Join DC History Center for a conversation with Curator Erica Sterling and Historian Kate Masur about how Black Americans educated their children in the wake of the Civil War.
Meet Emma Brown—the first African American teacher in Washington’s public schools, and a little-known figure in DC history. Born in the early 1840s, Brown grew up in Washington, attended Oberlin College, and returned to DC to become a teacher, principal, and advocate for Black education. Brown is just one example of the many everyday Washingtonians who shaped the education system in the nation’s capital.
In this special program, we’ll dig deep into Brown’s story, which is briefly mentioned in the DC History Center’s exhibit Class Action: Education and Opportunity in the Nation’s Capital. The exhibit’s curator, Erica Sterling, and leading Reconstruction historian Kate Masur will discuss the early days of Black education in Washington, DC, placing it in the context of Reconstruction,
This conversation is inspired by Kate Masur’s most recent book, Freedom Was in Sight: A Graphic History of Reconstruction in the Washington, D.C., Region, in which Brown serves as the narrator.
Purchase a book at checkout ($25.44, including tax) to be picked up during the program. Purchasing the book through registration supports our mission. Add a donation during checkout to show your support for our Class Action programming.
Freedom Was in Sight: A Graphic History of Reconstruction in the Washington, D.C., Region The Reconstruction era was born from the tumult and violence of the Civil War and delivered the most powerful changes the United States had seen since its founding. Black Americans in Washington, D.C., and its surrounding region were at the heart of these transformations, bravely working to reunite their families, build their communities, and claim rights long denied them. Meanwhile, in the capital, government leaders struggled to reunite and remake the nation. Famous individuals such as Frederick Douglass and Ida B. Wells played central roles, as did lesser-known figures like Emma Brown, the first African American teacher in Washington’s public schools, and lawyer-journalist William Calvin Chase, longtime editor of the Washington Bee.
Freedom Was in Sight! draws on the words and experiences of people who lived during Reconstruction, powerfully narrating how the impacts of emancipation and civil war rippled outward for decades. Vividly drawn by award-winning graphic artist Liz Clarke and written by Pulitzer Prize–finalist Kate Masur, a leading historian of Reconstruction, this rich graphic history reveals the hopes and betrayals of a critical period in American history.
Kate Masur is a professor at Northwestern University who specializes in the history of race, politics, and law in the United States. She’s the author of Until Justice Be Done: America’s First Civil Rights Movement, from the Revolution to Reconstruction, a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in History. Kate led a team of students and staff at Northwestern in the creation of Black Organizing in Pre-Civil War Illinois: Creating Community, Demanding Justice, a web exhibit associated with the Colored Conventions Project.
She regularly collaborates with museums and other nonprofits, as well as K-12 teachers. Her 2010 book, An Example for All the Land: Emancipation and the Struggle over Equality in Washington, DC, was a finalist for the Lincoln Prize. She is co-editor of the Journal of the Civil War Era, published by University of North Carolina Press.
Erica Sterling is an Assistant Professor in the Corcoran Department of History at the University of Virginia. Her research explores African American education, philanthropy, and local and federal policy in the latter half of the twentieth century. She served as curator and historian for the DC History Center’s current exhibit, Class Action. Sterling earned her PhD in history from Harvard University in 2022.
Class Action explores how DC’s Black communities advocated for educational opportunities for their children. Follow your curiosity and deepen your understanding of DC history through educational book talks, game nights, panel discussions, documentary screenings, and more, throughout the year. Connect with family, meet your neighbors, and play with new friends at lively programs meant to encourage civic engagement and inspire you to make a difference in your community.
Freedom Was in Sight: A Graphic History of Reconstruction in the Washington, D.C., Region by author Kate Masur and Liz Clarke. Purchase your own copy when you register!
Author Kate Masur
Curator and Historian Erica Sterling