John Brown

Descendants of Frederick Douglass and John Brown discussed civil rights challenges during a Juneteenth visit to WHYY. Kevin Douglass Greene criticized claims of lost rights for African Americans, highlighting historical struggles for equality, and condemned a court ruling that replaced a slavery exhibit at the President’s House Site. Brian Evans joined the visit to the exhibit on Independence Mall.

In 1856, Preston Brooks attacked Senator Charles Sumner with a cane after Sumner insulted Brooks’s relative in a speech. The violent act intensified sectional tensions, influenced John Brown’s rebellion, and contributed to the rise of the Republican Party. Biographies of Sumner and Brooks later reevaluated their roles in the pre-Civil War era.

Hasan Kwame Jeffries, a history professor and brother of House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, called for citizens to emulate John Brown's violent abolitionist tactics, stating 'by any means necessary' to combat white supremacy. The article criticizes this as a dangerous endorsement of political violence, referencing Brown's 1856 Pottawatomie massacre and other academics like Stacey Patton who have similarly invoked Brown as a model for activism.

West Virginia leaders, including state Sen. Chris Rose, are reigniting the 'VEXIT' movement to attract disenfranchised Virginians following the approval of a Democratic congressional map in Virginia. The effort, inspired by historical secession from Confederate Virginia in 1863, emphasizes preserving Appalachian values and freedom in a 'redder' West Virginia.

West Virginia leaders, including Sen. Chris Rose, are promoting the 'VEXIT' movement to attract disaffected Virginians following the approval of a Democratic-favored congressional map in Virginia. The movement echoes historical secession efforts from 1863 and positions West Virginia as a refuge for conservative values, targeting urban-vs.-rural political divides.