Many CBH Talks were recorded. To view, visit the Center for Brooklyn History Talks YouTube channel at bklynlib.org/CBH-Talks.
Past Events
Trace/s Exhibition Tour
Come for a free curator-guided tour of the exhibition Trace/s: Family History Research and the Legacy of Slavery in Brooklyn.
Visitors will get an in-depth tour of the artwork and archival documents that make up the heart of this exhibition, and will get to explore the historical…
CBH Talk | “Capitalism and Its Critics” with John Cassidy and Doug Henwood
In his new book, Capitalism and Its Critics: A History from the Industrial Revolution to AI, The New Yorker’s John Cassidy traces 200 years of global capitalism through the voices of its most insightful and influential critics. At a time when technology, climate change, inequality,…
Opening the Archives: Exploring the CBH Collection - Building Research
One of the most common research topics at CBH is Brooklyn’s buildings. Join us for a hands-on workshop in the Othmer Library, led by urban data historian Jeremy Lechtzin and CBH archives manager Dee Bowers. This session will introduce you to four key collections used for building…
Trace/s Exhibition Tour
Come for a free curator-guided tour of the exhibition Trace/s: Family History Research and the Legacy of Slavery in Brooklyn.
Visitors will get an in-depth tour of the artwork and archival documents that make up the heart of this exhibition, and will get to explore the historical…
CBH Talk | Larry Racioppo’s Photographs of Loss and Remembrance in NYC
We all die. Rich and poor, famous and unknown, we all meet the same fate. Almost everyone is mourned, but the method can vary greatly.
Larry Racioppo, "Here Down On Dark Earth"
In Here Down On Dark Earth,…
CBH Talk | Claire Hoffman and Eliza Griswold Discuss “Sister, Sinner: The Miraculous Life and Mysterious Disappearance of Aimee Semple McPherson”
On a spring day in 1926, Aimee Semple McPherson wandered into the Pacific Ocean and vanished. The nation’s most famous evangelist, Aimee was known as a sophisticated marketer who had used Hollywood magic and the newest technology to bring her message to the masses. Although Aimee’s Pentecostal…
CBH Talk | The Divine Nine: The Origins and History of Black Greek-Letter Fraternities and Sororities
The Divine Nine, formally known as the National Pan-Hellenic Council, are nine historically Black Greek-letter fraternities and sororities that have played a pivotal role in shaping Black American life and culture. The first of these organizations, Alpha Phi Alpha, was founded in…
Trace/s Exhibition Tour
Come for a free curator-guided tour of the exhibition Trace/s: Family History Research and the Legacy of Slavery in Brooklyn.
Visitors will get an in-depth tour of the artwork and archival documents that make up the heart of this exhibition, and will get to explore the historical…
CBH Talk | Apology and Repair for Slavery: Grenada as a Case Study
To The People of Grenada
We, the undersigned, write to apologise for the actions of our ancestors in holding your ancestors in slavery…Slavery was and is a crime against humanity. Its damaging effects continue to the present day. …
Genealogy Workshop: Researching Your Family's Roots at the Center for Brooklyn History
Are you curious about researching your family's history, but don't know where to start? Have you watched television programs about exploring your roots, and wondered what a deep dive into your own family history might reveal? Have you always wanted to find the historical evidence behind the…
Trace/s Exhibition Tour
Come for a free curator-guided tour of the exhibition Trace/s: Family History Research and the Legacy of Slavery in Brooklyn.
Visitors will get an in-depth tour of the artwork and archival documents that make up the heart of this exhibition, and will get to explore the historical…
Trace/s Exhibition Tour
Come for a free curator-guided tour of the exhibition Trace/s: Family History Research and the Legacy of Slavery in Brooklyn.
