Indian Country Virginia: Real & Imagined
In this live performance at Colonial Williamsburg’s Kimball Theatre, the History Guys take on the history of Indians in Virginia.
“Black and White” — Further Reading
The following links and documents relate to the BackStory episode “Black and White: The Idea of Racial Purity,” broadcast in January of 2009. You can listen to the entire episode here. Read up on the origins and history of the idea of race. Peruse an excerpt from The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family, by Annette [...]
“Black and White” — Features and Highlights
Thomas and Sally — Historian Annette Gordon Reed speaks with 18th Century History Guy Peter Onuf about Thomas Jefferson’s relationship with his slave, Sally Hemings. Reed proposes that historians have come to erroneous conclusions trying to “save” Jefferson’s reputation. Slavery & Science — Historian Daryl Scott discusses rise of scientific racism and how race has [...]
Black & White: The Idea of Racial Purity
On this episode of BackStory, the History Guys look for the roots of America’s obsession with race, and ask why the line between black and white has remained so bold despite centuries of racial mixing. Were the categories of “black” and “white” already in place when Africans first came to America, and if not, when [...]
(The Invention of) Traditional Family Values
California’s recent passage of a gay marriage ban suggests that many Americans subscribe to the idea of the “traditional” family — caregiver mom, breadwinner dad, and 2.5 children. But whose tradition is it, really? In this hour, the Guys hear dueling viewpoints — first from Focus on the Family, and then from a Columbia University [...]
