History project profiles 25 antebellum activists engaged in the struggle for racial justice

Northwestern launched a digital exhibit, “Black Organizing in Pre-Civil War Illinois: Creating Community, Demanding Justice,” that is currently accessible through Penn State University’s Colored Conventions Project website.

The exhibit, led by Kate Masur, Northwestern professor and historian, highlights the 25 men and women who organized a historic meeting in 1853 — the first-ever political convention of Black Illinoisans — after state lawmakers made it illegal for free Black citizens to enter Illinois. The presentation’s major themes, community building and fighting for justice, are displayed through interactive maps, paintings of the activists and areas involved, and excerpts from relevant news media.

According to Masur,

“People may think of Illinois as a free state from the start and the ‘Land of Lincoln.’ They may imagine that African Americans didn’t have a significant presence here until the Great Migration. This exhibit tells us something quite different.”

On March 1st, the Alice Kaplan Institute for the Humanities will host a hybrid panel discussion to celebrate the success of the project. Panel members include exhibit developers Emiliano Aguilar, Lia Davis, Josh Honn, Valeria Lira-Ruelas, Kate Masur, Hope McCaffrey, Shira Nash, Mikala Stokes, Marquis Taylor, and Matt Taylor.

Learn more about this exhibit in the Northwestern Now story, “Documenting Illinois’ first statewide Black political conference.”