We mourn the loss of our friend and colleague and remain committed to the work he began.
Sundown Towns The best introduction to sundown towns – cities, towns, counties, even whole subregions that for decades were all-white on purpose – is of course the book Sundown Towns. It is also available audibly. From Maine to California, thousands of communities kept out African Americans (or sometimes Chinese Americans, Jewish Americans, etc.) by force, …
We have tried hard to get a photo of a typical sundown town sign, but so far without success. A graduate of the U of TN had a roommate from a sundown town who was proud of a photo of her taken next to her town’s sundown town sign, when it was still up. But …
Using Research Information to Helpa Sundown Town Overcome Its Past A first step in opening up sundown towns and suburbs is to show how they became all-white. Often decades of obfuscation have made that difficult. Leaders of a sundown town often do not want their town’s racial history known. For one thing, the stark racism …
Using Research Information to Help a Sundown Town Overcome Its Past Read More »
News Archive Was your Wisconsin community a ‘sundown town’? Wisconsin Public Radio The history of ‘sundown towns’ in Wisconsin Wisconsin Public Radio AP Road Trip: Racial Tensions in America’s Sundown Towns Associated Press
James W. Loewen (1942-2021) We mourn the loss of our friend and colleague and remain committed to the work he began. For more on his life and work: James W. Loewen, Who Challenged How History Is Taught, Dies at 79, The New York Times HNN Honors James W. Loewen, 1942-2021, History News Network James W. …
Reflections on the Life and Work of James Loewen Read More »
We’re interested in hearing from you! Have you been teaching others about history and social justice? Acting to help sundown towns transcend their pasts? Making use of this site or the books, etc., presented here? What ideas, insights, etc., do you have to share? Email us at PublicHistorySites@gmail.com
Jim Loewen gives hilarious and gripping talks on topics related to Lies My Teacher Told Me and Lies Across America, how to teach history/social studies better, and Sundown Towns. He is also experienced at leading workshops for in-service teachers, students in schools of education, and staff at historic sites. To have Jim Loewen speak at your community forum, …
James Loewen’s gripping retelling of American history as it should, and could, be taught, Lies My Teacher Told Me, has sold more than 1,500,000 copies and continues to inspire K-16 teachers to get students to challenge, rather than memorize, their textbooks. Jim Loewen taught race relations for twenty years at the University of Vermont. Previously he …
Essay 15: Teaching the Civil Rights Movement Recognizing that inaccurate history often subtly promotes continuing white supremacy, the National Education Association (NEA) commissioned these articles and has posted some of them in slightly different form at its website. I thank Harry Lawson and others at NEA for the commission, for editorial suggestions, and for other assistance. …
Essay 14: How to Teach the Nadir of Race Relations Recognizing that inaccurate history often subtly promotes continuing white supremacy, the National Education Association (NEA) commissioned these articles and has posted some of them in slightly different form at its website. I thank Harry Lawson and others at NEA for the commission, for editorial suggestions, and …
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