Visitors will get an in-depth tour of the artwork and archival documents that make up the heart of this exhibition, and will get to explore the historical…
Poets in the Archive
CBH’s special collections are a treasure trove of inspiration. In celebration of Poetry Month, we invited eight accomplished poets to explore our archives in search of creative sparks. Delving into a range of subjects—from local wildlife and the built environment to Brooklyn’s LGBTQ+…
Trace/s Exhibition Tour
Come for a free curator-guided tour of the exhibition Trace/s: Family History Research and the Legacy of Slavery in Brooklyn.
Visitors will get an in-depth tour of the artwork and archival documents that make up the heart of this exhibition, and will get to explore the historical…
CBH Talk | Jeanne Theoharis and Eddie Glaude Discuss “King of the North: Martin Luther King Jr.’s Life Struggle Outside the South”
Just when you thought you knew everything about Martin Luther King Jr., historian Jeanne Theoharis proves you wrong. In a radical reframing of King’s life and work, Theoharis’ new book King of the North: Martin Luther King Jr.’s Life of Struggle Outside the South redirects our…
Trace/s Exhibition Tour
Come for a free curator-guided tour of the exhibition Trace/s: Family History Research and the Legacy of Slavery in Brooklyn.
Visitors will get an in-depth tour of the artwork and archival documents that make up the heart of this exhibition, and will get to explore the historical…
CBH Talk | Russell Shorto and Andrea Mosterman Discuss “Taking Manhattan”
Join us for an evening with master storyteller and historian Russell Shorto as he discusses his latest book, Taking Manhattan: The Extraordinary Events that Created New York and Shaped America. Building on his acclaimed The Island at the Center of the World, Shorto delves into the…
Trace/s Exhibition Tour
Come for a free curator-guided tour of the exhibition Trace/s: Family History Research and the Legacy of Slavery in Brooklyn.
Visitors will get an in-depth tour of the artwork and archival documents that make up the heart of this exhibition, and will get to explore the historical…
CBH Talk | Discussing “Waterworks,” Stanley Greenberg’s Photographs of New York’s Hidden Water System
This program is offered in partnership with Open House New York.
We take our water for granted; turn on the tap and it’s there. Yet New York City’s faucets are endpoints in a journey through a vast, sophisticated, and visually humbling infrastructure of aqueducts,…
CBH Talk | Elie Mystal and Christina Greer Discuss “Bad Law”
In Bad Law, Elie Mystal, author of the New York Times bestseller Allow Me To Retort: A Black Guy’s Guide to the Constitution, brings his legal acumen and signature snark to take down ten of what he considers the most awful laws on the books today. Join us as he explains how laws…
CBH Talk | Noliwe Rooks and Sonya Douglass Discuss “Integrated: How American Schools Failed Black Children”
Noliwe Rooks is one of the most admired scholars in education today. In her new book, Integrated: How American Schools Failed Black Children,” she traces four generations of her own family’s educational journey to challenge the idea that integration was a boon for Black children.…
Screening and Discussion of “The Cost of Inheritance”
Emmy nominee and Peabody Award-winning filmmaker Yoruba Richen shares and discusses her one-hour documentary, “The Cost of Inheritance,” which follows the long journey of individuals and communities seeking to make reparations a reality on the personal, local, and national levels.…
Trace/s Exhibition Tour
Come for a free curator-guided tour of the exhibition Trace/s: Family History Research and the Legacy of Slavery in Brooklyn.
