Christina Proenza-Coles
@proenzacoles.bsky.social
Author of AMERICAN FOUNDERS: How People of African Descent Established Freedom in the New World. I study, research, teach, & post American history.
Pinned
"Slavery, Freedom, Public History & National Identity: Charlottesville, Curaçao, Cartagena" explores these locations as Black spaces whose histories help us better appreciate the communities we are today.
uva-center-for-cultural-landscapes-newsletter-features.mailchimpsites.com/african-dias...
uva-center-for-cultural-landscapes-newsletter-features.mailchimpsites.com/african-dias...
Reposted by Christina Proenza-Coles
1/ The US Government has quietly removed a memorial to Black soldiers who died in World War II from the Netherlands American Cemetery in Margraten, South Limburg. The move follows a complaint from the right-wing Heritage Foundation to the American Battle Monuments Commission. ⬇️
November 9, 2025 at 9:23 AM
1/ The US Government has quietly removed a memorial to Black soldiers who died in World War II from the Netherlands American Cemetery in Margraten, South Limburg. The move follows a complaint from the right-wing Heritage Foundation to the American Battle Monuments Commission. ⬇️
Born enslaved in North Carolina, Anna Julia Cooper earned a master’s degree in mathematics from Oberlin in 1887 & a PhD from the Sorbonne. She observed, “The cause of freedom is not the cause of a race or a sect, a party or a class - it is the cause of human kind, the very birthright of humanity.”
November 7, 2025 at 10:26 PM
Born enslaved in North Carolina, Anna Julia Cooper earned a master’s degree in mathematics from Oberlin in 1887 & a PhD from the Sorbonne. She observed, “The cause of freedom is not the cause of a race or a sect, a party or a class - it is the cause of human kind, the very birthright of humanity.”
Little Rock, Arkansas, 1959. Rally at state capitol protesting the integration of Central High School. Protesters carry US flags & signs reading "Race Mixing is Communism" & "Stop the Race Mixing March of the Anti-Christ.”
Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division
Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division
November 6, 2025 at 12:53 PM
Little Rock, Arkansas, 1959. Rally at state capitol protesting the integration of Central High School. Protesters carry US flags & signs reading "Race Mixing is Communism" & "Stop the Race Mixing March of the Anti-Christ.”
Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division
Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division
In 1870 Joseph H. Rainey was elected to Congress. He worked towards the suppression Klan terrorism. “I could appeal to you, members upon this floor, as husbands & fathers, to picture to yourselves the desolation of your own happy firesides should you be suddenly snatched away from your loved ones.”
November 5, 2025 at 1:09 PM
In 1870 Joseph H. Rainey was elected to Congress. He worked towards the suppression Klan terrorism. “I could appeal to you, members upon this floor, as husbands & fathers, to picture to yourselves the desolation of your own happy firesides should you be suddenly snatched away from your loved ones.”
Washington “was an enslaver right to the very end. And yet, he also regularly spoke about how much he wanted to see an end to the institution of slavery.…This wasn’t a story of Washington gradually coming to see the evil of slavery, either; he held many of these positions at the same time.”
My alma mater published a nice interview with me in their magazine where I talk about my book and experience as an undergrad. magazine.lynchburg.edu/article/hist...
History alum’s forthcoming book examines Washington’s complicated legacy
Dr. John Garrison Marks ’10 says he “learned how to be a historian” at Lynchburg.
magazine.lynchburg.edu
November 4, 2025 at 9:06 PM
Washington “was an enslaver right to the very end. And yet, he also regularly spoke about how much he wanted to see an end to the institution of slavery.…This wasn’t a story of Washington gradually coming to see the evil of slavery, either; he held many of these positions at the same time.”
"because of his contributions to the genres of philosophy, autobiography, and Christian theology, 'a core strand of the culture that Europe claims as its own stems from Africa.'”
November 4, 2025 at 2:22 PM
"because of his contributions to the genres of philosophy, autobiography, and Christian theology, 'a core strand of the culture that Europe claims as its own stems from Africa.'”
