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Martine Brennan

@saytheirnamesir.bsky.social
927 followers 625 following 746 posts

Public historian #IrishSlaveholders #SouthCarolina & beyond. irishhistorians.ie/members/martine-… and www.bloomsbury.com/uk/stained-and-b…

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Reposted by Martine Brennan
Keri Leigh Merritt @kerileighmerritt.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Another ⭐️starred⭐️ review for #AnInconvenientWoman!!! So, so honored, @shelf-awareness.com!!! Thank you for the kind words.⭐️ I cannot thank y’all enough for the ♥️♥️♥️ this book has received thus far… @stmartinspress.bsky.social @macmillanusa.bsky.social #writer #writersofinstagram #book
Shows front page of shelf awareness with An Inconvenient Woman starred review at top of the page.Book cover and star with links to buyOne of the U.S. South's most outspoken champions of racial justice and civil rights emerges from history's forgotten halls in Keri Leigh Merritt's revelatory biography, An Inconvenient Woman. Lillian Smith (1897-
1966) bucked every stereotype of her time: as a white woman in the South during Jim Crow, she was a fearless advocate for desegregation and civil rights, and she was a lesbian who lived with the love of her life, literary critic
Paula Snelling.
Drawing upon unpublished archival material, Merritt provides the fullest portrait yet of Smith's inimitable and inspiring life, outlining her days running a progressive summer camp for girls, teaching music in China, publishing a literary journal for a decade, and writing her own books--both fiction and nonfiction--that called out "the sins of the white South, and of white America." Merritt engages both the public and private personas of Smith, whileDrawing upon unpublished archival material,
Merritt provides the fullest portrait yet of Smith's inimitable and inspiring life, outlining her days running a progressive summer camp for girls, teaching music in China, publishing a literary journal for a decade, and writing her own books--both fiction and nonfiction--that called out "the sins of the white South, and of white America." Merritt engages both the public and private personas of Smith, while also providing impressively sharp analyses of her published books, such as Killers of the Dream and her controversial novel, Strange Fruit, to name just two. Merritt examines in detail Smith's reliance on psychology to explain why racism, a "psychosis," stunted her fellow Southerners' ability to experience empathy and creativity. Her reputation among Black civil rights leaders was impeccable, and the narrative folds in Smith's varied collaborations with the leading lights of the movement. Whereas previous scholarly biographies of Smith "are incomplete in significant ways," Merritt's An Inconvenient Woman delivers a first-rate and vigorous study that both illuminates and rouses. -Peggy Kurkowski, freelance book reviewer in Denver
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Joe Noonan @joenoonan.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Source bsky.app/profile/stan...
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Irish Studies@LivUni @irishinstitute.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Delighted to see such great coverage for St Brigid's Arms, the excellent new exhibition exploring Irish women's heritage created by Emerald Lens CIC. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article... FREE at @victoriagallery.bsky.social, which is open Monday to Saturday, 10am-5pm www.liverpool.ac.uk/victoria-gal...
bbc.co.uk
Irish heritage and culture, as told by the women of the North West
A new exhibition is celebrating the role of women in the rich Irish communities across northern England.
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Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
'The University of Nottingham has confirmed that it will close its music and languages departments as it presses ahead with more than 500 job cuts despite widespread opposition from staff and students.' A blight on East Midlands and UK higher education.
timeshighereducation.com
Nottingham confirms course closures with hundreds of jobs affected
Languages and music departments to close despite strikes and protests but university insists it has addressed staff concerns in revised plans
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Brian Groom @groomb.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
I'm delighted to be returning to Sheffield's Off The Shelf Festival Of Words @otsfestival.bsky.social to talk about 'These Isles: A People's History of England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales' on Friday October 23rd, 12.30pm, Millennium Gallery. Book here: offtheshelf.org.uk/events/these...
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Eoghan Daltun 🌍 @irishrainforest.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
I stood in the presence of several very ancient oaks in Bandon's Castlebernard Woods a few months ago, and was in total awe. Such trees are now *incredibly* rare in Ireland. Please support Bandon Environmental Action Group in getting the 34.5-acre ecosystem protected. www.corkbeo.ie/news/local-n...
corkbeo.ie
Public urged to join fight to protect ancient West Cork woodland
Some of these magnificent trees date back hundreds of years
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Matt Seybold @mattseybold.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Thanks to generosity of Elmira College alums, Carl & Cindy Hayden, the Center for @marktwain.bsky.social Studies is offering two new Quarry Farm Fellowships for high school students & teachers. Part of our emphasis on involvement in scholarship for educators at every grade level & career stage.
