Not Even Past will publish letters to the editor with educational or scholarly merit. When the letter concerns a post on Not Even Past, the author of the article will be invited to respond. We encourage letter writers to refrain from ad hominem discourse. Joan Neuberger, Editor. Remarks on Jesse Ritner’s “Paying for Peace: Reflections on the ‘Lasting Peace’ […]
Immigration
Did the British Empire depend on separating Parents and Children?
By Sumit Guha Empires ancient and modern are large, hierarchical organizations, structurally founded on deep inequalities of risk and reward. The British Empire in Asia was no exception. At the front lines of imperial power were, all too often, common men (and some women) who were tricked, cozened, misled, coerced, and whipped into serving as […]
“Doing” History in the Modern U.S. Survey: Teaching with and Analyzing Academic Articles
Originally posted on Process History on September 5, 2017. by Christopher Babits Near the end of the spring semester, my department asked me to teach a summer session of U.S. History since 1865. I had a short time to think about what I’d teach and how I’d teach it. For me, it was important for […]
Searching for Armenian Children in Turkey: Work Series on Migration, Exile, and Displacement
By Christopher Rose Editor’s Note: To accompany this year’s Institute for Historical Studies theme and the theme of our film series Faces of Migration, Not Even Past will be showcasing a series of posts featuring graduate students working on topics related to migration, exile or displacement. Nearly every historian can attest to the fact that working in the […]
A Deportation Story: Russia 1914
On the same day the President of the United States announced that he was ending DACA (the program that provides some immigrants who were brought to the US as minors protection from deportation and eligibility for a work permit), this moving essay appeared on the Russian History Blog, which we re-post with their permission. In the context of our […]
Faces of Migration: Classic and Contemporary Films
The NEP film series, Faces of Migration, will kick off Tuesday September 5 at 7pm in CLA on the UT Austin campus. Films are free and open to the public. Each film will be introduced by a faculty member who will lead a discussion after the screening. Share widely and Come join the discussion. SEE […]
A Historian’s Gaze: Women, Law, and the Colonial Archives of Singapore
By Sandy Chang On the eleventh floor of the National Library of Singapore, I sit with a pile of large, gray boxes stacked high on a trolley. I am hoping to be transported to the island’s past. The boxes are filled with legal documents from the British colonial era, mainly affidavits, writs of summons, bills […]
Mapping Newcomers in Buenos Aires, 1928
by Joseph Leidy Published in 1928, the Guía Assalam del Comercio Sirio-libanés en la República Argentina, or, the “Assalam Guide to Syro-Lebanese Commerce in the Republic of Argentina,” contains tens of thousands of names and addresses for shops, services, and professionals from among or affiliated with the Syrian and Lebanese communities of Argentina. “Syro-Lebanese” here […]
Sanctuary Austin: 1980s and Today
Edward Shore revisits the history of the Sanctuary Movement in Austin and the legacy of Casa Marianella, an emergency shelter for refugees and asylum seekers in East Austin. Since 1986, Casa has sheltered more than six thousand refugees, assisting many to secure housing, jobs, language classes, and support. The article appeals to UT historians to get involved in defending Austin’s refugee and immigrant community.
History Museums: Race, Eugenics, and Immigration in New York History Museums
By Madeline Y. Hsu Ideas about race and eugenics have had a long influence on U.S. immigration and citizenship laws. A pair of historical exhibits ongoing in New York City vividly convey this troubling history. The regulations governing U.S. borders reveal the beliefs of legislators, but also many Americans, regarding what kinds of people are […]