Tag Archives: slavery

Mississippi Finally Bans Slavery

America made slavery illegal in 1865, right?  Hum, some of the states may want to check their paperwork just to make sure. The state of Mississippi found itself finally formally ratifying the 13th Amendment – that one that abolished slavery – on February 7, 2013. Now as you can imagine, being a southern state, Mississippi officials were probably less than excited about ratifying this amendment back in the late 1800s.  So not eager to let this long standing tradition go, Mississippi officials didn’t even get around to voting on the ratification until 1995.  1995?  Yes, it was 130 years after … Continue reading →

College Students Try to End Slavery

College football is on a lot of minds tonight.  I myself am sitting here watching the BCS Championship out of the corner of my eye (my other eye is crying for the plight of the Fighting Irish) while writing this blog. But, some college students have something other than the national championship football game on their minds. Last Friday, the Passion 2014 conference wrapped up at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta.  Attending were about 60,000 young Christians from 56 different countries and 2,300 universities.  The four day conference consisted of community group learning sessions. What was on their mind?  Primarily, … Continue reading →

Help for Forced Marriage Survivors?

In a previous article, I discussed forced marriage and how it was surprisingly still a problem in modern times, and actually quite a serious problem in the UK. Young girls frequently just disappear as they are sent off into forced marriage. Yet, the officials were oh so careful not to offend anyone engaging in such practices. I suggested that the young girls being dragged off and forced to marry against their wishes were most likely plenty offended. You can read more about that here. Now, the government has at least in part determined that these girls, young women, and yes, … Continue reading →

The Day They Came to Arrest the Book – Nat Hentoff

As a fast introductory note: at the time this book was published (1982) the politically correct term for a person of color was Black. I know things have shifted somewhat since then, but as I’m reviewing this particular book, I’ll use the term Black, as that is what is found in the book. “The Day They Came to Arrest the Book” is a classic young adult fiction novel about censorship. George Mason High School is the setting, and Nora Baines is the teacher who started it all. She’s a history teacher who believes that sometimes, the best lessons can be … Continue reading →

The Runaway Quilt – Jennifer Chiaverini

I’ve read all the books in the Elm Creek Quilts series, but I have to say, this one is my favorite. Sylvia Compson, accomplished quilter and owner of Elm Creek Manor, is finishing up a lecture on the history of quilting when a woman from the audience named Margaret approaches her with an unusual quilt. Obviously over a hundred years old and well-used, the quilt nonetheless is fascinating to Sylvia. From the front, it looks like a series of quilt patterns sewn together into one, but from the back, it’s a map to Elm Creek Manor. As she drives home, … Continue reading →

Taking Liberty — Ann Rinaldi

We know today that slavery is wrong. At the time of George Washington, however, it was a way of life, and in the south, it wasn’t much thought of. Slaves were common and there was no one to stand up for their rights or to make the plantation owners accountable for what they were doing. So when I say that George Washington owned slaves, I don’t say that to indicate that he was a bad person – he was simply doing what was done and common in that time. “Taking Liberty” by Ann Rinaldi is the story of Oney Judge, … Continue reading →

Bill Cosby Issues A Challenge

Entertainment legend Bill Cosby is asking for your help to fund a major project he hopes will be around for you and your great-great-great grandchildren to appreciate. Cosby is launching a new campaign to raise $100 million toward a national slavery museum to be built among the battlefields of the Civil War. The price tag for the new museum: $200 million. That’s where you (we) come in. Cosby is calling on each American to contribute $8 to help with the museum fund. The actor has already committed $1 million of his own money to the project, and is rallying others … Continue reading →

Wolf By the Ears — Ann Rinaldi

Ann Rinaldi is the author who first got me interested in writing historical fiction. She does it so beautifully. “Wolf By the Ears” is, in my opinion, one of her finest novels, set in 1819 on Thomas Jefferson’s Virginia plantation, Monticello. For years it has been speculated that Thomas Jefferson took his slave Sally Hemmings as his mistress and fathered children with her. Some historians feel that it was actually Jefferson’s brother who fathered those children, and we may never know for sure. This book is written from the viewpoint that it was Jefferson himself, and so for the purposes … Continue reading →

The Amethyst Heart — Penelope J. Stokes

As my third and final selection to commemorate September 11th, I have chosen “The Amythest Heart” by Penelope J. Stokes. Set in the deep south, it focuses on the lives of men and women who lived through the Civil War and the things they did to improve the world around them, and how that legacy passed on down through the generations. Today is Miss Amethyst Noble’s ninety-third birthday, and she has baked a coconut layer cake to celebrate. Donning a lavender dress and her amethyst broach, she goes downstairs to meet her family: sullen and unstable Conrad, his flighty wife … Continue reading →

A Light to My Path — Lynn Austin

Today I am reviewing books that in some way tie in to the commemoration of September 11th. I have chosen this novel because it tells the history of our country, some of the roots that hold up the tall and towering tree that America has become. Another volume in the Refiner’s Fire series by Lynn Austin, “A Light to My Path” is the first novel I read by her, and I was completely swept away by her use of the written word, her depth of research, and her ability to tell a story in such a way that you feel … Continue reading →