Dr. Jim Downs
@jimdowns.bsky.social
Author of Author of Maladies of Empire & Sick from Freedom; Stand by Me: The Forgotten History of Gay Liberation; Gilder Lehrman NEH Prof at Gettysburg College; Editor of Civil War History; Partenr at History Studio.
Reposted by Dr. Jim Downs
More good news from the journal “Civil War History,” which is pleased to welcome Matthew Fox-Amato to its staff as book review editor. He joins editor @jimdowns.bsky.social and associate editor Crystal N. Feimster.
Historian Matthew Fox-Amato joins “Civil War History” as book review editor
In support of its role as a field-defining venue for scholarship on the Civil War Era, the journal Civil War History is pleased to welcome Matthew Fox-Amato to its editorial staff as book review ed…
kentstatebooks.wordpress.com
October 15, 2025 at 11:37 AM
More good news from the journal “Civil War History,” which is pleased to welcome Matthew Fox-Amato to its staff as book review editor. He joins editor @jimdowns.bsky.social and associate editor Crystal N. Feimster.
Excellent article by John Witt on the virtually unknown history of the Garland Fund that “sponsored research, education and news sources that would be outside the influence of the wealthy few. It supported Black civil rights…” nytimes.com/2025/10/06/opi… via @NYTOpinion
https://nytimes.com/2025/10/06/opi…
October 6, 2025 at 10:50 AM
Excellent article by John Witt on the virtually unknown history of the Garland Fund that “sponsored research, education and news sources that would be outside the influence of the wealthy few. It supported Black civil rights…” nytimes.com/2025/10/06/opi… via @NYTOpinion
Library Company of Philadelphia is hosting an excellent panel on Black photography during Reconstruction on October 21. Please register for this in person event! support.librarycompany.org/event/the-fo...
September 17, 2025 at 1:53 PM
Library Company of Philadelphia is hosting an excellent panel on Black photography during Reconstruction on October 21. Please register for this in person event! support.librarycompany.org/event/the-fo...
Reposted by Dr. Jim Downs
So much efficiency!
Fascinating - and frustrating - read. To change the name of the Department of Defense will mean changing all 700,000 seals, letterhead, signage, etc around the world. At a cost of potentially billions.
subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2025...
subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2025...
POLITICO Pro: White House to rebrand Pentagon the Department of War
The name change would likely require an act of Congress, although the White House is looking for ways to avoid a vote.
subscriber.politicopro.com
September 6, 2025 at 1:28 PM
So much efficiency!
Trump Admin Removed Rainbow Crosswalk Honoring LGBT Victims Murdered at Pulse Nightclub.
I worried this would vanish from memory when I wrote this op-ed. Thanks to the NYT, for being an archive. We are witnessing an erasure of gay history www.nytimes.com/2016/06/13/o...
I worried this would vanish from memory when I wrote this op-ed. Thanks to the NYT, for being an archive. We are witnessing an erasure of gay history www.nytimes.com/2016/06/13/o...
Opinion | Before Orlando, There Was New Orleans (Published 2016)
www.nytimes.com
August 21, 2025 at 10:04 PM
Trump Admin Removed Rainbow Crosswalk Honoring LGBT Victims Murdered at Pulse Nightclub.
I worried this would vanish from memory when I wrote this op-ed. Thanks to the NYT, for being an archive. We are witnessing an erasure of gay history www.nytimes.com/2016/06/13/o...
I worried this would vanish from memory when I wrote this op-ed. Thanks to the NYT, for being an archive. We are witnessing an erasure of gay history www.nytimes.com/2016/06/13/o...
Reposted by Dr. Jim Downs
NEW ARTICLE: @jimdowns.bsky.social explores the fascinating history of queer history in a recent article for ANCH: www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Fellow time travelers: creating queer heritage in the detritus of untold genealogies
The invitation to provide an assessment of the growing, outstanding historiography on nineteenth-century queer sexuality is an honor. I immediately imagined writing an essay that would span from Je...
www.tandfonline.com
August 20, 2025 at 12:29 PM
NEW ARTICLE: @jimdowns.bsky.social explores the fascinating history of queer history in a recent article for ANCH: www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Thrilled to publish this article on queer heritage in the 19th Century and beyond
August 14, 2025 at 3:09 PM
Thrilled to publish this article on queer heritage in the 19th Century and beyond
Reposted by Dr. Jim Downs
Making the Medieval Archive: Celebrating Elizabeth A. R. Brown at Penn In-person & online conference Sept. 12 2025 Penn Libraries www.library.upenn.edu/events/makin...
Making the Medieval Archive: Celebrating Elizabeth A. R. Brown at Penn
This day-long symposium will commemorate Elizabeth (Peggy) A. R. Brown’s extraordinary legacy in the field of Medieval Studies and will mark the official launch of the Elizabeth A. R. Brown Medieval H...
www.library.upenn.edu
August 11, 2025 at 8:18 PM
Making the Medieval Archive: Celebrating Elizabeth A. R. Brown at Penn In-person & online conference Sept. 12 2025 Penn Libraries www.library.upenn.edu/events/makin...
