iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Reposted by Dr. Jim Downs

UGA Press @ugapress.bsky.social · 04/07/2026

A dynamic dialogue with top historians, unpacking the impact and paradoxes of our nation’s birthday 🇺🇸 Available at 50% off the entire month of July with code 08SALE250. www.ugapress.org/9780820377124/u-s-…

White book cover showing a red speech bubble containing text that says: "U.S. History at 250th: From the Revolution to the History Wars in Converation with Catherine Clinton and Jim Downs. The blue speech bubble lists the book's contributors:"Sandra Enriquez, Annette Gordon-Reed, Sandy Grande, Nikole Hannah-Jones, Erika Lee, Robert Parkinson, Marc Stein, William Sturkey"

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Dr. Jim Downs @jimdowns.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

I'm a fellow at Brown University’s Center for the Study of Race and Ethnicity in America (CSREA). I'm giving a paper tomorrow. “When Health Became Public: The Transatlantic Slave Trade and the Market for Prevention. 96 Waterman Street, Providence, Tomorrow at 10 a.m. csrea.brown.edu/about/people...

csrea.brown.edu

Visiting Scholars

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Reposted by Dr. Jim Downs

Liz Highleyman @lizhighleyman.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

When I was a young activist, I was down on voting too -- the lesser of two evils is still evil, yada yada. Today, I'm more mindful of that other slogan: If voting changed anything, they'd make it illegal. And that's exactly what they're trying to do.

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Reposted by Dr. Jim Downs

Kent State University Press @ksupress.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

Now available at @projectmuse.bsky.social: the September issue of KSUP's journal "Civil War History," edited by @jimdowns.bsky.social. muse.jhu.edu/pub/14/issue...

Text: Civil War History
Vol. 72 No. 3
September 2026
with black-and-white image of disaster: William Ludwell Sheppard, Richmond Calamity—Interior of Hall of Delegates—Getting Out the Dead and Wounded, Harper’s Weekly, May 14, 1870.

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Dr. Jim Downs @jimdowns.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

Happy Publication Day, @archiverat.bsky.social And a wonderfully thorough review in the LA Review of Books! So happy for you! Many bacon-filled breakfast conversations at conferences over the past decade have imagined & anticipated this day.Thrilled to see it here lareviewofbooks.org/article/movi...

lareviewofbooks.org

We Can Answer for Ourselves | Los Angeles Review of Books

Susan Eva O’Donovan argues that the political building blocks of freedom were inherent in the project of slavery itself.

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thepowerdroid.bsky.social @thepowerdroid.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

It's like that line from "Blazing Saddles": [Jim downs a bottle of whiskey in one long guzzle] Bart: A man drink like that and he don't eat, he is going to DIE. Jim: [eagerly] When?

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Dr. Jim Downs @jimdowns.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

WOW! So important! Thank you! Congratulations!

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Megan Kate Nelson 📚 @mkn.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

BLUESKIS. This is what @katecarp.bsky.social and I have been working on! Check out the website and join our community of readers who want to know and talk about #history worth reading! www.draftingthepast.com

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Dr. Jim Downs @jimdowns.bsky.social · 06/08/2026

With so many despicable, deplorable people in politics, a glimmer of hope comes in a hilarious deployment of camp. Thank you, Dr. El-Sayed x.com/jimdowns1/st...

x.com

Dr. Jim Downs (@jimdowns1) on X

With so many despicable, deplorable people in politics, a glimmer of hope comes in a hilarious deployment of camp. Thank you, Dr. El-Sayed

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Reposted by Dr. Jim Downs

Joanne Freeman @jbf1755.bsky.social · 24/07/2026

An important piece by @jimdowns.bsky.social on public history, responding to the recent wrong-headed New Republic piece about it Thank you, Jim, for discussing what good public history does--& what historians like you & me & Kevin Kruse & Heather Cox Richardson do, & why lithub.com/on-the-publi...

lithub.com

On the Public Historians Reminding Us How Easy It Is to Repeat the Mistakes of the Past

A recent essay in The New Republic asks why historians have become such visible public voices during the Trump era. Katherine Kelaidis argues that figures such as Heather Cox Richardson, Jill Lepor…

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Dr. Jim Downs @jimdowns.bsky.social · 24/07/2026

Thank you for sharing, and, most of all, for your valuable work!

