Why Historically-white Sororities and Fraternities are racially problematic in US universities
‘Greek Life’ is a distinctive part of the social and cultural experience of universities in the United States, and has faced recent scrutiny for acts of racism, sexism and homophobia. Yet, as Dr Taulby Edmondson argues here — in the latest article in the ‘Writing Race’ series — the existence of longstanding Black sororities and fraternities complicate calls for an end to this culture. Studying how minorities use and transform predominantly white institutions raises questions about how we go about deconstructing the white supremacy within them.
RHS Publication, Research and Teaching Awards, 2021
The 2021 Royal Historical Society Awards were announced on Friday 23 July. Eleven categories recognise excellence in publication, research and teaching, awarded jointly with the Institute of Historical Research. Here you can learn more about the winners and runners-up, and their work, and watch the awards ceremony which was held this year by video.
Royal Historical Society Awards, 2021 – Publications, Research and Teaching
On Friday 23 July we announce the winners of the 2021 Royal Historical Society Awards for Publications, Research and Teaching. The RHS Awards are an opportunity for the Society, and wider historical community, to recognise and celebrate just some of the recent achievements and hard work of historians in 2020-21. In this post, learn more about the award categories and shortlists ahead of Friday’s announcements.
Cannabis, Race, and Mental Illness in Britain, 1980-1993
For the ninth post in the RHS ‘Writing Race’ blog series, Jamie Banks investigates ‘cannabis psychosis’ and its disproportionate diagnosis amongst Britain’s Afro-Caribbean communities. Studying this intersection of medicine, culture, and policing brings to light the methodological difficulties around motivation and responsibility which racism poses for historians.
Nigerian cultural heritage abroad: the case of an Itsekiri chief
How do we study material culture taken from Africa during colonialism? In the next in our ‘Writing Race’ series, Allegra Ayida considers the material legacy of the nineteenth-century Itsekiri Chief, Nanna Olomu.
Why does the commemoration of slavery and its victims remain so difficult in France?
How do modern European nations remember the abolition of slavery, and how does this affect campaigns for racial justice? Olivia Durand introduces her research on France’s complicated relationship with abolitionism and slavery.
Sir Earle Page’s war diaries, 1941-42: new Camden Series volume
Kent Fedorowich and Jayne Gifford shed new light on Anglo-Australian relations during the Second World War in their new volume, ‘Sir Earle Page’s British War Cabinet Diary, 1941-1942’ (2021): the latest title in the RHS Camden Series.
When Rhodes was not built
Statues and commemorations of Cecil Rhodes provoke strongly reactions. In this post from the ‘Writing Race’ series, Durba Ghosh considers the longer history of Rhodes statuary. This, she reveals, has been equally turbulent.
RHS Gladstone Prize, 2021 – shortlisted author videos
Learn more about the eight books shortlisted for this year’s RHS Gladstone Prize. In this post, authors introduce their books, and discuss principal themes and argument, and how they came to write it.
RHS Whitfield Prize, 2021 — shortlisted author videos
Learn more about the six books shortlisted for this year’s RHS Whitfield Prize. In this post each of the six early career historians introduces their book, its principal themes and argument, and how they came to write it.
Travels in ‘Coal Country’ – and other New Historical Perspectives
Dr Ewan Gibbs introduces his new book, ‘Coal Country’, the latest title in the RHS series, New Historical Perspectives. Ewan’s is the first of four NHP titles in 2021 with forthcoming books also profiled here.
The Future of (Teaching) the Past
What happens when a university Digital History module goes online during lockdown? You might think this digital switch would be straightforward for ‘born digital’ students. But as Dr Jessica van Horssen explains, experimenting remotely with digital tools for research and communication poses its own challenges.
