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by abritt

Allitt Discusses John Marshall at Carter Center with Author Robert Strauss

Dr. Patrick N. Allitt, Cahoon Family Professor of American History, will join author Robert Strauss for a conversation about former U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Marshall. The public event, titled “John Marshall: The Final Founder,” is hosted by the Carter Center and will take place on Wednesday, April 7, at 7pm EST. Read the full event below and join the conversation via this link.

Eighteenth- and 19th-century contemporaries believed John Marshall to be, if not the equal of George Washington and Benjamin Franklin, at least very close to that pantheon. In his new book, journalist and historian Robert Strauss recounts how the Chief Justice acted as the glue that held the union together after the original founding days. Strauss will be in conversation with Emory University History Professor Patrick Allitt.

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Andrade Gives Wallace T. MacCaffrey Distinguished Lecture in History at Reed College

In late March Dr. Tonio Andrade, Professor of History, delivered the Wallace T. MacCaffrey Distinguished Lecture in History at Reed College. Andrade’s talk, “The Last Embassy: The 1795 Dutch Mission to the Qianlong Court,” focused on a little-studied embassy to the Qing court: the Dutch mission of 1794–95. The talk draws from research Andrade conducted for his forthcoming book, The Last Embassy: The Dutch Mission of 1795 and the Forgotten History of Western Encounters with China (Princeton UP, June 2021). Find out more about the event here.

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Ward Publishes Op-Ed in ‘NY Times’ on GA Voting Law and ‘Jim Crow 2.0’

Dr. Jason Morgan Ward, Professor of History, recently published an opinion piece in The New York Times. The article, “Georgia’s Voter Law Is Called ‘Jim Crow 2.0’ for a Reason,” offers essential historical context for understanding the new voting law that Georgia Republicans passed in the last month. Among the evidence Ward cites is research conducted by History Department senior honors thesis student Hannah Charak. Read an excerpt from the article below along with the full piece here.

“But we may not be as distant in our political moment from theirs as we might think: The long struggle to block access to the ballot has always relied on legal maneuvering and political schemes to achieve what bullets and bombs alone could not.

“What legislators in Georgia and across the country have reminded us is that backlash to expanded voting rights has often arrived by a method that our eras have in common: by laws, like Georgia’s Senate Bill 202, passed by elected politicians.”

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Suh quoted in ‘AJC’ Article on the History of Asian Immigrants and their Descendants in Georgia

Dr. Chris Suh, Assistant Professor of History, was recently quoted in an article in The Atlanta Journal Constitution. Written in the wake of the March 16 killing of eight people, including six Asian women, in Atlanta, the article examines how Asian immigrants and their descendants have navigated racial divides in Georgia. Suh’s research specializations include the US in the Pacific World, Asian American history, comparative studies in race and ethnicity, and the Progressive Era. His current book project is titled “At the Dawn of the Pacific Era: American Encounters with Asians in the Progressive Era of Empire and Exclusion.” Read an excerpt from the AJC piece citing Suh below along with the full article: “Asians have long, complex history navigating Georgia’s racial divides.”

“Chris Suh, an assistant professor of history at Emory, said the university was one of several southern Methodist schools that recruited elite students from East Asia in the 1880s and 1890s to train as missionaries in the southern conservative tradition.

“‘This is a time when Blacks and Jewish Americans are being persecuted, and you randomly have these Asian elites who are invited to dinner parties with the most influential southerners because they’re Christian, because they’ve conformed to what the white Christians believe is a great way for a non-white person to behave,’ said Suh.“

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Anderson Quoted in ‘TIME’ Article on GA Voting Law

Dr. Carol Anderson was recently quoted in the TIME article “Georgia Has Enacted Sweeping Changes to Its Voting Law. Here’s Why Voting Rights Advocates Are Worried.” The article outlines reactions to recent legislation that places new requirements and restrictions on voting in the state of Georgia. The Republican supporters of the law describe it as preventing electoral fraud, while critics see the legislation as aiming to suppress and disenfranchise voters, especially Black and Brown voters. Read an excerpt quoting Anderson below along with the full piece.

“Carol Anderson, chair of African American Studies at Emory University in Atlanta, describes the attempt by Georgia’s legislature as well as others around the country as similar to the Mississippi plan of 1890, which employed measures such as poll taxes and literacy tests to add barriers to the polls that especially affected Black Americans.

“’It didn’t say, ‘Okay, we’re just going to have the poll tax, and that ought to stop black people from voting.’ What it did was it had an array of policies that were designed and that worked together. If the poll tax didn’t get you, the literacy test would. If the literacy test didn’t get you, then the good character clause would,’ Anderson says. ‘It’s a web. You’re dodging and you’re hopping, but lord, don’t hit one of those things.’”

