Day One: Memories of a Massacre: Memphis in 1866 Symposium

Last updated on: May 24, 2016 at 9:55 am By blog admin

On May 20-21, 2016, the University of Memphis hosted “Memories of a Massacre: Memphis in 1866, a Symposium Exploring Slavery, Emancipation, and Reconstruction.” The culmination of a semester-long series of lectures, workshops, discussions, and book talks, this symposium featured historians and scholars from across the country, including Robert K. Sutton, retired Chief Historian of the National Park Service. Together, their presentations and the ensuing discussions pried open what has for 150-years been the carefully concealed history of Reconstruction, its legacies,... Read more

“There They Come; They Will Kill Me for Sure!”: The Victims of the Massacre

Last updated on: May 17, 2016 at 2:43 pm By Andre E. Johnson

This post is part of the Memories of a Massacre Project: Memphis in 1866. This project is designed to bring to public attention the massacre that rattled Reconstruction-era Memphis in May 1866. On May 20-21, 2016, the University of Memphis will host “Memories of a Massacre: Memphis in 1866, a Symposium Exploring Slavery, Emancipation, and Reconstruction.” The culmination of a semester-long series of lectures, workshops, discussions, and book talks, this symposium will feature historians and scholars from across the country, including Robert... Read more

Can I Carry A Gun on Campus and Live?

Last updated on: May 5, 2016 at 3:21 pm By Andre E. Johnson

Effective July 1, 2016, as long as they notify law enforcement officials on campus “full-time faculty, staff and other employees of Tennessee’s public colleges and universities who have handgun-carry permits to carry their guns on campus.” According the Memphis Commercial Appeal, Senate sponsor, Mike Bell, a Republican from Riceville said, “I think it’s a good bill, and I think it will enhance campus safety.” House sponsor, Rep. Andy Holt, a Republican from Dresden said, “The purpose of running the bill is campus safety. It’s not... Read more

When They Still Don’t Care: The Death of #TamirRice

Last updated on: May 3, 2016 at 7:33 am By Andre E. Johnson

According to the New York Times, the family of Tamir Rice will receive $6 million from the city of Cleveland in the largest police-related civil lawsuit in the city’s history. The settlement “spares Cleveland the possibility of a federal civil rights trial” along with avoiding “the possibility of an even larger judgment.” The paper also notes that “the $6 million figure is in line with settlements in the deaths of Eric Garner in New York and Freddie Gray in Baltimore.” However, to add... Read more

When Black People Were Not “Ladies” or “Men”

Last updated on: April 27, 2016 at 1:39 pm By Andre E. Johnson

At the church I serve (Gifts of Life Ministries), every fourth Sunday during our Power Hour Bible Study session before morning worship, we have what has been affectionately called “Ask the Pastor.” During this session, members and visitors can ask me any question that has been on their minds. When we first started doing this, I thought many of the questions would focus squarely on theology and/or the Bible. I even thought that some of the questions would focus specifically... Read more

Beyond Bathrooms: Educating on Love and Acceptance

Last updated on: April 30, 2016 at 11:48 am By Guest Contributor

by Christopher Bond I was lecturing on social media marketing/promotion and hashtag marketing in class, and I open Twitter and Facebook and see: #BoycottTarget. I have been quiet too long on this issue. While Target has been boycotted by other groups (as it should) in the past based on its donations to certain groups or certain products it has sold, the #BoycottTarget is a societal educational issue, not a corporate policy issue. If you know me, you know I will... Read more

Burned Alive: The Lynch Murder, Mutilation and Mayhem of Ell Persons

Last updated on: April 27, 2016 at 7:21 am By Andre E. Johnson

On Tuesday, April 12 the American Inns of Court in Memphis, Tennessee invited me and other members of the Lynching Sites Project to come and share the story of the lynching of Ell Persons. Attorney Carla Peacher-Ryan and Dr. Tom Carlson promoted the work we do in the recovering of lynching sites in Shelby County, while Dr. Margaret Vandiver discussed the broader implications of the Persons lynching. I had the task of giving a speech detailing Persons lynching and the... Read more

A Symposium Exploring Slavery, Emancipation and Reconstruction

Last updated on: May 16, 2016 at 4:09 pm By blog admin

Respectability Politics ~ The Sexist Version

Last updated on: April 15, 2016 at 8:32 am By Guest Contributor

by Sharolyn Payton We live in a society which abuses its girls and its women and then blames them for the abuse! I find this practice to be not only misogynistic, but unjust and unloving, both as a woman and a Christian. We (society and especially the church) like to hold women accountable for, and even go so far as to “police” what they wear and how they wear it. We do this in hopes of “protecting” the beloved men... Read more