Zaakir Tameez
@ztameez.bsky.social
Legal Scholar of the Reconstruction Era
My favorite quote? “There are but few who stand rooted, like the oak, against the storm.” — Charles Sumner
My favorite quote? “There are but few who stand rooted, like the oak, against the storm.” — Charles Sumner
Pinned
Zaakir Tameez
@ztameez.bsky.social
· Jun 3
I’m so excited to announce that my book was published today! The book retells the life of Charles Sumner, an abolitionist senator who co-framed the Reconstruction Amendments. I wrote this book with my blood, sweat & tears as a student at Yale Law School. (1/x)
My review of Eric Foner’s new book, “Our Fragile Freedoms,” for the New York Times—
www.nytimes.com/2025/09/02/b...
www.nytimes.com/2025/09/02/b...
A Foremost Scholar of Slavery Wonders if America Can Ever Atone
www.nytimes.com
September 9, 2025 at 1:35 PM
My review of Eric Foner’s new book, “Our Fragile Freedoms,” for the New York Times—
www.nytimes.com/2025/09/02/b...
www.nytimes.com/2025/09/02/b...
Reposted by Zaakir Tameez
By interesting coincidence, I just read about this event in @ztameez.bsky.social‘s excellent new biography of Charles Sumner. Sumner was the attorney who argued the case before the MA Supreme Court. A century later, his arguments helped form the basis for the arguments in Brown v Board.
September 9, 2025 at 1:00 AM
By interesting coincidence, I just read about this event in @ztameez.bsky.social‘s excellent new biography of Charles Sumner. Sumner was the attorney who argued the case before the MA Supreme Court. A century later, his arguments helped form the basis for the arguments in Brown v Board.
Here’s a thread from a reader with some excerpts from the book! 📚
Finished @ztameez.bsky.social’s fantastic bio of Charles Sumner. It’s inspiring, really well-written and researched, and quite moving.
It might be my favorite book of the year. Bravo!
Thanks for the rec @tracynovick.bsky.social and @lauren.rotatingsandwiches.com!
Some lessons I took 👇🏻
It might be my favorite book of the year. Bravo!
Thanks for the rec @tracynovick.bsky.social and @lauren.rotatingsandwiches.com!
Some lessons I took 👇🏻
September 6, 2025 at 2:03 PM
Here’s a thread from a reader with some excerpts from the book! 📚
Reposted by Zaakir Tameez
Sumner’s brief in the Roberts case is not well-known, but it should be. It is stunningly perceptive about the psychological impact of segregation, and reads like the first filing in Brown v. Board of Education, decided over 100 years later.
Happy first day of school, Boston!
And a happy new school opening day to The Sarah Roberts.
Sarah and her father Benjamin filed the first school desegregation suit in US history in 1849.
She was represented by Robert Morris, the first Black attorney in MA, and future US Senator Charles Sumner.
And a happy new school opening day to The Sarah Roberts.
Sarah and her father Benjamin filed the first school desegregation suit in US history in 1849.
She was represented by Robert Morris, the first Black attorney in MA, and future US Senator Charles Sumner.
The Sarah Roberts Case (U.S. National Park Service)
www.nps.gov
September 4, 2025 at 12:40 PM
Sumner’s brief in the Roberts case is not well-known, but it should be. It is stunningly perceptive about the psychological impact of segregation, and reads like the first filing in Brown v. Board of Education, decided over 100 years later.
Reposted by Zaakir Tameez
Happy first day of school, Boston!
And a happy new school opening day to The Sarah Roberts.
Sarah and her father Benjamin filed the first school desegregation suit in US history in 1849.
She was represented by Robert Morris, the first Black attorney in MA, and future US Senator Charles Sumner.
And a happy new school opening day to The Sarah Roberts.
Sarah and her father Benjamin filed the first school desegregation suit in US history in 1849.
She was represented by Robert Morris, the first Black attorney in MA, and future US Senator Charles Sumner.
The Sarah Roberts Case (U.S. National Park Service)
www.nps.gov
September 4, 2025 at 11:20 AM
Happy first day of school, Boston!
And a happy new school opening day to The Sarah Roberts.
Sarah and her father Benjamin filed the first school desegregation suit in US history in 1849.
She was represented by Robert Morris, the first Black attorney in MA, and future US Senator Charles Sumner.
And a happy new school opening day to The Sarah Roberts.
Sarah and her father Benjamin filed the first school desegregation suit in US history in 1849.
She was represented by Robert Morris, the first Black attorney in MA, and future US Senator Charles Sumner.
Reposted by Zaakir Tameez
Charles Sumner, 1875, by #AnneWhitney (American, 1821-1915), who was born #otd, Sept 2. Located in General MacArthur Square, Cambridge, MA.
#womenartists #artherstory
#womenartists #artherstory
September 2, 2025 at 9:47 PM
Charles Sumner, 1875, by #AnneWhitney (American, 1821-1915), who was born #otd, Sept 2. Located in General MacArthur Square, Cambridge, MA.
