Tag Archive

Hardball History

Hardball history: Knowing the people's history requires being on their side

09 April 2015 – Dan Kerr 1

advocacy, methods, social justice, community history, publicity, collaboration, human rights, gentrification, politics, conference, ethics, Hardball History

On May 30, 1995, wearing an orange construction helmet, I stood behind a makeshift barricade on E. 13th Street in New York City. Hundreds of squatters faced off against larger numbers of riot police who were armed with a tank and supported by snipers on the surrounding buildings. Read More

Hardball history: Choosing sides

02 April 2015 – Cynthia Renteria 1

advocacy, social justice, public engagement, community history, sense of place, collaboration, museums, education, human rights, training, politics, race, conference, ethics, Hardball History

Hardball history that places historians at the center of politics, advocacy, and activism can be a difficult journey, but it can also be inspiring. My introduction to public history coincided with the 2006 unveiling of a controversial downtown revitalization plan in the city of El Paso, Texas. Read More

Hardball history: On the high road without any shoes

02 April 2015 – Yolanda Chávez Leyva 4

advocacy, social justice, public engagement, community history, sense of place, collaboration, museums, economic development, race, conference, Hardball History

“You know who has money to help you.” I responded to this truth by listing three millionaires from whom I would not accept funding for Museo Urbano, the public history project housed in the Department of History at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP). Read More

Hardball history: On the edge of politics, advocacy, and activism

25 March 2015 – Cathy Stanton 2

advocacy, methods, social justice, public engagement, profession, politics, conference, ethics, Hardball History

To borrow Shakespeare’s phrase, some public history work is born political, some becomes political, and some has politics thrust upon it. Whether we intentionally locate ourselves in controversial settings, have something blow up in our faces, or encounter less spectacular kinds of resistance or misunderstanding, we’re always on the edge of the political, even when we don’t set out to be. Read More