Anniversary of the freedom rides : 1961

Here's an interesting and short article from NPR ( National Public Radio). The short article summarizes the life and shows how the fights of a civil rights activist evolved over time.

The 8 minute interview with James Farmer is very instructive on several accounts :

- strategy of filling the jails and legal implications of the strategy (to file an appeal, they needed to be freed, therefore to post bail before 40 days).

- treatment in prisons

- role of music and singing in jails : keeping the activists' morale high and breaking that of the guards.

- the education gap between the guards and the CRM activists ( the word "derogatory" means "showing no respect, demeaning").

There's also good interview with historian Raymond Arsenault who wrote a book about the freedom riders in 2006. He addresses the question of Kennedy's support of the freedom rides and more generally of his administration's committment to the movement.

- 'jail no bail' tactic of CORE (origin and impact).

- the origins of the desegregation of public transport ( 1944 case and 1947 first freedom rides)

- the Kennedy administration's policy on freedom rides

These two interviews can be listened to online, on downloaded to be listened to on the road.

Anniversary of the beginning of the Civil War

April 1861 : the confederate forces launched an attack against Fort Sumter in SC after having been warned that a Union ship would bring supplies to the soldiers in the fort ( officially food but also ammunition).

This anniversary has given the press an occasion to look back on the Civil War era. I'd like to recommend the most interesting segments on this subject I've heard so far, provided by a BBC programme called Americana.

If you'd like to download the podcast and listen to it on the go, I've posted it here.

You will hear how some Americans understand the Civil War and David Blight will provide guidance to interpret what they are saying (first 12 minutes of the podcast).

What memory of the Civil War is being articulated by the re-enactors?

Next, several original testimonies on the battle of Antietam are read and commented upon.

Holidays' readings

Dear students,

I'd like to give you one more piece of advice on how best to prepare the exams. One of the most efficient learning tools is the writing of a chronology in which you would include all the key dates we've seen both in the lectures and in the seminars. By doing so, you will both brush up on the course work and build your own general picture of American history and be able to see what happened simultaneously and the general context of events.

If you'd like to do a little bit of reading, here are interesting reviews of a book on the Tea Party movement and their use of American history in French (here) or in English (here). For a more critical review by historian Gordon Wood, check this.

I really enjoyed listening to this interview with Eric Foner about his new book on Abraham Lincoln, The Fiery Trial. I discussed his thesis in the lecture, so this is a good reminder. Some of his lectures are also available on the Gilder Lerhman website.

Here you can watch short videos about the civil rights movement. And here you can listen to another civil rights song and read some comments about it.

This is a short introduction to the beginning of the movement ( you'll see Fannie Lou Hamer singing, Go tell it on the mountains).

The story of the death of Emett Till :

The Montgomery bus boycott:

James Meredith tries to register at the University of Mississippi. Note the constitutional remarks on the supremacy clause of the Constitution and the States Rights' doctrines of interposition or nullification. You'll also hear Kennedy trying to find a compromise and avoid using the federal army to integrate the Mississippi University:

What do you think Ross Barnett the governor of Mississippi meant by the word "heritage" when he declared in the middle of the crisis : I love Mississippi, I love her people, I love our heritage"?

For more extracts from Eyes on the Prize :

The lunch counter sit-ins, the 1960 election, desegregation of interstate transports (freedom riders) and the way Kennedy is pushed to take action by the civil rights movement organisations (episode 1, episode 2, episode 3, episode 4)

Here again, the intstrumental role of white hatred is emphasized: provoking violence was part of the strategy of the freedom riders. Such actions would in fact get public opinion to support the peaceful activists of the civil rights movement.

sermon podcast for SEMINAR 7

The sermon by Reverend Campbell is availbable HERE.

immigration in America

I couldn't find the excerpt from America America which I was looking for. So instead you can have a look at this short scene from the movie.

In this interview, Martin Scorsese discusses movie-making and the immigrant experience.
A few years back I wrote a post on West Side Story.

Finally, you may enjoy a very interesting post on a French blog on the song by Joan Baez on the Sacco & Vanzetti cause célèbre. The same blog offers a selection of songs and an analysis of their historical context. I strongly reccommend visiting it.

outline for lecture 7

The university website is experiencing problems putting the outlines online.

So if you can, please download the outline for Lecture 7 : here.

Simply click on where it says télécharger ce fichier.

Seminar 3 : the Bill of Rights

The podcast I've recommended for this week are short episodes made by a young law student in 2006 : basically at the end of every day he made a few podcasts summarizing what he'd learnt or been studying. I find it usually enjoyable and useful.

Visit the webpage : Life of Law Student : constitutional law II. and download the podcasts or search for it on i-tunes.

Here is a very good example of the current significance of the Bill of Rights and of the debate of free speech :




This is an extract from The West Wing, season 6, episode 8 (In the room)

I whole heartedly reccomend this TV series which is amazing : you'll learn a lot about the American constitution, the political workings of the institutions and the hot potato issues of the 2000s, and painlessly to boot.