#womenartists #artherstory
#womenartists #artherstory
Reposted by Zaakir Tameez
DID YOU KNOW that the PEN with which President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation is at the Massachusetts Historical Society, because Senator Charles Sumner asked for it??
TIL from @ztameez.bsky.social’s Sumner bio!
www.masshist.org/database/4
TIL from @ztameez.bsky.social’s Sumner bio!
www.masshist.org/database/4
MHS Collections Online: Pen used by Abraham Lincoln to sign the Emancipation Proclamation
Massachusetts Historical Society, Collections Online: Pen used by Abraham Lincoln to sign the Emancipation Proclamation
www.masshist.org
September 1, 2025 at 7:07 PM
DID YOU KNOW that the PEN with which President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation is at the Massachusetts Historical Society, because Senator Charles Sumner asked for it??
TIL from @ztameez.bsky.social’s Sumner bio!
www.masshist.org/database/4
TIL from @ztameez.bsky.social’s Sumner bio!
www.masshist.org/database/4
Reposted by Zaakir Tameez
@ztameez.bsky.social’s bio of Charles Sumner: such a good read and I am learning so much!
August 30, 2025 at 3:55 PM
@ztameez.bsky.social’s bio of Charles Sumner: such a good read and I am learning so much!
I am speaking on Sunday at 2pm for a live discussion on Charles Sumner… anyone is welcome, register here:
marketing.gilderlehrman.org/l/941553/202...
marketing.gilderlehrman.org/l/941553/202...
August 24, 2025 at 3:19 AM
I am speaking on Sunday at 2pm for a live discussion on Charles Sumner… anyone is welcome, register here:
marketing.gilderlehrman.org/l/941553/202...
marketing.gilderlehrman.org/l/941553/202...
Reposted by Zaakir Tameez
Here is what Charles Sumner said whenever he learned that yet another baby was named after him.
August 20, 2025 at 6:59 PM
Here is what Charles Sumner said whenever he learned that yet another baby was named after him.
Reposted by Zaakir Tameez
And you'd think there's a very good jumping off point that everyone knows about to talk about this: Preston Brooks nearly beating Charles Sumner to death.
one extremely horrific aspect of slavery was systematic, vicious, constant rape and sexual abuse. there remain major taboos about talking about that, especially in schools or museums for all ages.
"How bad slavery was" is worse. Much worse. Much worse than you think, much worse than you're taught, much worse than museums depict. Worse.
August 19, 2025 at 9:36 PM
And you'd think there's a very good jumping off point that everyone knows about to talk about this: Preston Brooks nearly beating Charles Sumner to death.
How bad was slavery? Worse than anything you were taught in school, worse than anything you’ve seen in movies, worse, worse, worse.
“I think slavery,” Harriet Tubman said, “is the next thing to hell.”
“I think slavery,” Harriet Tubman said, “is the next thing to hell.”
"How bad slavery was" is worse. Much worse. Much worse than you think, much worse than you're taught, much worse than museums depict. Worse.
August 19, 2025 at 11:26 PM
How bad was slavery? Worse than anything you were taught in school, worse than anything you’ve seen in movies, worse, worse, worse.
“I think slavery,” Harriet Tubman said, “is the next thing to hell.”
“I think slavery,” Harriet Tubman said, “is the next thing to hell.”
If you’re still on the fence about buying the book, here’s a thoughtful review by
@genemeyer.bsky.social
@genemeyer.bsky.social
The outspoken abolitionist is finally given his due. www.washingtonindependentreviewofbooks.com/bookreview/c... @henryholtbooks.bsky.social @genemeyer.bsky.social @ztameez.bsky.social #booksky #charlessumner
August 19, 2025 at 5:53 PM
If you’re still on the fence about buying the book, here’s a thoughtful review by
@genemeyer.bsky.social
@genemeyer.bsky.social
Reposted by Zaakir Tameez
I am so happy someone reposted this into my timeline today. I went to the same high school as Sumner (a few years behind him lol) and he has long been a favorite historical figure. Very excited to buy and read this! A couple of my own photos below of some favorite local depictions of Sumner. :-)
August 19, 2025 at 4:14 PM
I am so happy someone reposted this into my timeline today. I went to the same high school as Sumner (a few years behind him lol) and he has long been a favorite historical figure. Very excited to buy and read this! A couple of my own photos below of some favorite local depictions of Sumner. :-)
Really enjoyed this podcast!
What can a 19th-century senator teach us about justice in America today?
I sat down with Zaakir Tameez, author of Charles Sumner: Conscience of a Nation, to explore the legacy of one of America’s boldest abolitionists — and why his fight still matters. @ztameez.bsky.social
1/2
I sat down with Zaakir Tameez, author of Charles Sumner: Conscience of a Nation, to explore the legacy of one of America’s boldest abolitionists — and why his fight still matters. @ztameez.bsky.social
1/2
August 19, 2025 at 3:25 PM
Really enjoyed this podcast!
