History

Books
Arts

'Benjamin Banneker and Us' traces generations of descendants of the mathematician

10:05am March 21, 2023

by Ericka Taylor

Rachel Jamison Webster learned she is related to Benjamin Banneker at a cousin's wedding. The news was unexpected, not only because of Banneker's place in history but also because the author is white.

Politics & Government

20 years on, remembering the mess of misinformation that propelled the Iraq War

5:18pm March 18, 2023

NPR's Pien Huang speaks with Noreen Malone, host of the Slow Burn series The Road to the Iraq War, about the 20th anniversary of the invasion of Iraq.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signs a law to include the rights of LGBTQ people in Michigan's Civil Rights law on Thursday, March 16, 2023, in Lansing, Mich.

Michigan Democrats are getting their way for the first time in nearly 40 years

8:08am March 17, 2023

by Colin Jackson (Michigan Public Radio Network)

For the first time in decades, Democrats run the show in Michigan, passing legislative priorities they've been after for years: repealing a 1931 abortion law, repealing right-to-work and more.

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A land acknowledgment is a statement before an event recognizing the indigenous communities that originally inhabited the event space. Above is a detail of a Tribal Nations Map by Aaron Carapella. Read more about Carapella's mapping project.

So you began your event with an indigenous land acknowledgement. Now what?

4:09pm March 15, 2023

by Chloe Veltman

Statements recognizing indigenous rights to territories seized by colonial powers may be well-meaning. But some indigenous leaders fear these acknowledgements may become routine and performative.

Former state lawmaker Kay Bounkeua takes a break from her work as her daughter Ryla Bounkeua plays with Kay's stepdad Jeffrey Strong in Rio Rancho, N.M, March 13.

Only New Mexico lawmakers don't get paid for their time. That might change this year

1:57pm March 15, 2023

by Alice Fordham

Most states pay or offer some financial compensation to state lawmakers for their work. Not New Mexico. That can be a barrier for many people trying to enter politics. A new bill could change that.

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Johnny Thomas, mayor of tiny Glendora, Miss., runs a small civil rights museum dedicated to the Emmett Till story.

National

Landmarks fall, memories fade. Civil rights tourism may protect Mississippi history

5:00am March 14, 2023

There's a new push to develop civil rights tourism in the Mississippi Delta where local groups are using federal dollars to preserve the stories before memories fade and landmarks are lost.

The new Harriet Tubman monument, titled 'Shadow of a Face' by architect Nina Cooke John, is in Newark, New Jersey, on Thursday, March 9, 2023.

A monument of Harriet Tubman now replaces a statue of Christopher Columbus in Newark

9:05pm March 13, 2023

by Jonathan Franklin

The title of the city's monument was inspired by Robert Hayden's 1962 poem entitled "Runagate Runagate," which references Tubman.

A show at Red's, a juke joint in Clarksdale, Miss., where it's advertised that you can see live blues seven nights a week.

Mississippi is home of the blues and key to civil rights past. Locals tell the story

1:10pm March 13, 2023

With pandemic restrictions lifted, tourists are returning to Mississippi's famous Blues Trail. Civil rights leaders are noticing some are now hungry for more context about the music's origins.

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The Rev. Wheeler Parker Jr. is the last living witness of the kidnapping of Emmet Till. Nearly 70 years later, he will still break down in tears when he describes what happened.

Politics & Government

He was with Emmett Till the night he was murdered. The horror haunts him still

4:57pm March 12, 2023

by Ayesha Rascoe

The Rev. Wheeler Parker Jr. was just 16 years old when his cousin and best friend, Emmett Till, was lynched in 1955. Today, he is the last living witness of the kidnapping.

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Demonstrators rallied outside Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's residence in New Delhi, June 14, 1975. Less than two weeks later, her government imposed a period of authoritarian rule called the "Emergency." It lasted for nearly two years.

World News

Opinion: India expelled me for journalism 47 years ago. It's still cracking down

5:02am March 12, 2023

by Lewis M. Simons

Nearly half a century after the government of India kicked out Washington Post reporter Lewis M. Simons, journalists there are at risk again. And for similar reasons.