Virginia Humanities

Paradox Of Liberty

Slavery At Jefferson’s Monticello

The Paradox of Liberty: Slavery at Jefferson’s Monticello, gives voice to the many enslaved families who built and maintained Monticello. It highlights the stories of six families who, along with others, lived in slavery at Jefferson’s home and plantation for generations: Elizabeth Hemings and her children, among whom the most well-known is her daughter Sally; […]

Loyal Artists, Loyal Slaves

Confederate Artists in Civil War Richmond

Watch this free public talk by Rachel Stephens, Associate Professor of Art History, American Art and Architecture at the University of Alabama. Much can be gleaned about the role of art in 19th-century society by looking at the pro-slavery, Confederate-supporting artists. In the years leading up to the Civil War, several Richmond artists were producing […]

Screening: Our Alexandria

Join us at this free public screening of “Our Alexandria,” by Emmy-award winning journalist, television host, moderator, and writer Robin Hamilton. This film tells the story of two artists from Alexandria, Virginia who revisit the town’s segregated past and tell the story of family, friendship, loss, and love through their historical dollhouses. This project is […]

The Whole Story

Virginia Humanities helps reveal the lives of the enslaved and widen the scope of narratives presented at plantations statewide.

From Conversation to Collective Action

There is active racism, passive racism, and active antiracism, wrote clinical psychologist Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum in her groundbreaking, national bestselling 1997 book, Why Are All The Black Kids Sitting Together In The Cafeteria? And Other Conversations About Race. Tatum likens what she calls “the ongoing cycle of racism” to the moving walkways at airports. […]

An Evening Present With History

Join Virginia Humanities Board Member and BackStory host Ed Ayers; director of our African American programs, Justin Reid; and other special guests for a screening and discussion of Virginia Public Media’s new show, The Future of America’s Past. Watch a screening of the show’s first episode featuring Fort Monroe, where slavery began in British North […]

Singing the Nation Into Being

The ‘Black National Anthem’ and the Politics of Performance

What can videos and metadata tell us about Black subjectivities, nation, and diaspora? What might we gain by considering performances as part of an ephemeral archive? Virginia Humanities Fellow Sonya Donaldson (New Jersey City University) will discuss a digital humanities project she’s working on that curates performances of James Weldon Johnson’s “Lift Every Voice and […]

Learn from This Place

Bringing Arlington to Halls Hill

Learn the history of Arlington’s Halls Hill and other African American neighborhoods at this free panel discussion and performance. The event includes a panel moderated by Arlington County Board Chairman Christian Dorsey, with panelists comprised of former and current African American community residents and educators and performances by the Phil Wiggins Blues House Party and […]

Flip the Script

You’re invited to Encore Stage & Studio’s Flip the Script project performances. Saturday, November 2 at 3 pm & 7 pm and Sunday, November 3 at 3 pm. Theatre is a powerful tool for examining the past and discerning intersections with the present. Encore Stage & Studio’s Flip the Script has worked with local students […]

Exhibit: Thomas Jefferson, Architect

Palladian Models, Democratic Principles, and the Conflict of Ideals

The most important architectural thinker of the young American republic, Thomas Jefferson conveyed ideals of liberty and democracy in his designs. Jefferson (1743–1826) was Governor of Virginia, Secretary of State, President of the United States and author of the Declaration of Independence. He was also a slave owner. Thomas Jefferson, Architect: Palladian Models, Democratic Principles, and […]

Unmasking Hampton Roads

Watch Live Streams

Unmasking Hampton Roads is a three-part learning series designed to help residents of the region take off their masks, be candid with each other about race and racism, and work together to make our communities more equitable and inclusive spaces for everyone. The series is inspired by the poem “We Wear the Mask” by African […]

The Legacy of Slavery

Join us and Roanoke Valley Points of Diversity for an open dialogue about difficult issues, including race. We’ll talk about Hollins University’s research on the history of enslaved people working on campus and the ways some of their descendants remain connected to Hollins to this day. This event is part of our W.K. Kellogg Foundation […]