Reposted by Christina Proenza-Coles
He also served as United States Minister Resident to Haiti
from 1877 until 1885 and his writings from that time form an important aspect of my forthcoming book, With the Pen In One Hand and the Sword in the Other: Haiti and the United States in the Nineteenth Century.
from 1877 until 1885 and his writings from that time form an important aspect of my forthcoming book, With the Pen In One Hand and the Sword in the Other: Haiti and the United States in the Nineteenth Century.
Statesman & lawyer John Mercer Langston, Virginia native & son of a formerly enslaved woman & her former owner, co-founded the National Equal Rights League in 1864, drafted the Civil Rights Act of 1875, was the 1st president of Virginia State University in 1885, & was elected to US Congress in 1890.
November 4, 2025 at 1:59 PM
He also served as United States Minister Resident to Haiti
from 1877 until 1885 and his writings from that time form an important aspect of my forthcoming book, With the Pen In One Hand and the Sword in the Other: Haiti and the United States in the Nineteenth Century.
from 1877 until 1885 and his writings from that time form an important aspect of my forthcoming book, With the Pen In One Hand and the Sword in the Other: Haiti and the United States in the Nineteenth Century.
Statesman & lawyer John Mercer Langston, Virginia native & son of a formerly enslaved woman & her former owner, co-founded the National Equal Rights League in 1864, drafted the Civil Rights Act of 1875, was the 1st president of Virginia State University in 1885, & was elected to US Congress in 1890.
November 4, 2025 at 1:54 PM
Statesman & lawyer John Mercer Langston, Virginia native & son of a formerly enslaved woman & her former owner, co-founded the National Equal Rights League in 1864, drafted the Civil Rights Act of 1875, was the 1st president of Virginia State University in 1885, & was elected to US Congress in 1890.
Reposted by Christina Proenza-Coles
We published a biography of her a few years ago.
An Abolitionist Abroad
Sarah Parker Remond (1826–1894) left the free black community of Salem, Massachusetts, where she was born, to become one of the first women to travel on ex...
www.umasspress.com
November 3, 2025 at 2:37 PM
We published a biography of her a few years ago.
Sarah Remond (b. 1826), granddaughter of a Black Revolutionary War veteran, ended segregation in a Boston theater with a lawsuit in 1853. She was an internationally prominent anti-slavery lecturer, physician, & activist for abolition & women's suffrage.
November 3, 2025 at 2:17 PM
Sarah Remond (b. 1826), granddaughter of a Black Revolutionary War veteran, ended segregation in a Boston theater with a lawsuit in 1853. She was an internationally prominent anti-slavery lecturer, physician, & activist for abolition & women's suffrage.
1815 portrait of Charles Jones, son of Absalom Jones, the Episcopal priest, abolitionist, & civic leader in late 18th century Philadelphia who worked to make the ideals of the American Revolution a reality. Absalom Jones purchased his wife’s freedom before his own to ensure his son's freedom.
November 2, 2025 at 2:21 PM
1815 portrait of Charles Jones, son of Absalom Jones, the Episcopal priest, abolitionist, & civic leader in late 18th century Philadelphia who worked to make the ideals of the American Revolution a reality. Absalom Jones purchased his wife’s freedom before his own to ensure his son's freedom.
George Downing (b. 1818) was an entrepreneur & civic leader who participated in the Underground Railroad & achieved the desegregation of Newport, RI schools. His father, Thomas Downing, born in Virginia to formerly enslaved parents in 1791, was Manhattan’s 1st eminent purveyor of oysters.
November 1, 2025 at 4:17 PM
George Downing (b. 1818) was an entrepreneur & civic leader who participated in the Underground Railroad & achieved the desegregation of Newport, RI schools. His father, Thomas Downing, born in Virginia to formerly enslaved parents in 1791, was Manhattan’s 1st eminent purveyor of oysters.
