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Work of the Florida Federal Writers Project Now Available Online

By Bridget Bihm-Manuel – In 1935, Franklin Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration (WPA) to alleviate the unemployment caused by the Great Depression.  It was primarily a public works program and the laborers who participated were responsible for the construction of thousands of bridges, buildings, parks, roads, and other structures…

The Great Speckled Bird and its Florida Coverage

By Lee Hoffman –  What is the Great Speckled Bird? The Great Speckled Bird was an underground alternative press publication. The South, historically, has been characterized as a monolithic legislative echo-chamber painted in  All-American red. It should not be forgotten that southern legislatures have been historically associated with violent rhetoric…

The Florida LGBTQ+ Collection

By Rachel Laue and James Cusick –  The P.K. Yonge Library of Florida History has started a new collection on LGBTQ+ publications in Florida, focusing on newspapers or periodicals published during the 1970s and 1980s.  At the core of this collection is an 18-month run of The Weekly News (TWN),…

Some Advice from Stetson Kennedy, Still the Nation’s Foremost Klan-Buster

By James Cusick – October 5th marks the birthday of folklorist, activist, writer and Klan-fighter William Stetson Kennedy (1916-2011).  He would have been 105 years old today!  And although Stetson is no longer here in the flesh, his words and warnings about the dangers we are facing from white supremacy…