Charles Shaw shares the compelling story of James A. Butler, his maternal great, great grandfather who migrated as a young man from the Province of Nova Scotia to Boston in the mid-19th century in search of opportunity. A boat builder by trade and a likely descendant of the Black loyalist evacuation of New York in 1783, Butler arrived in the U.S. with youthful confidence and verve, only to encounter the dark side of the pursuit for the American dream.
The Logbooks
City of Boston Event | Opening of “Slavery in Boston” Exhibit at Faneuil Hall on 6/16
Attend the upcoming opening of the Slavery in Boston exhibit on June 16th at 1pm in Faneuil Hall
Place Justice Event | Change the Name: Supporting Youth Activists in Advancing Place Justice
Don't miss this evening's Place Justice film screening, followed by a lively conversation with filmmakers, educators, and young changemakers who have replaced the names of enslavers with those of Black abolitionists and activists.
CCI Event | Confronting White Supremacy virtual Symposium 5/10
Don't miss the first ever Confronting White Supremacy virtual Symposium on Saturday May 20th, 2023 from 10am - 2pm
ABB Event | Art in the Wake: Reckoning and Re-membering 5/19-20
Register now for Art in the Wake: Reckoning and Re-membering, a two-day symposium hosted by Indigo Arts Alliance in partnership with the Center for the Study of Global Slavery at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History & Culture and Atlantic Black Box. May 19 & 20, 2023Indigo Arts Alliance Studio 60 Cove St. … Continue reading ABB Event | Art in the Wake: Reckoning and Re-membering 5/19-20
Hidden Brookline Event | Walking Tour this Saturday 5/6
Discover the hidden history of freedom and slavery in Brookline, Massachusetts When: Saturday, May 6th Cost: $30. Preregistration Required Infamous slave traders, courageous men who escaped slavery, the famous Florida Ridley and more! Questions? Contact Chair Dr. Barbara Brown bbbrown@bu.edu
First Parish Portland Event | Bounty – A Film Screening and Conversation with Penobscot Ambassador Maulian Dana on 5/6
Sat, May 6, 2023 at 3:00 PM Parish Hall at the First Parish Unitarian Universalist Meeting House425 Congress Street, Portland, Maine REGISTER HERE This event is part of First Parish’s ongoing truth telling and reconciliation process of telling the dark story of a bounty posse against the Penobscot in 1757 that members of our early … Continue reading First Parish Portland Event | Bounty – A Film Screening and Conversation with Penobscot Ambassador Maulian Dana on 5/6
ABB event tonight at 5 | Interpreting the Words of Gloucester’s Enslaved
Gloucester’s Gloster, Fortune & Kate: Interpreting Their Words and Surfacing Evidence of their Lives, with Lise Breen Thursday, April 27 at 5:00 pm Register here In this talk, Lise Breen raises questions about the nature of enslavement in New England and its interpretation. Presenting sketches of four enslaved people with ties to Gloucester, Massachusetts, she … Continue reading ABB event tonight at 5 | Interpreting the Words of Gloucester’s Enslaved
ABB Event Thursday | Interpreting the Words of Gloucester’s Enslaved on 4/27
Gloucester’s Gloster, Fortune & Kate: Interpreting Their Words and Surfacing Evidence of their Lives, with Lise Breen Thursday, April 27 at 5:00 pm Register here In this talk, Lise Breen raises questions about the nature of enslavement in New England and its interpretation. Presenting sketches of four enslaved people with ties to Gloucester, Massachusetts, she … Continue reading ABB Event Thursday | Interpreting the Words of Gloucester’s Enslaved on 4/27
Castine Historical Society event tonight | Maine’s Black History with Bob Greene
Date: Thursday, April 20, 2023 Time: 7:00 pm Register here A talk via Zoom on three centuries of Maine’s Black history by historian and journalist Bob Greene. Funded by the Maine Humanities Council. Did you know that Maine’s Black history goes back to at least 12 years before the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock? The … Continue reading Castine Historical Society event tonight | Maine’s Black History with Bob Greene
Place Justice Event | Bounty: A film screening and conversation on 4/18/23
Hosted by the Place Justice Project of the Permanent Commission on the Status of Racial, Indigenous, and Tribal Populations Tuesday, April 18, 2023 at 5:00 pm Register here Join us for a virtual screening of "Bounty" followed by a conversation with filmmakers and educators “We are citizens of the Penobscot Nation. Together we bring our … Continue reading Place Justice Event | Bounty: A film screening and conversation on 4/18/23
Save the date: The State of Black Maine on Juneteenth
Hosted by Maine Black Community Development The State of Black Maine Symposium is a daylong event that will be held annually on Juneteenth—now a paid state holiday in Maine—with the aim of creating and sustaining a public platform that amplifies Black Maine voices, unifies across difference, builds solidarity, fosters collaboration, holds space for creative expression, … Continue reading Save the date: The State of Black Maine on Juneteenth
Hard History Event | “People Not Property” on 3/30
Presented by the Hard History Project and Historic Hudson Valley March 30, at 7:00pm EST Register here This free webinar features teachers and historians from New York and other states. They’ll share practical tips about how to use primary sources t0 teach the history of slavery in the United States. During the webinar, participants will gain practical, use-tomorrow strategies and … Continue reading Hard History Event | “People Not Property” on 3/30
Place Justice Event | Language, Land, & Belonging on 4/4/23 in Lewiston, ME
In the context of colonization, slavery, and migration, language has been a site of genocide, erasure, and assimilation. Can it also be a form of resistance against displacement and a tool of solidarity, persistence, and place-making?
