In the News
Summer of X
A 19th-century engraving of Vampire Bat, Bulldog Bat, and Kalong Bat. Image from duncan1890We asked members of the 2020–2021 fellowship class to introduce themselves by way of a recent preoccupation. Their answers suggest minds rarely at rest, even in summer.
Social Change Takes Center Stage at 2020 Summer of HOPE
Participants in the weeklong Summer of HOPE workshop shared a "check-out" word at the end of each session.The meaning of justice in health care, the environment, and race relations has been at the center of the national conversation the past several months. These issues informed and animated the Summer of HOPE program at the Radcliffe Institute.
Where the Wild Things Are—Now That Humans Are Locked Down
A white stork with a solar GPS tag. Photo by Renate Herz (C)Christian Rutz RI '20 and other researchers are examining human impact on wildlife using data collected during the pandemic quarantine.
Crowd-sourcing the Story of a People
This fall, Professor Tiya Miles will teach "Abolitionist Women and Their World," a course in public history. Photo by Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Staff PhotographerRadcliffe Professor Tiya Miles discusses why she believes a better understanding of the past is as likely to be found in a formal archive, a national park, or a conversation with an elderly relative as it is in the classroom.
Defining a Centennial
Historic figures who played prominent roles in the fight for equality: Anna Murray-Douglass (ca. 1860) (from left), Marcus Garvey with Amy Jacques Garvey (1922), and Elizabeth Freeman (1812). Source: All images Wikipedia/Public Domain; Freeman photo courtesy of Massachusetts Historical Society, BostonPanel discusses what happened in the years before Black women actually got the vote.
How Caffeine Changed the World
Photo by Rose Lincoln/Harvard Staff PhotographerAuthor Michael Pollan discusses his latest work on the world’s most-used psychoactive substance.
The Long March for Suffrage
Suffrage parade in Boston, 1914. Photo courtesy of the Women's Rights Collection, Schlesinger LibraryRadcliffe project marks 19th Amendment centennial while focusing on the women who would not be fully enfranchised for decades more.
At Summer of HOPE, Empowerment Not Punishment
Grey Johnson. Photo by Katytarika BartelGrey Johnson ’22 is a Harvard College student studying linguistics with a secondary in translation studies. This summer, they are serving as a co-facilitator for the Summer of HOPE program, which hosts Boston Public School students for justice-focused workshops at seven Boston-area higher education institutions, including the Radcliffe Institute. In addition to reimagining the Radcliffe week of the program for its virtual format this summer, Johnson is a Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellow researching Black language and creole ontologies.
Equal Justice Requires Lawmakers Reform Qualified Immunity for Police
Tomiko Brown-Nagin. Photo by Rose Lincoln, Harvard Staff PhotographerThe degree of clarity that courts require to permit suits for civil rights violations to proceed is excessive to the point of absurdity.
Challenge of Archiving the #MeToo Movement
Protesters march against sexual assault and harassment in November 2017 in Hollywood. AP Photo/Damian DovarganesThe Schlesinger Library's new online collection contains more than 32 million tweets, 1,100 webpages, and thousands of articles reflecting a range of perspectives.