#Charlestonsyllabus

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Prayer Vigil for the Nine Victims of the Charleston Shooting

Here is a list of readings that educators can use to broach conversations in the classroom about the horrendous events that unfolded in Charleston, South Carolina on the evening of June 17, 2015. These readings provide valuable information about the history of racial violence in this country and contextualize the history of race relations in South Carolina and the United States in general. They also offer insights on race, racial identities, global white supremacy and black resistance. All readings are arranged by date of publication. This list is not meant to be exhaustive–you will find omissions. Please check out the Charleston Syllabus book for additional reading suggestions.

#Charlestonsyllabus was conceived by Chad Williams (@Dr_ChadWilliams), Associate Professor of African and Afro-American Studies at Brandeis University. With the help of Kidada Williams (@KidadaEWilliams), the hashtag started trending on Twitter on the evening of June 19, 2015. The following list was compiled and organized by AAIHS blogger Keisha N. Blain (@KeishaBlain) with the assistance of  Melissa Morrone (@InfAgit), Ryan P. Randall (@foureyedsoul), and Cecily Walker (@skeskali). Special thanks to everyone who contributed suggestions via Twitter. Please click here to read more about the origin and significance of #Charlestonsyllabus.

#Charlestonsyllabus is more than a list. It is a community of people committed to critical thinking, truth telling and social transformation.”– Chad Williams

GENERAL HISTORICAL OVERVIEWS

OP-EDS AND EDITORIALS

READINGS ON SOUTH CAROLINA

*On Charleston, SC

READINGS ON SLAVERY

*General Overviews

*On Slavery in the U.S. South

*On Slavery in the U.S. North

*On Slavery in the Atlantic World

*READINGS ON THE CIVIL WAR & RECONSTRUCTION

*Readings on the Confederate Flag

READINGS ON POST-RECONSTRUCTION AND JIM CROW

 *Readings on Racial Violence

*Readings on White Racial Identity

*Readings on White Supremacy in the U.S. and Abroad

Note: See the AAIHS’s Bibliography on Black Internationalism and RacismReview’s Bibliography on White Supremacy

READINGS ON RACE AND RELIGION 

*Readings on African American Women’s Religious History 

Note: See the University of California’s Bibliography on Black Feminism and Womanism

READINGS ON THE CIVIL RIGHTS-BLACK POWER ERA

AFRICAN AMERICAN LITERATURE

*Poetry

SELECTED PRIMARY SOURCES

MULTIMEDIA RESOURCES

*Films

*Music

*Websites

*Course Handouts and Other Teaching Sources

FOR YOUNG READERS

*This list is currently being maintained by Keisha N. Blain. Please send an email if you find errors; broken links etc. We are no longer accepting new suggestions for this list. However, we’ll include more recommendations in our forthcoming book, Charleston Syllabus: Readings on Race, Racism, and Racial Violence (University of Georgia Press, 2016).