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Dr. Jim Downs @jimdowns.bsky.social · 13/07/2026

You can't separate "the data" from interpretation.The alleged factual errors in Glenn's review don't stand on their own—they're presented as evidence that Greenidge's larger interpretation of the Grimké family is flawed. That's a historiographical argument,not a dispute over data.I'll leave it there

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Dr. Jim Downs @jimdowns.bsky.social · 13/07/2026

The issue wasn't whether someone like Stowe had criticized the sisters before.It was that Kerri challenged the decades-old feminist interpretation associated with Gerda Lerner,recasting Sarah & Angelina as "benevolent racists."That's where the scholarly controversy—and much of the backlash—came from

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Dr. Jim Downs @jimdowns.bsky.social · 11/07/2026

I have a version on Bluesky. In general, however, if I post something on Facebook, where I know my audience (all are friends or colleagues), I would appreciate not copying and pasting material there onto here.

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Dr. Jim Downs @jimdowns.bsky.social · 11/07/2026

I invited her to be on a plenary in Feb 2025:she’d been dealing w/ a stalker then. When I organized the event,her biggest worry wasn’t the panel—it was whether the stalker would show up. That’s the part that breaks my heart. More people should ask what it took—& who benefited to make her radioactive

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Dr. Jim Downs @jimdowns.bsky.social · 11/07/2026

Biography is the genre most exposed to critique & error.The charges so far are narrow: a dispute over letters in a Michigan archive, and a disputed account of the 1838 Pennsylvania Hall fire. Worth running down, but 2 contested details in a 400-page family history don't discredit the larger argument

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Dr. Jim Downs @jimdowns.bsky.social · 11/07/2026

The NYT piece on Greenidge skips the elephant in the room: her real argument wasn't about the Grimke sisters as founding feminist heroines — it was against that hagiography, told instead through their Black nephews. That's the intervention the article never engages. www.nytimes.com/2026/07/10/b...

nytimes.com

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Dr. Jim Downs @jimdowns.bsky.social · 08/07/2026

She has stated on her video podcast that she will not run, which is extraordinarily disappointing. She argues that she doesn’t have the skill set, but I would beg to differ. She’s absolutely brilliant and she could learn how to do the work. We need her analytical mind to clearly solve problems.

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Dr. Jim Downs @jimdowns.bsky.social · 07/07/2026

Heather Cox Richardson to replace Platner! Historians in the Senate! Let’s go!

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Dr. Jim Downs @jimdowns.bsky.social · 04/07/2026

I am absolutely honored to have your outstanding contributions to this volume. Thank you!

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Dr. Jim Downs @jimdowns.bsky.social · 04/07/2026

Fireworks last 20 min.Historical myths last centuries. As America celebrates 250 years,let’s spend as much time questioning our stories as celebrating them.That’s why I published this book w/ @agordonreed.bsky.social @nhannahjones.bsky.social @redped.bsky.social et al. www.amazon.com/dp/082037712...

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Dr. Jim Downs @jimdowns.bsky.social · 27/06/2026

@brookenewman.bsky.social excellent talk today on C-SPAN on your compelling book!

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Dr. Jim Downs @jimdowns.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

Thrilled to announce my book will be out in Oct! When politicians claim to speak for "the people" on health, history tells a different story: ordinary Americans — not demagogues — built this country's healthcare from the ground up. Pre-order link ⬇️ [link] Please share! www.amazon.com/gp/bestselle...

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Dr. Jim Downs @jimdowns.bsky.social · 15/06/2026

Historians and teachers: For Juneteenth, I’ve organized what promises to be a fascinating panel featuring three extraordinary scholars—Vincent Brown, Evelynn Hammonds, and Kendra Taira Field. Please register soon, as space is limited. support.librarycompany.org/event/junete...

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Reposted by Dr. Jim Downs

Zinn Education Project @zinnedproject.bsky.social · 06/06/2026

Reconstruction booklist for K-12 (as on image) & for adults incl. by WEB Du Bois, @kidadaewilliams.com, @hngreen.bsky.social, @katemasur.bsky.social, Justene Edwards, @clintsmithiii.bsky.social, Lerone Bennett, Eric Foner, S. Hahn, Jim Downs, & many more. www.socialjusticebooks.org/booklists/re...