weny.com
Elmira College Alumni Establish Prize and Teaching Fellowships at Mark Twain’s Historic Quarry Farm
ELMIRA, N.Y. — High school students and educators in the Elmira area will soon have the rare opportunity to study at Quarry Farm — the historic summer home where Mark
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Martine Brennan @saytheirnamesir.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Bill Fuller #Kilfeighny #Kerry #DanceHalls www.dib.ie/biography/fu...
dib.ie
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Quakers in Britain @quaker.org.uk · 01/10/2026
The climate impact of military activity is often left out of the conversation. If we are serious about reaching net zero, no sector should get a free pass. www.quaker.org.uk/news-and-events/n…
quaker.org.uk
Count military emissions in climate plans, Quakers say
Quakers in Britain have joined more than 20 organisations in calling for the military's climate impact to be fully included in the UK's plans to tackle climate change.
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Dominique Baker @bakerdphd.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
"Scholars of colour described overpreparing for presentations, ruthlessly analysing their own results before exposing them to scrutiny, softening their conclusions or avoiding research on race altogether." The level of checks I go through often astounds some colleagues
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Liverpool University Press @livunipress.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Read Stephen Small's blog post introducing his new book Black Liverpool, which discusses how different the history of Black Liverpool is to that of Black London and the influences which makes Black Liverpool so unique. liverpooluniversitypress.blog/2026/09/09/t... #BlackHistoryMonth
liverpooluniversitypress.blog
The defiant creativity of Liverpool’s Black community
Explore Professor Stephen Small's insights on Black Liverpool's distinct cultural tapestry, shared influences, and historical narratives.
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Hannah O'Sullivan @sullydaysleeper.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
I really hope everyone backs Rory Hearne's Right to Housing Bill, I think he is right that this is the reset needed #SpéirGorm Making housing a human right is the reset we need to succeed share.google/sSBy6dUinY7B...
share.google
Making housing a human right is the reset we need to succeed
A new Bill tomorrow puts the Housing Commission’s recommendation for a referendum back in the spotlight.
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Martine Brennan @saytheirnamesir.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
#Beoga #IrishTrad youtu.be/cT_d2qmnlHc?...
youtu.be
Beoga: Eochaid
YouTube video by beogamusic
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David Silkenat @davidsilkenat.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Happy to announce the launch of Elements in the History of the American South, new book series that I'm editing with @daviddoddington.bsky.social at @universitypress.cambridge.org.
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American Historical Association @historians.org · 30/09/2026
Academic freedom is central to the AHA’s work in support of historical scholarship and teaching. Explore AHA resources on academic freedom, its relationship to the First Amendment and freedom of expression, and its role in the historical discipline:
historians.org
Resources on Academic Freedom for Historians - AHA
On Academic Freedom About These Resources Principles of academic freedom are central to the American Historical Association's Statement on Standards of Professional Conduct and inform the Association'...
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Martine Brennan @saytheirnamesir.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
'We talk a lot about truth to power, but I think it’s actually a lot harder to speak truth to pain.' Abdul El-Sayed
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Caitlin G. DeAngelis @caitlindeangelis.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Gravestone of Pompey Brenton in God's Little Acre, Newport, RI, 1772 This stone was carved by John Stevens III, who carved many portrait stones in the 1770s, including several for Black Newporters like Pompey Brenton.
a lovely blue-gray slate stone with intricate foliate border and a portrait of a man with curled hair and wings in the tympanum. Inscription: In Memory of Pompey Brenton who died August the 5th AD 1772 ages about 55 Years
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Liz Loveland @lizlgenealogy.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
🗃️
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Duke University Press @dukepress.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Save 30% on #NewBook "The Afric-American Picture Gallery" by Britt Rusert, which examines William J. Wilson’s journalistic imagining of a museum that centers African Americans at a time when none existed. buff.ly/8b8fwac
Cover of The Afric-American Picture Gallery: William J. Wilson's Speculative Museum of Black Art by Britt Rusert. The cover features an installation resembling a Victorian picture display. Floral wallpaper holds framed historical photographs of various shapes. Two decorated tables flank the display and a small deer sculpture rests on the grass below. The title is in green serif at the top, with the author's name printed vertically in purple.
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Rebecca Solnit @rebeccasolnit.bsky.social · 07/06/2026
Meanwhile let me recommend David Morris's book on PTSD, The Evil Hours.