Visitors will get an in-depth tour of the artwork and archival documents that make up the heart of this exhibition, and will get to explore the historical…
CBH Talk | Elaine Weiss and Rashawn Davis Discuss “Spell Freedom: The Underground Schools that Built the Civil RIghts Movement”
As we approach the 60th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act, join us for a look at an under-recognized program that laid the foundation for the voting activism of the mid-1960s. In the summer of 1954, just weeks after the Supreme Court’s Brown v. Board of Ed decision, four courageous…
CBH Talk | Martha Jones and Nikole Hannah-Jones Discuss “The Trouble of Color”
Prize-winning historian Martha Jones has authored books about slavery, the Civil War, Reconstruction, women’s suffrage, Jim Crow, and the modern Civil Rights Movement. But her newest work, The Trouble of Color: An American Family Memoir, is altogether different. A deeply personal…
CBH Talk | What to Save? Landmarks for a New New York
Sixty years ago New York City passed the NYC Landmarks Law, designed to protect the city’s historic and architectural heritage. Today the Landmarks Preservation Commission ensures the future of more than 38,000 buildings in five boroughs, along with scenic landmarks like Prospect Park…
CBH Talk | Collecting + Care: Exploring the BLK MKT Vintage Vault
The awe. The wonder. The quest. The adventure.~ Jannah and Kiyanna Handy, BLK MKT Vintage: Reclaiming Objects and Curiosities That Tell Black Stories
Jannah and Kiyanna Handy, owners of BLK MKT Vintage and authors of BLK MKT Vintage: Reclaiming Objects and…
CBH Talk | Green Gentrification and the Future of the BQE
This program is offered in partnership with the Institute for Public Architecture and the Brooklyn Heights Association.
When Robert Moses built the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway (BQE), he demolished historic neighborhoods, disrupted thriving communities, and displaced…
Trace/s Exhibition Tour
Come for a free curator-guided tour of the exhibition Trace/s: Family History Research and the Legacy of Slavery in Brooklyn.
Visitors will get an in-depth tour of the artwork and archival documents that make up the heart of this exhibition, and will get to explore the historical…
Just Conversations | Voices from New York State’s Reparations Commission
About Just ConversationsJust Conversations is a series co-presented by the Center for Brooklyn History and Brooklyn Org that brings into dialogue issues facing our borough, city, and society and gives voice to the change makers who move us towards a more equitable future.This program is the second…
CBH Talk | The Honorable Ed Towns in Conversation with Deputy Borough President Kim Council
For five decades former Congressman Ed Towns stood at the center of Brooklyn change as the first African American Deputy Borough president (1976 - 1982) and U.S. Representative for New York’s 10th congressional district (1983 - 2013). Representing historically Black neighborhoods…
CBH Talk | Judith Giesberg Discusses “Last Seen: The Enduring Search by Formerly Enslaved People to Find Their Lost Families”
Join historian Judith Giesberg for a discussion of her groundbreaking book, Last Seen: The Enduring Search by Formerly Enslaved People to Find Their Lost Families, which brings to light the resilient efforts of formerly enslaved people to reunite with family members torn apart by…
Kiss & Paste: A Valentine Collaging Party
Are you cut out for love? Then get ready to create Valentines with vintage vibes!
We’ve curated a romantic selection of images from the CBH collection to help you bring your vision to life. Whether your masterpiece is for a crush, a bestie, or just for fun, join…
CBH Talk | Joining the Clubs: Inside the Ethnic Power Centers of 1960s Brooklyn Politics
In 1960s and 70s Brooklyn, the borough's political clubs were the temples of political power. Decisions made in those halls reshaped the borough’s political structures in ways that cleaved along racial and ethnic lines, specifically Irish, Jewish, and Black. Perceived threats became…
New York City History Day Virtual Drop-in Office Hour
Virtual drop-in to talk to the New York City History Day Coordinator about your History Day project. Get one-on-one help with registration, brainstorming, research, and more! Open to all students and teachers. Zoom link will be sent on the day of the office hour to those who've registered.
CBH’s Brooklyn Trivia Showdown
Think you know Brooklyn history? Well, it’s time to put that to the test at CBH’s Brooklyn Trivia Showdown! From the rise of the Brooklyn Bridge to the rise of Brooklyn pizza, we’ve got the iconic moments, quirky facts, and bizarre tidbits that make this borough the cultural…
A Symposium: The Value of Debate
In these troubling times of people shouting down one another and turning a closed mind to one another's beliefs, it is important to discover the value of debate in a democracy.