Reposted by Dr. Jim Downs
Donald Trump, if you will not stand down, California will be forced to lead an effort to redraw our maps to offset the rigging of maps in red states.
If the other states call off their redistricting efforts, we will do the same. And American democracy will be better for it.
If the other states call off their redistricting efforts, we will do the same. And American democracy will be better for it.
August 11, 2025 at 2:08 PM
Donald Trump, if you will not stand down, California will be forced to lead an effort to redraw our maps to offset the rigging of maps in red states.
If the other states call off their redistricting efforts, we will do the same. And American democracy will be better for it.
If the other states call off their redistricting efforts, we will do the same. And American democracy will be better for it.
An absorbing article by Salamishah Tillet, which features Erica Armstrong Dunbar's brilliant work as a historical consultant who is also my colleague at HISTORY STUIDO.Erica has the inimitable talent to translate a corpus of scholarrship into legible storyline. www.nytimes.com/2025/07/09/a...
‘The Gilded Age’ Enriches Its Portrait of Black High Society
www.nytimes.com
July 9, 2025 at 10:30 PM
An absorbing article by Salamishah Tillet, which features Erica Armstrong Dunbar's brilliant work as a historical consultant who is also my colleague at HISTORY STUIDO.Erica has the inimitable talent to translate a corpus of scholarrship into legible storyline. www.nytimes.com/2025/07/09/a...
Thea was born on July 4. I think about her almost every day. I still deeply miss our friendship, her beautiful mind, and her uproarious laughter. www.theatlantic.com/education/ar...
The Death of an Adjunct
Thea Hunter was a promising, brilliant scholar. And then she got trapped in academia’s permanent underclass.
www.theatlantic.com
July 5, 2025 at 6:09 PM
Thea was born on July 4. I think about her almost every day. I still deeply miss our friendship, her beautiful mind, and her uproarious laughter. www.theatlantic.com/education/ar...
For PRIDE, here are some articles that I wrote over the years on queer history. www.newyorker.com/culture/cult...
Rediscovering Eve Adams, the Radical Lesbian Activist
How Jonathan Ned Katz retraced the story of the woman who wrote what might be the first ethnography of American lesbian life.
www.newyorker.com
June 29, 2025 at 5:15 PM
For PRIDE, here are some articles that I wrote over the years on queer history. www.newyorker.com/culture/cult...
Reposted by Dr. Jim Downs
“For 30 or 40 miles…I staggered on, fearing every instant I should be …crushed within the jaws of some disturbed alligator. The dread of them now almost equalled the fear of the pursuing hounds.” -Solomon Northrup, Twelve Years a Slave
June 28, 2025 at 7:53 PM
“For 30 or 40 miles…I staggered on, fearing every instant I should be …crushed within the jaws of some disturbed alligator. The dread of them now almost equalled the fear of the pursuing hounds.” -Solomon Northrup, Twelve Years a Slave
SCOTUS just declared that parents can pull their kids out of an elementary class when gay history is mentioned. This undermines teachers’ authority & shows how LGBT history continues to be silenced & erased from curriculum. This is why those in higher ed must insist on teaching queer studies.
June 27, 2025 at 2:55 PM
SCOTUS just declared that parents can pull their kids out of an elementary class when gay history is mentioned. This undermines teachers’ authority & shows how LGBT history continues to be silenced & erased from curriculum. This is why those in higher ed must insist on teaching queer studies.
Reposted by Dr. Jim Downs
Activist Jonathan Ned Katz shared his archival discoveries about the parallels between Black and gay history in the form of a play, "Coming Out!," that premiered #OTD in a West Village firehouse in 1972. @jimdowns.bsky.social traced the history of LGBT history @nehgov.bsky.social:
loom.ly/6bfUqq8
loom.ly/6bfUqq8
Writing Gay History
How the story itself came out.
loom.ly
June 16, 2025 at 7:20 PM
Activist Jonathan Ned Katz shared his archival discoveries about the parallels between Black and gay history in the form of a play, "Coming Out!," that premiered #OTD in a West Village firehouse in 1972. @jimdowns.bsky.social traced the history of LGBT history @nehgov.bsky.social:
loom.ly/6bfUqq8
loom.ly/6bfUqq8
Reposted by Dr. Jim Downs
This happened because of you. You protested at TeslaTakedowns and made his name and his company’s product reviled. You protested outside federal agencies slated for DOGE cuts. You barred doors, protected data. You sued and won. You WORE HIM OUT.
Don’t let them spin it any other way.
Don’t let them spin it any other way.
Breaking News: Elon Musk is leaving* the Trump administration.
*he was fired
*he was fired
Elon Musk leaving Trump administration, White House official says - NewsBreak
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Billionaire Tesla CEO Elon Musk is leaving the Trump administration after leading a tumultuous efficiency drive during which he upended several federal agencies but failed to…
www.newsbreak.com
May 29, 2025 at 4:20 AM
This happened because of you. You protested at TeslaTakedowns and made his name and his company’s product reviled. You protested outside federal agencies slated for DOGE cuts. You barred doors, protected data. You sued and won. You WORE HIM OUT.