Reposted by Zaakir Tameez
And for my California Bay Area listeners - be sure to check out Tameez TONIGHT! He will be speaking at the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco. You won’t want to miss it!
2/2
www.civicsandcoffee.com/exploring-co...
2/2
www.civicsandcoffee.com/exploring-co...
Exploring Conscience of a Nation: Zaakir Tameez on Charles Sumner’s Fight for Justice
Charles Sumner was one of the fiercest voices for abolition and racial equality in 19th-century America, but how much do we really know about the man behind the Sen…
www.civicsandcoffee.com
August 19, 2025 at 1:32 PM
And for my California Bay Area listeners - be sure to check out Tameez TONIGHT! He will be speaking at the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco. You won’t want to miss it!
2/2
www.civicsandcoffee.com/exploring-co...
2/2
www.civicsandcoffee.com/exploring-co...
I am speaking tomorrow in San Francisco at 5:30pm at the Commonwealth Club. If you’re in the city, I would love to meet you at the book talk! Sign up for a ticket here:
www.commonwealthclub.org/events/2025-...
@cwclub.bsky.social
www.commonwealthclub.org/events/2025-...
@cwclub.bsky.social
August 18, 2025 at 10:45 PM
I am speaking tomorrow in San Francisco at 5:30pm at the Commonwealth Club. If you’re in the city, I would love to meet you at the book talk! Sign up for a ticket here:
www.commonwealthclub.org/events/2025-...
@cwclub.bsky.social
www.commonwealthclub.org/events/2025-...
@cwclub.bsky.social
Reposted by Zaakir Tameez
Jake is a speedier reader than I am, I’m only halfway through @ztameez.bsky.social’s Sumner biography. But I agree 100%: it’s an important book and a startlingly good one.
Okay, friends this book is really *incredible*! I spent the last week devouring all 500 pages. I couldn’t put it down. I hardly knew anything of Sumner but the caning & am now convinced he deserves a prized place in our histories. Ahead of his time, principled & unafraid to speak unpopular truths.
I’m so excited to announce that my book was published today! The book retells the life of Charles Sumner, an abolitionist senator who co-framed the Reconstruction Amendments. I wrote this book with my blood, sweat & tears as a student at Yale Law School. (1/x)
August 17, 2025 at 3:02 PM
Jake is a speedier reader than I am, I’m only halfway through @ztameez.bsky.social’s Sumner biography. But I agree 100%: it’s an important book and a startlingly good one.
It’s been an ugly day on Twitter.
August 14, 2025 at 11:45 PM
It’s been an ugly day on Twitter.
Reposted by Zaakir Tameez
Very much enjoying @ztameez.bsky.social’s bio of Sumner, which is a really engaging read!
Also, learned for the first time that the first office for which he ran was Boston School Committee.
He lost.
Also, learned for the first time that the first office for which he ran was Boston School Committee.
He lost.
August 11, 2025 at 4:58 PM
Very much enjoying @ztameez.bsky.social’s bio of Sumner, which is a really engaging read!
Also, learned for the first time that the first office for which he ran was Boston School Committee.
He lost.
Also, learned for the first time that the first office for which he ran was Boston School Committee.
He lost.
H.W. Brands reviewed the Charles Sumner bio, and this is the ad accompanying the review… eeks.
August 10, 2025 at 5:38 PM
H.W. Brands reviewed the Charles Sumner bio, and this is the ad accompanying the review… eeks.
Reposted by Zaakir Tameez
I got my copy today.
August 9, 2025 at 4:50 PM
I got my copy today.
Reposted by Zaakir Tameez
Reading Zaakir Tameez's Charles Sumner: Conscience of A Nation (2025).
Here's a surprise. I've read several books about Julia Ward Howe, author of the Civil War Union anthem, Battle Hymn of the Republic.
Here's a surprise. I've read several books about Julia Ward Howe, author of the Civil War Union anthem, Battle Hymn of the Republic.
August 8, 2025 at 5:07 PM
Reading Zaakir Tameez's Charles Sumner: Conscience of A Nation (2025).
Here's a surprise. I've read several books about Julia Ward Howe, author of the Civil War Union anthem, Battle Hymn of the Republic.
Here's a surprise. I've read several books about Julia Ward Howe, author of the Civil War Union anthem, Battle Hymn of the Republic.
“Ourselves the children of the Pilgrims of a former generation, let us not turn from the Pilgrims of the present,”Sumner declared. “The history of the country… testifies to the merits of foreigners.” He referenced “Lafayette of France” and “Alexander Hamilton, who was born in the West Indies.”
During the wave of xenophobia that enveloped the United States in the mid-1850s, Senator Charles Sumner reminded Americans that Alexander Hamilton was an immigrant.
August 9, 2025 at 3:03 PM
“Ourselves the children of the Pilgrims of a former generation, let us not turn from the Pilgrims of the present,”Sumner declared. “The history of the country… testifies to the merits of foreigners.” He referenced “Lafayette of France” and “Alexander Hamilton, who was born in the West Indies.”