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Kevin M. Levin @civilwarmemory.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Wonderful news. Congratulations to everyone involved. www.popville.com/2026/09/the-...
popville.com
“The African American Civil War Memorial Museum Is Reopening!” - PoPville
"Dear PoPville, Some long awaited U Street Corridor news: After some delays, the African American Civil War Museum is finally reopening in its permanent home in the historic Grimke School, tomorrow We...
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Learotha Williams, Jr. PhD @learothawms.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
www.upworthy.com/how-the-sear...
upworthy.com
How the Sears catalog thwarted Jim Crow laws and empowered the civil rights movement
The catalog's impact on the "color tax" was unintentional, but powerful.
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jentrification ♎ @jentrification.com · 29/09/2026
New Jim Crow Museum opening on Ferris State University campus
woodtv.com
New Jim Crow Museum aims to offer understanding of racism
Ferris State University is preparing to open a new Jim Crow Museum this week, it’s motto to “witness, understand (and) heal” from the brutality of racism.
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Anna Gifty @itsafronomics.blacksky.app · 30/09/2026
One of the best analyses of what happened with Black women's employment was produced by @epi.org. They broke down where the job losses were (in the public sector, namely the federal government) and how those losses were offset.
epi.org
Black women suffered large employment losses in 2025—particularly among college graduates and public-sector workers
The 2025 labor market can best be characterized as faltering. The national unemployment rate climbed to its highest point in four years, job growth slowed dramatically, and federal employment fell by ...
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The EDU Ledger @theeduledger.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
A one-year admissions freeze at Temple University is raising urgent questions about the fate of the nation's first Black studies doctoral program.
theeduledger.com
Outrage Grows as Temple Halts Admissions to Nation's First Black Studies Ph.D. Program
A one-year admissions freeze at Temple University is raising urgent questions about the fate of a pioneering Black studies doctoral program.
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Charlie Angus @charlieangus104.bsky.social · 30/09/2025
Standing outside the gates of the Qu'Appelle Indian residential school.This a haunted dark place. A 5-year-old taken through these gates had a lower chance of survival than a Canadian soldier fighting in WW2. The red dress and the orange shirt hang on the gates. We remember #orangeshirtday
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Martine Brennan @saytheirnamesir.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
You are not alone in this Stephanie! When family names repeated over generations and slave-holders collide the research can be like untangling a ball of wool that the cat played with.
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Ali Messer @freereed59.net · 30/09/2026
#HistoryEducation
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Martine Brennan @saytheirnamesir.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
'For Edwina Harleston Whitlock, born in #CharlestonSouthCarolina, there is no doubt about her #Irish ancestry. She can trace her lineage through William Harleston (1804-1874) back to John Harleston of Dublin who arrived in Charleston about 1698.' irishdiasporahistory.wordpress.com/2021/06/06/c...
irishdiasporahistory.wordpress.com
Cousins? African American Irish and DNA insights.
Martine Brennan writes about her digital public history project, ‘Enslavement to Citizenship: African Americans in Irish Slaveholder Records, 1670-1862’ and the insights into the divers…
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Paul Murphy TD @paulmurphy.pbp.ie · 30/09/2026
The message to the FAI couldn't be clearer as they arrive at Leinster House. Stop the game!
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History at Queen's University Belfast @qubhistory.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
We have heard the very sad news that Nini Rodgers died yesterday, after a period spent in a nursing home. Her former colleagues in the School remember her fondly, while others will have known Nini through her ground-breaking research on the history of slavery and Ireland.
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Aoife O'Donoghue @aoifemod.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
We are mid way through #TheMorrigan's series for #InternationalSafeAbortion Day & these posts are showing the range of issues women consistently face when accessing abortions All area available here dflw.ie/how-to-join/
dflw.ie
The Morrigan Blog - Doing Feminist Legal Work
Named for the mythic Irish triple goddess, The Morrigan is a feminist blog, dedicated to exploring the ways in which gender and sexuality articulate with
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Liverpool University Press @livunipress.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Professor Stephen Small's book tour for Black Liverpool, 'The real thing': West African, West Indian and Afro-American culture at the end of the twentieth century kicks off tomorrow and runs throughout October, coinciding with #BlackHistoryMonth. Check out more of the details below!
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Martine Brennan @saytheirnamesir.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
#MargaretOwenOBE human rights barrister age 94 has been arrested for opposing genocide.