Book covers of books for K-12 on Reconstruction

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Reposted by Dr. Jim Downs

Brian DeLay @briandelay.bsky.social · 04/06/2026

My friend & colleague Francisco Barbosa died too young. Thanks to the tireless Erika Blum, Francisco's wonderful book is finally being published. INSURGENT YOUTH is an inspired history of the young people who powered the Nicaraguan Revolution. 40% discount code: BARB26. #@lasabluesky.bsky.social

upcolorado.com

Insurgent Youth

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Dr. Jim Downs @jimdowns.bsky.social · 01/06/2026

During Pride Month, I keep thinking about a question that shaped my research: How did LGBTQ people find one another before social media? The answer was often through community institutions they built themselves. That’s the story I tell in Stand by Me. www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0820...

amazon.com

Stand By Me: The Forgotten History of Gay Liberation

Stand By Me: The Forgotten History of Gay Liberation [Downs, Jim] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Stand By Me: The Forgotten History of Gay Liberation

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UGA Press @ugapress.bsky.social · 29/05/2026

Jim Downs shares our newest title, U.S. History at the 250th, in our History in the Headlines series with Julian Zelizer. Watch the full interview here: open.substack.com/pub/julianzelizer…

A screenshot of a video interview between Julian Zelizer and Jim Downs, co-editor of U.S. History at the 250th.

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Dr. Jim Downs @jimdowns.bsky.social · 29/05/2026

Many thanks to @zelizer.bsky.social for having me on his podcast. We discussed the History in the Headlines series, the history wars, and our latest book on the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution. open.substack.com/pub/julianze...

open.substack.com

What’s at Stake with the History Wars: A Live Conversation with Jim Downs, Gettysburg College and co-author of U.S. History at the 250th

A recording from Julian Zelizer's live video

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Dr. Jim Downs @jimdowns.bsky.social · 28/05/2026

HISTORIANS, Please share widely.I'm hosting an exciting Juneteenth event at the Library Company of Phila,June 16. "From Ledger to Genome: Data & the History of Black Life," exploring how Black lives have been recorded & recovered across time. Register here. support.librarycompany.org/event/junete...

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Reposted by Dr. Jim Downs

Kent State University Press @ksupress.bsky.social · 24/05/2026

Now available at @projectmuse.bsky.social: the June issue of our journal "Civil War History," including contributions from @gwionwynjones.bsky.social, @jimdowns.bsky.social, @dblight.bsky.social, and more: muse.jhu.edu/issue/56800

Five people seated in a row on a stage for a discussion, with text: Civil War History
Vol. 72 No. 2
June 2026

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Ida Bae Wells @nhannahjones.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

Because this country likes to forget what it’s capable of, I take it as a duty to remind us. We sit at the brink of the largest decimation of Black political power since the fall of Reconstruction — a Second Redemption. And the end of Black political power means the end of democracy itself.

nytimes.com

The Civil Rights Era Is Collapsing Before Our Eyes

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Alondra Nelson @alondra.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

As a tool: AI is now part of how social research gets done-- coding interviews, classifying images, simulating populations. The hard question isn't only whether or not to use it, but what we lose, not just gain, when our methods run through systems we can't fully see into. Is that social science?

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Alondra Nelson @alondra.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

Three things said about AI and social science: it's a topic to study, a thing to critique, a tool to use. My new Daedalus essay argues these aren't three conversations; they're one. A 🧵 on "Field Theory: AI as Social Science Question, Object, and Tool." www.amacad.org/publication/...

amacad.org

Field Theory: AI as Social Science Question, Object & Tool

Uses of advanced artificial intelligence are changing how societies organize labor, govern, produce knowledge, and make meaning. In light of these developments, this essay argues that AI models, tools...

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Alondra Nelson @alondra.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

AI is being built into hiring, housing, medicine, courts, classrooms-the institutions social science has spent more than a century studying. Social science didn't invent AI, but the social worlds AI is trained on, sold into, and reshaping-those are ours. The future of AI is a social science problem.

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