Monticello announced the identification of 6 additional individuals enslaved by Thomas Jefferson. They are now included in Monticello’s Contemplative Site, a memorial to honor & list the known names of those enslaved by Jefferson over the course of his lifetime.
www.monticello.org/press/news-r...
www.monticello.org/press/news-r...
Scholars Identify Additional Six Individuals Enslaved by Jefferson
Discovered through ongoing research, the names have been added to Monticello’s Contemplative Site
www.monticello.org
October 31, 2025 at 1:43 PM
Monticello announced the identification of 6 additional individuals enslaved by Thomas Jefferson. They are now included in Monticello’s Contemplative Site, a memorial to honor & list the known names of those enslaved by Jefferson over the course of his lifetime.
www.monticello.org/press/news-r...
www.monticello.org/press/news-r...
Meta Fuller, sculptor. Her English grandfather had married her grandmother, a free Black woman, in VA. She challenged racial mores: "I was told the American Girls' Club was here for the American girl students who came to Paris to study. I felt that I, as an American girl, was entitled to come here."
October 29, 2025 at 7:16 PM
Meta Fuller, sculptor. Her English grandfather had married her grandmother, a free Black woman, in VA. She challenged racial mores: "I was told the American Girls' Club was here for the American girl students who came to Paris to study. I felt that I, as an American girl, was entitled to come here."
Dr. Solomon Fuller - grandson of Virginians who bought their freedom & moved to Liberia - earned his MD from Boston University in 1897 & was invited by Alois Alzheimer to do research at University of Munich in 1904. He was among 1st neurologists to work on disease now called Alzheimers.
October 28, 2025 at 9:26 PM
Dr. Solomon Fuller - grandson of Virginians who bought their freedom & moved to Liberia - earned his MD from Boston University in 1897 & was invited by Alois Alzheimer to do research at University of Munich in 1904. He was among 1st neurologists to work on disease now called Alzheimers.
In 1799 Revolutionary War veteran John Chavis attended what is today Washington & Lee University. In 1808 he opened a highly regarded school in Raleigh, NC for Black & white students. See Helen Orthow, John Chavis: African American Patriot, Preacher, Teacher, & Mentor 1763-1838.
October 2, 2025 at 1:07 PM
In 1799 Revolutionary War veteran John Chavis attended what is today Washington & Lee University. In 1808 he opened a highly regarded school in Raleigh, NC for Black & white students. See Helen Orthow, John Chavis: African American Patriot, Preacher, Teacher, & Mentor 1763-1838.
Dr. Matilda Evans performs surgery in the operating room of Taylor Lane Hospital which she founded in South Carolina in 1901.
Dr. Evans was a public heath pioneer & benefactor who treated Black & white patients. She was an advocate & practitioner of health care as a human right.
Dr. Evans was a public heath pioneer & benefactor who treated Black & white patients. She was an advocate & practitioner of health care as a human right.
October 1, 2025 at 1:05 PM
Dr. Matilda Evans performs surgery in the operating room of Taylor Lane Hospital which she founded in South Carolina in 1901.
Dr. Evans was a public heath pioneer & benefactor who treated Black & white patients. She was an advocate & practitioner of health care as a human right.
Dr. Evans was a public heath pioneer & benefactor who treated Black & white patients. She was an advocate & practitioner of health care as a human right.
Congressman George Henry White (b. 1852), son of a formerly enslaved mother, was an educator & lawyer as well as a U.S. Representative from North Carolina In 1900. White was the 1st member of Congress to introduce legislation making lynching a federal crime.
September 29, 2025 at 12:34 PM
Congressman George Henry White (b. 1852), son of a formerly enslaved mother, was an educator & lawyer as well as a U.S. Representative from North Carolina In 1900. White was the 1st member of Congress to introduce legislation making lynching a federal crime.
George Brown holding John Teter Jr., son of one of Brown's employees at the Cleveland Marine Steam Railways. Brown, an entrepreneur & carpenter, purchased substantial property & established key businesses as a founder of Punta Gorda. He paid his employees according to their skill rather than color.
