'

The consolidation of media into a few corrupt hands is to control the hearts and minds of the American people, a goal of McCarthyism. In this linked article, I talk about the parallels of the McCarthy era and today. In my new book (pinned), I analyze the cultural impact of McCarthyism on Hollywood.

Advisory to Academic Workers In a moment when it is becoming increasingly difficult to predict the consequences of our online speech and choices, the AAUP and Faculty First Responders are issuing guidance to AAUP members and othe...

The @aaup.org just shared guidance for academic workers on how to protect themselves online www.aaup.org/news/advisor...

I generally write & schedule my blog series a ways in advance, & am often inspired by a historic anniversary that's not in any specific way related to current events (even if I could predict what those events will be by the time the series airs). But sometimes, like this week, the timing still hits.

Great piece in @cliocontemporary.bsky.social by @gvaughnjoy.bsky.social about modern McCarthyism

I know it's been a year since last Monday, but we gotta talk about Trump calling Tom Hanks un-American and Texas A&M.

"A vehement refusal to learn about the world around us, to instead insulate ourselves with pre-approved topics and facts that confirm what we already think or feel, is dangerous."

“Are you now or have you ever been a member of the Tom Hanks fan club?”: Modern McCarthyism in America Recent attacks on Tom Hanks and American universities highlight parallels between our 2025 and the McCarthy era. But our moment has something the Cold War Red Scare didn’t: the benefits of hi…

McCarthyism in your news feed? Check out @gvaughnjoy.bsky.social's latest, "'Are you now or have you ever been a member of the Tom Hanks fan club?': Modern McCarthyism in America," which explores recent echoes of the McCarthy era in Hollywood and academia.