When we talk about historical research, several concepts such as the past, history and a series of images and notions about what, supposedly, happened long ago, come to mind. This linear, rigid, objective and monolithic perception of history that is often confused with the past is the introduction to this article. And we say this since the past is not understood […] … learn more→

When I first set out to research how the Holocaust was being depicted in textbooks in New Jersey’s public schools, my hope was to see what students were being taught about the systematic state-sponsored killingof 6 million Jewish men, women and and children. I never imagined that my work would lead me to serve as a witness against […] … learn more→

When it comes to how deeply embedded racism is in American society, blacks and whites have sharply different views. For instance, 70 percent of whites believe that individual discrimination is a bigger problem than discrimination built into the nation’s laws and institutions. Only 48 percent of blacks believe that is true. Many blacks and whites also fail […] … learn more→

When protesters tore down the “Silent Sam” Confederate statue at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill on Aug. 20, it wasn’t just destruction of state property – a crime for which the protesters are now being investigated. Rather, the protesters knocked a powerful symbol of white supremacy from its pedestal – both literally and figuratively. Silent Sam, after […] … learn more→

Those who have studied history understand the importance of being engaged in the global economy. Two thousand years ago, China represented nearly 25 per cent of the global economy. In 1600, it was 30 per cent, and a third in 1820. The country was a global powerhouse, to say the least. There is a famous story […] … learn more→

Ron Chernow probably did not foresee his biography of American founding father Alexander Hamilton inspiring a Broadway musical. Six nights a week, however, the protagonist of his 2004 work can be found in New York – and now London – declaiming his political philosophy over a hip-hop beat, to rapt audiences and rave reviews. And […] … learn more→

South Africa’s minister of Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga has released a report from a ministerial task team that recommends a major overhaul of the history curriculum at schools. Most of the debate around the report has focused on its main recommendation – to make history compulsory in the final three years of high school from 2023. […] … learn more→

It has been more than 70 years since the Nazi-occupied Auschwitz concentration camp was liberated. Auschwitz was the most notorious of all the concentration camps – where it is believed that more than a million people were systematically exterminated via state systems of execution and torture. Concentration camps were central to the Nazi ideology and victims were mostly Jews, Gypsies, black […] … learn more→

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How should a university engage with the consequences of its own history? How can difficult and controversial pasts add to the quality and effectiveness of a university’s work in the present? Ten years ago,Slavery and Justice report; reflections and recommendations following from revelations about its early benefactors’ involvement in the Rhode Island slave trade. Today, […] … learn more→