What's New in the Oxford African American Studies Center
What's New: June 2009
For this update, the editors of the Oxford African American Studies Center have added 400 more entries from Paul Finkelman's remarkable Encyclopedia of African American History, 1896 to the Present (published in print February 2009). In a starred review of this work, Library Journal declared, "No similar encyclopedia rivals the wealth and confirmation of African American history found here." The 400 new articles in the range of H-P include entries on Jazz, Kwanzaa, the Montgomery Buss Boycott, the NAACP and more!
The latest update also offers 50 exclusive, online-only biographies from the African American National Biography project. These brand new entries – only available through the Oxford African American Studies Center – include Darlene Clark Hine's biography of First Lady Michelle Obama, as well as entries for social worker and educator Henrietta Wells and the first black flight attendant, Carol Taylor.
A group of 21 new primary documents have also been posted to the site – historically significant slave narratives with accompanying commentary. These remarkable documents are the object of the latest Focus On feature, providing a unique perspective on the history of African Americans, directly from those who personally experienced it.
In another new development for June, At a Glance pages have now been made publicly available for increased discoverability of the site. At a Glance pages provide users with an overview of the multiple entries available for a particular topic or biographical subject. This will guide researchers to the Oxford African American Studies Center by making it more visible in search engine results. Click here for an example At a Glance page.
Finally, Oxford African American Studies Center Editor in Chief Henry Louis Gates, Jr. has delivered a new dispatch in which he examines the legacy of John Hope Franklin, a key figure in the scholarship of black history. Dr. Gates's in-depth and personal analysis of Franklin and his impact will provide readers with a new understanding of the development of "black studies."
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Focus On
In addition to our ongoing editorial update program, the Oxford African American Studies Center's editors commission and publish bi-monthly a publicly-available Focus On feature, designed to provide insights into topics of current and historical relevance.
Past Focus On features have included Jazz Greats, the March on Washington, Kwanzaa, Nineteenth- and Twentieth-Century Art and Artists, Women and Literature, Hip Hop's Early Influences, and Blacks in Politics. Features can include a specially-commissioned essay by a renowned scholar, as well as photo essays illustrating the events and topics covered. Focus On features and their related articles are free to the public for two months, and the featured essays and photo essays remain publicly-available on the site.
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