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Martine Brennan @saytheirnamesir.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
#JosephineStPierreRuffin www.nps.gov/people/josep...
nps.gov
Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin (U.S. National Park Service)
Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin: A "fighting spirit"
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Independent Historians Network (UK) @indyhistnetwork.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Just a quick reminder that you can join IHN for a bargain £10 a year which gets you access to our member only meet-ups and online events, our online resources, and a whole network of wonderful independent researchers! independenthistorians.org
independenthistorians.org
Independent Historians Network
The network for UK freelance and independent historians
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Physicians' Gallery @physiciansgallery.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
We've just launched a new digital resource! Almost 15,000 entries, covering every Fellow, Honorary Fellow, Member and Licentiate of our College from our foundation to 1926. Check it out 👉 www.rcpe.ac.uk/heritage/phy...
Promotional image. A composite image of nine doctors, text on image reads 'physicians database'
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Social Democrats @social-democrats.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Whether you’re commencing the work to rule today or not, we’re standing in solidarity with all public sector workers who have been utterly disrespected by this government with continued delays to public service pay talks. Gov must urgently engage with unions in negotiations to avoid escalation.
Solidarity 
With Nurses
special needs assistants
public servants 
social workers 
teachers
civil servants 
Firefighters
all workers
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University and College Union (UCU) @ucu.org.uk · 30/09/2026
Nottingham today. Everywhere tomorrow. 2,700 staff put at risk. 600+ jobs targeted. At least 48 courses facing closure. What happens here sets the template for the sector. Stand with Nottingham.
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Jay Roszman @jayroszman.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
If you are a first-time author of a book published in 2026 in Irish Studies (broadly conceived) do consider submitting it to the Donald Murphy Prize for Distinguished First Books. acisweb.org/murphy-prize/ Happy to answer any questions. #IrishStudies 🗃️
acisweb.org
Donald Murphy Prize for Distinguished First Book | American Conference for Irish Studies – An Chomhdháil Mheiriceánach do Léann na hÉireann
Don Murphy, husband of ACIS Past President Maureen Murphy, was born in Plainfield, New Jersey, and died in New York on March 2, 1986. He received his Bachelor of Electrical Engineering and Bachelor of...
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Radio Kerry @radiokerry.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
- Families of children who received apologies for deficient care by Kerry CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services) but who are excluded from compensation are taking legal action. Jerry speaks to their solicitor Keith Rolls. - This and more on Kerry Today sponsored by KWD Recycling. 3/
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Martine Brennan @saytheirnamesir.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Wonderful news! The great grandchildren of people from #Barbados can soon apply for citizenship by descent. jamradio.uk/index.php/ne...
jamradio.uk
Barbados reaffirms citizenship by descent for great-grandchildren of Bajans
Speaking to the diaspora in Toronto, Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley renewed her pledge to open Barbadian citizenship to the grandchildren and great-grandchildren of Bajans abroad, a change still...
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Martine Brennan @saytheirnamesir.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
#Graveltown #NewberrySouthCarolina
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Martine Brennan @saytheirnamesir.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
#AliceBall #DecolonisingChemistry
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Brian Groom @groomb.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Last day of this offer. Use the code AUTUMN40 at checkout.
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RTÉ News @news.rte.ie · 30/09/2026
Over 100,000 public sector workers in areas such as health, education and local authorities are beginning industrial action today in the form of a work-to-rule
rte.ie
Over 100,000 public sector workers begin work-to-rule
Over 100,000 public sector workers in areas such as health, education and local authorities are beginning industrial action today in the form of a work-to-rule.
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The Narwhal @thenarwhal.ca · 28/09/2026
More than 38,000 residential school survivors testified to the abuse they experienced as children. Next September, Canada plans to destroy their records.
thenarwhal.ca
Canada plans to destroy thousands of residential school testimonies. These women are trying to save them
The 38,000 testimonies are the largest body of evidence about children’s experiences in these institutions. Journalist Connie Walker and lawyer Kimberly Murray say losing it would mean losing history — both painful and illuminating
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Keri Leigh Merritt @kerileighmerritt.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Today is book release day!!! So thrilled that An Inconvenient Woman is finally out after years of research & writing. Thanks to everyone who has ordered or told their library to order - I truly appreciate you!♥️♥️♥️ @stmartinspress.bsky.social us.macmillan.com/books/978125...
us.macmillan.com
An Inconvenient Woman
A revelatory and immersive biography of a white Southern woman who was a key figure in the early civil rights movement, devoting her life to ending segregati...
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Liverpool Irish Festival @livirishfest.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
🕊️ This Thursday, Greg Quiery launches The Lost Streets of Scotland Road, exploring the streets, characters and stories of Liverpool’s Irish community. 📍 Vauxhall Neighbourhood Council 🗓 6pm, 24 Sept 🎟 Free, booking required
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Nightmareliner Ontario @mostlyharmless.northsky.social · 29/09/2026
What Abdul said. Every word.
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