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Anderson Analyzes Senate Bill 202 for WABE’s ‘A Closer Look’

Dr. Carol Anderson, Charles Howard Candler Professor of African American Studies and Associated Faculty in the History Department, was recently a guest on the WABE radio show A Closer Look. Anderson analyzed Senate Bill 202, legislation that Gov. Brian Kemp recently signed into law that will place new requirements and restrictions on voting in the state of Georgia. Anderson places this legislation into historical context, drawing parallels between these new restrictions and voter suppression tactics from generations prior. Read an excerpt below along with the full piece: “Emory Professor Discusses Voter Suppression, Senate Bill 202, Power Of Black Vote.”

“During the virtual interview, Anderson told show host Rose Scott that she believes Senate Bill 202 is based on false premises. ‘If it passes, I expect immediate legal challenges,’ said Anderson. ‘It is really clear that this bill is based on the [big lie] — the big lie that led to the Capitol insurrection, the big lie about the stealing of the vote, the big lie about massive voter fraud.’ Anderson also said lawmakers have historically tried to shut down Black voting power — citing several examples, including literacy tests, poll taxes and the Mississippi Plan.“

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Suh to Speak at Event, “Addressing Anti-Asian Violence in Context and Community”

Dr. Chris Suh, Assistant Professor of History, will speak this evening along with other members of the Emory community at a virtual event titled “Addressing Anti-Asian Violence in Context and Community.” The conversation will take place from 6-7pm at the following link: https://emory.zoom.us/j/92475166678 (Zoom ID: 924 7516 6678). Read more about the event below:

“In light of recent events, we are offering a student-focused program addressing the surge of anti-Asian violence on both a national and local level. We welcome individuals of Asian descent to join us tomorrow, March 18th, at 6 PM ET for a time of connection to learn more about the wider historical context of anti-Asian violence, meaning-making during this time of pain, and self-care practices we can use to sustain ourselves and our communities. The discussion will be facilitated by Melissa Paa Redwood (Office for Racial and Cultural Engagement), Dr. Chris Suh (Department of History), Dr. Jane Yang (Counseling and Psychological Services), the Venerable Priya Sraman (Office of Spiritual and Religious Life), and Alia Azmat (Counseling and Psychological Services).”

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Anderson Named AAPSS’s 2021 W. E. B. DuBois Fellow

Congratulations to Dr. Carol Anderson on being one of five distinguished scholars inducted as a fellow of the American Academy of Political and Social Science (AAPSS). The honor recognizes the contributions of university-based scholars and public servants who advance science and deepen public understanding of human behavior and social dynamics. There are 145 AAPSS fellows in total. Anderson, who was named the AAPSS’s 2021 W.E.B. DuBois Fellow, is also Charles Howard Candler Professor of African American Studies and Associated Faculty in the History Department. Read more about the award via the AAPSS press release.

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Strocchia to Present on “Women and Healthcare: Lessons from the Italian Renaissance”

Dr. Sharon T. Strocchia, Professor of History, will give a talk entitled “Women and Healthcare: Lessons from the Italian Renaissance” on March 22 at 4pm via Zoom. The event will include a panel discussion with Dr. Ruth Parker, Professor of Medicine in the Emory University School of Medicine, and Dr. Kylie Smith, Associate Professor in the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing and Associated Faculty in the History Department. Strocchia’s talk will draw on her most recent and multiple-prize-winning book, Forgotten Healers: Women and the Pursuit of Health in Late Renaissance Italy (Harvard UP, 2019). Find out more information and register for the event by emailing Becky Herrin (bherrin [at] emory [dot] edu).

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Suh’s Work Highlighted in “Race, Equity, Resilience, and Social Justice Research” Feature

The Office of the Senior Vice President for Research recently featured the work of Dr. Chris Suh, Assistant Professor of History, in a series on Race, Equity, Resilience, and Social Justice Research at Emory. Suh’s research centers on race, ethnicity, and inequality, especially the United States’ engagement with the Pacific World and Asian migration to the United States. Read an excerpt from the feature below along with the full piece: “Race, Equity, Resilience, and Social Justice Research at Emory University.”

“When someone tells Chris Suh that history repeats itself, he replies—not necessarily.

“‘The past only repeats itself if you choose to see it that way,’ he says. And it’s the historian’s job to help uncover those surprises or variations in the archival record that challenge conventional assumptions.“