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March 31, 1870, the morning after the 15th Amendment became law, Thomas Mundy Peterson (1824-1904) entered a polling place in Perth Amboy, New Jersey, and cast a ballot, the first Black American to vote under its authority, while the nation barely noticed. In this unremarkable setting an ordinary act of governance, a single vote in a small city, federal citizenship met local power and the meaning of political inclusion was tested in practice rather than proclaimed in theory.

#history #ice
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A cabinet card of a 19th century Black man, Thomas Peterson. Peterson is looking at the camera and wearing a three-piece suit with a medal attached to the left side of the vest. The medal was presented to Peterson in 1884 by the residents of Perth Amboy, N.J. in recognition of his status as the first African American voter in the United States under the provisions of the Fifteenth Amendment. The albumen print is attached to a stiff card backer with wear showing around the edges. There is a printed label on the verso that reads, "Inscription on the Medal. Presented by citizens of Perch Amboy, N.J., to Thomas Peterson, the first colored voter in the United States under the provisions of the Fifteenth Amendment, at an election held in that city March 31st, 1870." The cabinet card was printed as a memento for the medal presentation ceremony.
#history #ice

What makes this moment distinctive is not the violence, but the audience encountering it. When white Americans describe this behavior as “what dictatorships do,” they are not wrong but they are late in recognition. America has long depended on techniques commonly associated with authoritarian regimes, while insulating much of white America from their routine application. That insulation is now thinning. The shock is real. The surprise is telling. But neither is unprecedented.

#ice #history

A screenshot of Minnesota Representative Ilhan Omar shows a New York Times headline reading “America at a Boiling Point: Deaths, Threats, Protests and a Town Hall Attack,” with subtext about rising threats against lawmakers. Below the headline is a photograph of Representative Omar wearing a light-colored headwrap and a patterned sweater, looking down with a serious, reflective expression as she walks indoors, accompanied by security personnel in the background.
#history #ice

It is a truth universally acknowledged that #OnThisDay, 28 Jan 1813, a new novel 'by the author of Sense & Sensibility' was published.

'Pride & Prejudice' by Jane Austen has sold over 20 million copies, and had many imitators. During her lifetime, it never carried her name as the author.

Bonus photo of Jennifer Ehle as Lizzie Bennett, giving us the side-eye.

#WomenInHistory #OTD #History #WomensHistory #LiteraryWomen #Histodons

The title page of the first edition of Pride and Prejudice.
Jennifer Ehle as Elizabeth Bennett in the BBC adaptation. She's reading a book and looking amused.
#otd #history #histodons #womeninhistory #onthisday #womenshistory #literarywomen

In 1981, IBM launched the PC. By making it an open standard, they changed computing forever. Six years later, they announced the release of the IBM PS/2. A attempt to take back full control of the market they had created.

The plan should have succeeded. One Company stood in their way: Compaq.

On 19th Feb I'll be giving talk looking at the rise of Compaq, and how they stood up to - and beat - IBM. computerconservationsociety.or… #computing #history

Computer Conservation Society

www.computerconservationsociety.org
#history #computing

📚 Renaissance Studies Reading List 2026

🔗 manchesteruniversitypress.co.u….

#Reading #ReadingList #Nonfiction #History #Histodons #Renaissance #Books #Bookstodon


Renaissance Studies reading list - Manchester University Press

Welcome to our Renaissance Studies Reading List 2026. Over the past year, we published an exceptional range of new titles across Renaissance and early modern literature, history, and theatre.
Bethan Hirst (Manchester University Press)
#books #history #histodons #Reading #Bookstodon #readinglist #nonfiction #renaissance

#OnThisDay, 24 Jan 1901, British aid-worker Emily Hobhouse first visits Bloemfontein concentration camp in South Africa.

Her reporting on the conditions white South Africans are being held in by the British government causes uproar.

Short 🧵

Note: if you search to learn more about her work, please be aware you may find images of dead children.

#WomenInHistory #OTD #History #WomensHistory #BritishHistory #History #Histodons
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Studio portrait of Emily Hobhouse. She is a white woman in a cloak and a big hat.
#otd #history #histodons #womeninhistory #onthisday #womenshistory #BritishHistory

"Today, general strikes are rare in the #US largely because they are difficult to coordinate. But lawmakers and the courts for decades have also restricted the power of #unions.

The two largest general strikes in US #history are the #Seattle General Strike of 1919, where the city of 315,000 people stopped working, and the #Oakland General Strike of 1946, where nearly 130,000 workers refused to work and shut down commerce throughout the area."
kaxe.org/minnesota-news/2026-0…

#Protest #Strike #News #US


Friday’s ‘ICE Out of Minnesota’ day is a general strike. Here’s what that means.

Citing the killing of Renee Good by federal agent Jonathan Ross, the “ICE Out” day organizers say the general strike is intended to be a day of nonviolent reflection.
KAXE
#news #protest #us #history #unions #seattle #strike #oakland

#OnThisDay, 23 Jan 1849, Elizabeth Blackwell graduates with a medical degree. She is the first woman to receive one in the USA. She was also the first woman on the UK medical register.

#WomenInHistory #OTD #History #WomensHistory #WomenInMedicine #Histodons #AmericanHistory

Elizabeth Blackwell as a young woman. She is white, with dark hair in a bun.
#otd #history #histodons #womeninhistory #onthisday #americanhistory #womenshistory #WomenInMedicine

"Second: He’s openly admitting his #Greenland obsession has nothing to do with national #security.

... #Trump, in his own words, saying the quiet part extremely loud: the real reason is that his feelings got hurt over a prize...

Third: “There are no written documents” is weapons-grade historical illiteracy.

...There are, in fact, extensive written documents, including treaties that the #UnitedStates itself has signed"
techdirt.com/2026/01/20/everyo…

#Politics #News #History #Denmark #Norway #US

Text (edited for length): Second: He’s openly admitting his Greenland obsession has nothing to do with national security. For months, the official line has been that acquiring Greenland is somehow essential for American national security. But here’s Trump, in his own words, saying the quiet part extremely loud: the real reason is that his feelings got hurt over a prize.... the wounded ego of a man who desperately wants validation and will threaten sovereign nations to get it. Third: “There are no written documents” is weapons-grade historical illiteracy. Denmark’s connection to Greenland stretches back over 300 years. There are, in fact, extensive written documents, including treaties that the United States itself has signed recognizing Danish sovereignty over Greenland. A 2004 defense pact between the U.S. and Denmark—which already grants the US tremendous rights to make use of Greenland for the US military—explicitly recognizes Greenland as “an equal part of the Kingdom of Denmark.” In 1916, when Denmark sold what are now the U.S. Virgin Islands to the United States, the treaty included an explicit clause where the U.S. agreed not to object to Danish interests in Greenland. But sure, “there are no written documents” and “boats landing” is apparently the level of historical analysis we’re working with now. (We won’t even get into the question of what it means for the United States that “boats landing here hundreds of years ago” gives you no rights to the land).

Everyone Knows Our Mad King’s Greenland Obsession Is Insane. Why Won’t Congress Stop It?

Look, I know we’ve all gotten somewhat numb to the constant stream of unhinged pronouncements from the White House. At some point, the brain develops defense mechanisms. But every now and the…
Techdirt
#news #politics #us #security #trump #history #unitedstates #denmark #greenland #norway

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