‘Free State of Jones’: Mississippi County Rebelled Against the Confederacy

Free State of Jones is a 2016 American historical war film inspired by the life of Newton Knight and his armed revolt against the Confederacy in Jones County, Mississippi, throughout the American Civil War. (more from Wikipedia). It's also an astonishing book by Sally Jenkins and John Sauffer. "From 1863 to 1866, residents of Jones County, MS engaged in an insurrection against the Confederacy that …

Robert Kennedy’s Profound Visit to the University of Mississippi, 1966

REEL SOUTH, now in its eighth season on PBS, "reveals the South's proud yet complicated heritage, as told by a diversity of voices and perspectives, through the curation and distribution of feature-length and short documentaries." More. One episode focuses on Robert Kennedy's defiance of a speaker ban law to visit and speak to the University …

Beyond the Myths of Rural America

"Its inhabitants are as much creatures of state power and industrial capitalism as their city-dwelling counterparts." -- The iconic painting, American Gothic, by Grant Wood, probably the most famous piece of art coming from the U.S., sparks many reflections on the differences between cities and town, urban and rural environments. A piercing, unsentimental new book, …

Decline In Immigration to US Threatens Growth of Regions

NYT: "Immigrants helped make places like Northwest Arkansas economic dynamos. But their dwindling numbers, a big factor in slower population growth, could have long-term repercussions." Click. Legions of immgrants from El Salvador, the Marshall Islands, Mexico, India and elsewhere answered the call to work in poultry production, trucking, construction, and computer programming. The United States …

Shots Fired At Inter-Racial Party in Small-town NC, 1969 Echo Through The Years

As part of my ongoing series on how baby boomers are processing or reconciling their formative experiences on race, I stumbled upon Holydiscomfort.com, by Karen Bryant Shipp, "love letters to the church" (on) religion, social justice, anti-racism. In the summer of 1969 near Wake Forest, NC, shots were fired into her home, the Baptist Church …

Italian-American School Segregation Ends in Violence

NYTN, a Youtube channel by Danielle Romero who moved from New York to Tennessee, explores Italian heritage. "My great-grandmother Lola left her heritage behind in Louisiana when she moved to NY in the 1930s. Last year, I decided to uncover our family story and begin finding our roots. I'm still on the journey of hidden …

First Footers in Integrating Schools in the South Recall Their Seminal Experiences in the 1960s, Early 1970s

The generation that graduated high school in the late 1960s or early 1970s has now reached retirement age. Many have attended their 50th reunions, and begun to recall what the culture was like then, different from now. Several articles have crossed my desk in the last year or so. Among them: Rocky Mount (NC) High …

The North Was Built on Slavery: New England’s Hidden History

"In the year 1755, a black slave named Mark Codman plotted to kill his abusive master. A God-fearing man, Codman had resolved to use poison, reasoning that if he could kill without shedding blood, it would be no sin. Arsenic in hand, he and two female slaves poisoned the tea and porridge of John Codman …

Barack Obama on the Importance of Reading Books, Even When You’re Extremely Busy

Each year, President Barack Obama releases his reading list. His recent recommendations include: "The Revolutionary: Samuel Adams" by Stacy Schiff, a biography of a Founding Father. “South to America: A Journey Below the Mason-Dixon to Understand the Soul of a Nation,” by Imani Perry, which won the National Book Award for its nuanced analysis of …

Cornwall: A Celtic Nation Trapped in England. The 6, or 8, Celtic Nations

Tieran Freedman: "Cornwall, or Kernow in the Cornish language (Kernowek), is a Celtic nation in southwest England. It’s now an English county, but was once an independent Cornish Kingdom. Cornwall has maintained a distinct identity for centuries, and even its own language. Today, 400-500 people speak fluent Cornish, up from 4-5 following the Cornish language …