ABB Event tonight! | How the Dutch & English Brought Slavery to New Jersey at 5pm
Rick Geffken explores how the brutal practice of chattel slavery was modeled elsewhere before it became entrenched in colonial New Jersey.
Conversations on the Commons Event: Researching Enslavement in Massachusetts on 3/24/23
Hosted by the Mass History Alliance March 24, 2023, 12:00 - 1:30 p.m. Register here A conversation with Jane Sciacca of the Wayland Historical Society and Emma Winter Zeig of Historic Northampton, moderated by Gloria Greis, Executive Director of the Needham History Center & Museum Researching the history of enslavement is rewarding and necessary work – … Continue reading Conversations on the Commons Event: Researching Enslavement in Massachusetts on 3/24/23
Event of the African American Archive of Columbia County | “Occupations and Lifestyles of Enslaved and Freed Peoples in the Hudson Valley” on 4/30/23
Presented by the African American Archive of Columbia County, in partnership with the Columbia County Historical Society Presented by Dr. Myra Armstead Sunday, April 30, 2023 at 3 p.m. This free lecture in person at Hudson Area Library and online via Zoom Register here Dr. Myra Armstead is Vice President for Academic Inclusive Excellence and Lyford Paterson Edwards and Helen Gray Edwards Professor of … Continue reading Event of the African American Archive of Columbia County | “Occupations and Lifestyles of Enslaved and Freed Peoples in the Hudson Valley” on 4/30/23
ABB Event | How the Dutch & English Brought Slavery to New Jersey on 3/23/23
Rick Geffken explores how the brutal practice of chattel slavery was modeled elsewhere before it became entrenched in colonial New Jersey.
Event of Old North Illuminated | Remembering Black and Indigenous Peoples in New England’s Religious History on 3/23/23
Hosted by Old North Illuminated Thursday, March 23, 2023 7:00 – 8:30pmLive on Zoom Register here Much ink has been spilled writing about Southern New England’s cultures, religions, and history. However, those writings have largely excluded Black and Indigenous New Englanders. Historians and literary theorists who study Black and Indigenous New Englanders have argued that … Continue reading Event of Old North Illuminated | Remembering Black and Indigenous Peoples in New England’s Religious History on 3/23/23
Event of the African American Archive of Columbia County | “Lived Experiences of Enslaved Peoples in the Hudson Valley” on 3/12/23
Presented by the African American Archive of Columbia County, in partnership with the Columbia County Historical Society Presented by Dr. Andrea Mosterman Sunday, March 12, 2023 at 3 p.m. This free lecture in person at Hudson Area Library and online via Zoom. Register here Dr. Andrea Mosterman is an Associate Professor Atlantic History, Joseph Tregle Professor in Early American History, University of New … Continue reading Event of the African American Archive of Columbia County | “Lived Experiences of Enslaved Peoples in the Hudson Valley” on 3/12/23
Tonight! Place Justice Event | Names Matter: Regional & National Initiatives to Address Racist Place Names
Don't miss this free virtual panel discussion that brings together national leaders in the struggle to remove racist place names across the U.S.