Don’t let them spin it any other way.
Don’t let them spin it any other way.
Just a reminder that enslaved people invented Memorial Day in the aftermath of the Civil War. I wrote about this history and it’s published in TIME MAGAZINE. time.com/3894406/who-...
Who Invented Memorial Day?
As Americans enjoy the holiday weekend, does anyone know how Memorial Day originated?
time.com
May 26, 2025 at 5:34 PM
Just a reminder that enslaved people invented Memorial Day in the aftermath of the Civil War. I wrote about this history and it’s published in TIME MAGAZINE. time.com/3894406/who-...
A deftly written post today by @tenuredradical.bsky.social on WW2, the power of journalism and the stunning reporting (career) of Dorothy Thompson. Like a Fist, by @TenuredRadical open.substack.com/pub/clairepo... open.substack.com/pub/clairepo...
Like a Fist
A war dispatch filed by Dorothy Thompson 85 years ago today reminds us how precious journalism is--and why we must defend it and support its growth
open.substack.com
May 19, 2025 at 10:15 PM
A deftly written post today by @tenuredradical.bsky.social on WW2, the power of journalism and the stunning reporting (career) of Dorothy Thompson. Like a Fist, by @TenuredRadical open.substack.com/pub/clairepo... open.substack.com/pub/clairepo...
I’m thrilled to organize this event at the Library Company of Philadelphia for Juneteenth. Please consider attending. Registration is free and open to the public. support.librarycompany.org/event/junete...
May 12, 2025 at 5:51 PM
I’m thrilled to organize this event at the Library Company of Philadelphia for Juneteenth. Please consider attending. Registration is free and open to the public. support.librarycompany.org/event/junete...
Reposted by Dr. Jim Downs
So much gratitude. The journal Civil War History published a forum on Freeman's Challenge--and look at this cover. Thank you, @jimdowns.bsky.social, @historianheather.bsky.social, @crystallynnweb.bsky.social, @profkori.bsky.social, and more for your deep, kind, sharp engagement. I'm so moved.
May 9, 2025 at 10:14 PM
So much gratitude. The journal Civil War History published a forum on Freeman's Challenge--and look at this cover. Thank you, @jimdowns.bsky.social, @historianheather.bsky.social, @crystallynnweb.bsky.social, @profkori.bsky.social, and more for your deep, kind, sharp engagement. I'm so moved.
Reposted by Dr. Jim Downs
Congratulations to the AHA members who have been named as 2025 Guggenheim Fellows: Marcia Chatelain, Thomas D. Conlan, Jim Downs, Nicole E. Eustace, Mark A. Graber, Karen B. Graubart, Kristin L. Hoganson, Katherine L. Jansen, Martha S. Jones, and Quinn E. Slobodian. 🗃️
Announcing the 2025 Guggenheim Fellows — Guggenheim Fellowships: Supporting Artists, Scholars, & Scientists
Since 1925, the Guggenheim Foundation has given Fellowships to exceptional artists, writers, scholars, and scientists, empowering them to pursue meaningful work under the freest possible conditions.
www.gf.org
April 29, 2025 at 3:00 PM
Congratulations to the AHA members who have been named as 2025 Guggenheim Fellows: Marcia Chatelain, Thomas D. Conlan, Jim Downs, Nicole E. Eustace, Mark A. Graber, Karen B. Graubart, Kristin L. Hoganson, Katherine L. Jansen, Martha S. Jones, and Quinn E. Slobodian. 🗃️
Reposted by Dr. Jim Downs
🥳 Congratulations to OAH speakers Jim Downs, Nicole Eustace, and Kristin Hoganson on receiving a prestigious 2025 Guggenheim Fellowship from @guggfellows.bsky.social! This well-deserved recognition is a testament to the impact of their scholarship. www.gf.org/stories/anno...
April 24, 2025 at 5:02 PM
🥳 Congratulations to OAH speakers Jim Downs, Nicole Eustace, and Kristin Hoganson on receiving a prestigious 2025 Guggenheim Fellowship from @guggfellows.bsky.social! This well-deserved recognition is a testament to the impact of their scholarship. www.gf.org/stories/anno...
Reposted by Dr. Jim Downs
#Unheard spotted in a Singapore bookshop next to one of my faves - Maladies of Empire by @jimdowns.bsky.social!
Thanks to @hanaayoob.co.uk for the photo.
Thanks to @hanaayoob.co.uk for the photo.
April 24, 2025 at 5:21 AM
#Unheard spotted in a Singapore bookshop next to one of my faves - Maladies of Empire by @jimdowns.bsky.social!
Thanks to @hanaayoob.co.uk for the photo.
Thanks to @hanaayoob.co.uk for the photo.
I won a Guggenheim! Thank you to all those who supported me over the years! The Philadelphia Inquirer featured me in a story & all the #guggfellows2025 were listed in the New York Times on Sunday. Thank you!
April 22, 2025 at 4:53 PM
I won a Guggenheim! Thank you to all those who supported me over the years! The Philadelphia Inquirer featured me in a story & all the #guggfellows2025 were listed in the New York Times on Sunday. Thank you!