Description
"Dear Mr. President . . . " Letters to FDR, #Twitterstorians, and One Man's Experience of Slavery's Legacy
April 27, 2018
Joanne talks about the letters that flooded into FDR’s Whitehouse and how historians reach the public using social media. Also, Justin Reid, director of African American programs at Virginia Humanities, reflects on his family’s experience of slavery.
FINDING HIS ROOTS In 2014, Justin Reid, director of African American programs at Virginia Humanities, set out to find the Virginia plantation where his ancestors had been enslaved.
DEAR MR. PRESIDENT When President Franklin Roosevelt’s announced that he wanted to add seats to the Supreme Court in 1937, Americans responded passionately. Historian William Blake reads letters sent to the White house by average Americans, and describes how they show a nuanced understanding of the Constitution.
#TWITTERSTORIANS How do historians use social media to reach a public audience? Joanne (@jbf1755 ) talks to Professor Erika Lee of the University of Minnesota (@prof_erikalee), and Professor Tyina Steptoe, associate professor of History at the University of Arizona in Tucson (@TyinaSteptoe).
