Today I'd like to take a moment to celebrate Black inventions that make our daily lives easier, safer, and healthier. If you've used any of these things in the past week (and I'm sure you have), you can thank Black people. Blood Banks: In 1940, Dr Charles Drew created the first large scale plasma and … Continue reading Thank you, Black People
Black History Month 2026
When Negro History Week was established by Carter Woodson in 1926, intense systemic racism, income inequality, deeply entrenched segregation, and high levels of violence against Black Americans were all part . Today, in 2026, after decades of progress, we're witnessing a recommitment to systemic racism, income inequality, segregation by race and class are becoming more … Continue reading Black History Month 2026
Black Church Musings
Last weekend I returned to my alma mater, Grinnell College, for Black Alumni Weekend. Yes: Even in the face of attacks on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB), higher-ed, and increasingly pervasive anti-Blackness, we still got to celebrate ourselves in public. There is an old adage that where you spend your money reflects your values. … Continue reading Black Church Musings
Current Events in the 515
I had another post drafted, but it seemed a bit frivolous given current events in the Des Moines, Iowa metro. As a proud graduate of Des Moines Public Schools (DMPS), and the child of a DMPS teacher, I am shocked and heartbroken over the arrest of Superintendent Ian Roberts by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), … Continue reading Current Events in the 515
Finding Hate In Our History
This post has been two years in the making. It has been a tremendous challenge to gather the words to confront this topic: What happens when you find hate in your history? In 2022 and 2024, summer interns encountered anti LGBTQ+ bigotry while researching Black churches in Central Iowa. It was hard to know what … Continue reading Finding Hate In Our History
Auntie Fletcher
From her arrival in the late1860s to her death in December, 1912, Auntie Fletcher was one of the best known Black women in Des Moines. For years she worked as a laundress for white pioneer and settler families. Towards the end of her life, Auntie Fletcher lived at the foot of a public dump the … Continue reading Auntie Fletcher
2024 Summer Internship
Time is funny. June 10 was the first day of the Iowa Black History Research Collective's second internship. The summer seemed vast and never ending. Now it is late July, we have about three weeks left, and students will be back to school in roughly a month. This summer it has been a tremendous pleasure … Continue reading 2024 Summer Internship
Researching Black Women is Awesome
“The most disrespected person in America, is the black woman. The most un-protected person in America is the black woman. The most neglected person in America, is the black woman.” - Malcolm X One hallmark of this type of disrespect is the post-Civil war custom of refusing Black women any sort of honorific. “Auntie” or “Girl” … Continue reading Researching Black Women is Awesome
Archie Alexander and Highland Park College
Established in 1890, Highland Park College was located at the corner of 2nd Avenue and Euclid in Des Moines. In 1908 the college made the front page of the Des Moines Register, lamenting the loss of a (white) star football player found himself unable to compete, on or off the field, with newly admitted Black … Continue reading Archie Alexander and Highland Park College
Researching Black Ministers is Hard
When I started planning 2024’s Black History month content, I had aspirations of featuring a minister every Monday…because Minister Monday is catchy, right? Despite having a notebook full of names, I got really hung up on initials. Almost all Iowa’s late 19th century/early 20th century ministers went by their first and middle initials in newspaper … Continue reading Researching Black Ministers is Hard