Category Archives: Illinois History and Society

Many International Students’ Visas Revoked in Illinois

Posted on April 14, 2025 by briansandberg

International students at state universities in Illinois and across the nation are being improperly and unlawfully targeted by the Trump administration for visa revocation. Last week, the Trump administration revoked the visas of five international students at Northern Illinois University, … Continue reading →

Posted in Academic Freedom, Authoritarianism, Civil Rights Issues, Education Policy, Globalization, Higher Education, Human Rights, Illinois History and Society, Legal history, Political Culture, Political History of the United States, United States Foreign Policy, United States History and Society | Leave a comment

Hands Off! Protests across the Nation

Posted on April 9, 2025 by briansandberg

Hands Off! rallies were held in cities and towns across the United States this past weekend. Protesters demonstrated against the Trump administration’s policies and the massive cuts inflicted by Elon Musk’s DOGE team. I participated in the Hands Off! rally … Continue reading →

Posted in Academic Freedom, Civil Rights Issues, Democracy, Higher Education, Human Rights, Humanities Education, Illinois History and Society, Political History of the United States, Political Theory, United States History and Society | Leave a comment

Higher Education Funding in Illinois

Posted on February 21, 2025 by briansandberg

State universities in Illinois have been underfunded for decades and this is especially true of the second tier state universities such as Northern Illinois University. Educational funding for state universities across the United States has long failed to pay for … Continue reading →

Posted in Education Policy, Higher Education, Humanities Education, Illinois History and Society, Legal history, Political History of the United States, United States History and Society | Leave a comment

Historians and Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

Posted on January 20, 2025 by briansandberg

Happy Martin Luther King, Jr. Day! Historians across the United States are remembering Martin Luther King, Jr., today (20 January 2025) and interpreting the significance of the Civil Rights Movement. University professors and high school teacher are confronting politicized debates … Continue reading →

Posted in History in the Media, History of Race and Racism, Human Rights, Humanities Education, Illinois History and Society, Museums and Historical Memory, The Past Alive: Teaching History, United States History and Society | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Archivist Position in Illinois

Posted on September 14, 2022 by briansandberg

Illinois College is hiring an Archivist and Curator. Graduate students in History at Northern Illinois University may be interested in applying for this position. Here is the full position announcement: Illinois College – College Archivist and Curator of Special Collections … Continue reading →

Posted in Archival Research, Careers in History, Graduate Work in History, Illinois History and Society, Information Management, Jobs and Positions, United States History and Society | Leave a comment

Remembering Martin Luther King, Jr.

Posted on January 17, 2022 by briansandberg

We are remembering Martin Luther King, Jr., and his powerful leadership of the Civil Rights Movement today on MLK Day 2022. WBEZ in Chicago provides Studs Terkel’s famous recordings of the 1963 Train Ride to Washington, focusing on interviews with … Continue reading →

Posted in History in the Media, History of Race and Racism, Human Rights, Illinois History and Society, Political Activism and Protest Culture, Political Culture, The Past Alive: Teaching History, United States History and Society | Leave a comment

The Newberry Library is Reopening

Posted on January 13, 2022 by briansandberg

The Newberry Library in Chicago has announced that it will reopen on 18 January, following a temporary closure due to the Omicron wave of Covid. The Newberry Library states: “We look forward to welcoming you back to the Newberry starting … Continue reading →

Posted in Archival Research, Current Research, Digital Humanities, Early Modern Europe, Early Modern France, Early Modern World, European History, French Empire, French History, French Wars of Religion, Graduate Work in History, History of Science, History of the Book, Illinois History and Society, Manuscript Studies, Reformation History, Renaissance Art and History, Undergraduate Work in History, United States History and Society, World History | Leave a comment

Chicago Surpasses 800 Homicides in 2021

Posted on December 18, 2021 by briansandberg

The city of Chicago passed a tragic milestone recently, as the 800th person this year was killed. According to WBEZ, “Chicago already has more than 800 homicide deaths in 2021, the most violent year in a quarter century, according to … Continue reading →

Posted in Arms Control, Civil Conflict, History of Violence, Illinois History and Society, United States History and Society, Urban History | Leave a comment

Reflecting on School Shootings

Posted on December 7, 2021 by briansandberg

The horrific violence at Oxford High School in Oxford, Michigan, has forced many teachers and professors to reflect once again on the seemingly endless pattern of school shootings in the United States. Northern Illinois University suffered its moment of infamy … Continue reading →

Posted in Atrocities, Education Policy, History of Violence, Humanities Education, Illinois History and Society, United States History and Society | Leave a comment

Illinois Creoles

Posted on December 1, 2021 by briansandberg

France constructed a vast empire in the Caribbean and North America during the early modern period, leaving lasting cultural influence in Francophone Haiti, Louisiana, and Quebec. Often forgotten is the French imperial territory in the Illinois country and Mississippi valley. … Continue reading →

Posted in Cultural History, Early Modern Europe, Early Modern France, Early Modern World, Empires and Imperialism, European History, Francophonie, French Empire, French History, History in the Media, History of the Western World, Humanities Education, Illinois History and Society, Museums and Historical Memory, The Past Alive: Teaching History, United States History and Society, World History | Leave a comment