September 28, 2025 at 2:34 PM
George Brown holding John Teter Jr., son of one of Brown's employees at the Cleveland Marine Steam Railways. Brown, an entrepreneur & carpenter, purchased substantial property & established key businesses as a founder of Punta Gorda. He paid his employees according to their skill rather than color.
"African Americans played a tremendous role in the establishment, history, & growth of Punta Gorda. Nearly half of the city’s original setters were African American. Despite Jim Crow norms, the pioneers created a society where shared prosperity & mutual respect prevailed." Blanchard House website
Charlotte County, Florida's only African American history museum, celebrated its 100th anniversary over the weekend.
www.wgcu.org/top-story/20...
The Blanchard House Museum recently reopened after a three-year hiatus due to Hurricane Ian and the pandemic.
www.wgcu.org/top-story/20...
The Blanchard House Museum recently reopened after a three-year hiatus due to Hurricane Ian and the pandemic.
Charlotte County's only African American museum celebrates its centennial
The Blanchard House Museum is celebrating its 100th anniversary and provides a glimpse into the journey that led to this milestone.
www.wgcu.org
September 28, 2025 at 1:48 PM
"African Americans played a tremendous role in the establishment, history, & growth of Punta Gorda. Nearly half of the city’s original setters were African American. Despite Jim Crow norms, the pioneers created a society where shared prosperity & mutual respect prevailed." Blanchard House website
“Portrait of Frederick” c. 1840 now in the Mississippi Museum of Art.
After the Civil War, Frederick took the surname Baker and was ordained as a minister.
www.mississippifreepress.org/rare-portrai...
After the Civil War, Frederick took the surname Baker and was ordained as a minister.
www.mississippifreepress.org/rare-portrai...
September 26, 2025 at 9:17 PM
“Portrait of Frederick” c. 1840 now in the Mississippi Museum of Art.
After the Civil War, Frederick took the surname Baker and was ordained as a minister.
www.mississippifreepress.org/rare-portrai...
After the Civil War, Frederick took the surname Baker and was ordained as a minister.
www.mississippifreepress.org/rare-portrai...
Barzillai Lew (b. 1743) served with distinction during the American Revolutionary War. He purchased the freedom of his future wife, Dinah Bowman, for $400 in 1767. The 1790 census lists him as head in a household of 14 free people of color. Their house became a stop on the Underground Railroad.
September 26, 2025 at 1:28 PM
Barzillai Lew (b. 1743) served with distinction during the American Revolutionary War. He purchased the freedom of his future wife, Dinah Bowman, for $400 in 1767. The 1790 census lists him as head in a household of 14 free people of color. Their house became a stop on the Underground Railroad.
During Reconstruction, South Carolina congressman Robert Elliot put his own life at risk to enact measures to litigate & suppress Klan terrorism. He delivered a powerful speech in 1875 in support of the Civil Rights Act that banned discrimination in public transit, accommodations, & schools.
September 25, 2025 at 2:07 PM
During Reconstruction, South Carolina congressman Robert Elliot put his own life at risk to enact measures to litigate & suppress Klan terrorism. He delivered a powerful speech in 1875 in support of the Civil Rights Act that banned discrimination in public transit, accommodations, & schools.
In the 1880s, Florida Ruffin Ridley wrote for the Boston Globe, organized a national conference for Black women, & edited the newspaper, The Women’s Era. “We the women of the Women’s Era Club enter the field to work hand in hand with women, generally for humanity and humanity’s interests.”
September 24, 2025 at 1:31 PM
In the 1880s, Florida Ruffin Ridley wrote for the Boston Globe, organized a national conference for Black women, & edited the newspaper, The Women’s Era. “We the women of the Women’s Era Club enter the field to work hand in hand with women, generally for humanity and humanity’s interests.”
“Woman seated wearing a white cotton blouse and skirt with a dark fur stole around her shoulders” c. 1915 from the Missouri State Archives.
September 22, 2025 at 12:44 PM
“Woman seated wearing a white cotton blouse and skirt with a dark fur stole around her shoulders” c. 1915 from the Missouri State Archives.