History

National

Richmond, Va., Circuit Court To Decide The Future Of Confederate Gen. Lee Statue

4:13pm July 23, 2020

by Whittney Evans (VPM)

Plans to remove the statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee in Richmond have been caught up in court. A judge may rule Thursday whether it can come down or if the injunction continues.

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How has the ADA affected your life? We're listening.

National

After 30 Years, How Has The ADA Helped You?

5:00am July 22, 2020

by Nell Clark

The 30th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act is Sunday. Morning Edition wants to know how it has affected your life.

Books

British Novelist Reimagines The Life And Death Of Hamnet Shakespeare

4:15pm July 21, 2020

Almost nothing is known about William Shakespeare's son, Hamnet, who died at age 11. NPR's Mary Louise Kelly talks with Maggie O'Farrell about her new novel, which imagines the boy's life and death.

President Trump departs a July 2019 press conference on the census with U.S. Attorney General William Barr (center) and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross in the White House Rose Garden.

With No Final Say, Trump Wants To Change Who Counts For Dividing Up Congress' Seats

2:31pm July 21, 2020

by Hansi Lo Wang

The president is calling for unauthorized immigrants to be excluded from census numbers used to divide seats in Congress. The Constitution says the count must include every person living in the U.S.

Sculptor Yevgeny Chubarov donated this installation of 282 stone heads in a cage — symbolizing Josef Stalin's countless victims — on the condition it be displayed next to the Soviet dictator.

What To Do With Toppled Statues? Russia Has A Fallen Monument Park

1:38pm July 21, 2020

by Lucian Kim

The U.S. isn't the only country where statues of controversial historical figures have been swept aside by protesters seeking a clean break with the past.

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'Fresh Air' Remembers Civil Rights Leader Rep. John Lewis

2:28pm July 20, 2020

by Terry Gross

Lewis, who died July 17, grew up the son of sharecroppers. He later became an associate of Martin Luther King and co-led the 1965 civil rights march in Selma, Ala. Originally broadcast in 2009.

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'Black In Selma' Author Reflects On The Long March Toward Civil Rights

2:28pm July 20, 2020

by Terry Gross

The late J.L. Chestnut was the first Black lawyer in Selma, Ala. He was working with the NAACP at the time of the city's 1965 civil rights march. In 1990, he spoke to Fresh Air about Bloody Sunday.

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Eleanor Holmes Norton And Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Remember John Lewis

5:14pm July 18, 2020

NPR's Michel Martin speaks with the two congresswomen about the life and legacy of the late congressman John Lewis, who died on Friday at the age of 80.

In the early 1900s, educator Booker T. Washington and Sears Roebuck president Julius Rosenwald built schools across the South for African American students. May's Lick Rosenwald School, in Maysville, Ky., was built in 1921, and it has received one of 27 p

Arts

27 Grants Awarded To African American History Sites; Funder Aims To 'Scale Up'

8:49pm July 16, 2020

by Elizabeth Blair

The National Historic Trust's African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund gave out $1.6 million in grants to sites that tell American history "through the lens of Black humanity and identity."

The Vatican, shown here last month, has issued new guidance on how bishops should respond to allegations of sexual abuse.

Religion

New Vatican Guidance Urges Clergy To Report Cases Of Sexual Abuse

7:03pm July 16, 2020

by David Welna

A step-by-step manual for investigating and reporting sexual abuse cases involving clergy calls on church authorities to alert civilian officials even if not required to do so by law.