Join us…
Just Conversations | Reparations in New York City: A Path Toward Justice and Equity
Pictured: Slave Bill of Sale "for a Negro Wench Pegg" from George Van Brunt to Andrew Cropsey, 1797
In September 2024, four New York City elected officials introduced a series of groundbreaking bills aimed at advancing reparations for Black New Yorkers seeking to…
New York City History Day Virtual Drop-in Office Hour
Virtual drop-in to talk to the New York City History Day Coordinator about your History Day project. Get one-on-one help with registration, brainstorming, research, and more! Open to all students and teachers. Zoom link will be sent on the day of the office hour to those who've registered.
CBH Talk | Progress and Preservation: Atlantic Avenue End-to-End
This program is offered in partnership with the Municipal Art Society (MAS), as part of its Enduring Culture Initiative
Atlantic Avenue is one of the most critical corridors in our city. The sole east-west truck route through Brooklyn, it also bifurcates…
CBH Talk | David Campbell and Jarrod Shanahan Discuss “City Time: On Being Sentenced to Rikers Island”
David Campbell and Jarrod Shanahan both served sentences at Rikers. In their book City Time they offer an unvarnished account of the banality and brutality of incarceration at New York City’s notorious jail.
Campbell and Shanahan reconstruct the daily realities…
CBH Talk | The Battle for School Integration in the North
In 1974, two decades after Brown v. Board of Education, another Supreme Court decision – Milliken v. Bradley - effectively brought a halt to school desegregation across the North, shattering 20 years of progress towards equal education for all. The lawsuit, filed by the National…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free curator-guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together…
CBH Talk | Glenn Adamson Discusses “A Century of Tomorrows: How Imagining the Future Shapes the Present”
What’s next? For millennia, predicting the future was the province of priests, prophets, astrologers, and seers. Then in the twentieth century futurologists emerged claiming that data and design could make planning a rational certainty. Cultural historian Glenn Adamson writes about…
CBH Talk | Zinga Fraser and Jeanne Theoharis Discuss “Shirley Chisholm: In Her Own Words”
Join us for a discussion with Dr. Zinga A. Fraser, whose new book Shirley Chisholm in Her Own Words, offers a long-overdue opportunity to read the congresswoman’s powerful words for ourselves. Chisholm’s speeches and writings on education, racism, women's rights, civil rights, and…
CBH Discussion | Reflections on the Religious Poetry of Jupiter Hammon
Jupiter Hammon was born into slavery in 1711 on the Long Island estate of Henry Lloyd. In 1760 he became one of the earliest if not the very first African-American to be published when his poem, An Evening Thought, appeared in print. Hammon was a devout Christian. His writings…
Center for Brooklyn History, Virtual Lunch and Learn-Exploring the Henry Lloyd Ledgers
Historical ledgers are often used in research and can provide information about accounts and financial transactions, including sales, purchases, amounts, names of account holders and even how the items were transported. Join us for a virtual lunch and learn, exploring historical ledgers, how to…
CBH Talk | Still Here, HIV/AIDS
December 1 is World AIDS Day, a time of solidarity for people around the world who are affected by Human Immunodeficiency Virus or HIV - and a time for all of us to reckon with its long legacy. Almost 40 million live with the virus, 1.3 million acquired it in 2023, and 630,000 people…
CBH Talk | Celebrating New York’s Ancestors of Latino Poetry: A Conversation and Performance
The work of New York poets José Martí, Salomón de la Selva, Julia de Burgos, Lourdes Casal, and Clemente Soto Vélez has shaped today’s thriving Latino Poetic tradition and our understanding of what it means to be American. These revolutionary voices represent a range of Latin American…
CBH Talk | Tommy Silk Discusses "Hidden Landmarks of New York" with Barry Bordelon of the Brownstone Boys
New York is a city of landmarks – more than 37,000 of them. Visitors and New Yorkers alike walk by hundreds of these landmarks daily, often never knowing the rich history behind them. One of these New Yorkers, Tommy Silk, has been photographing and chronicling one landmarked building…
Teaching with Primary Sources: The Brooklyn Connections Program — An Election Day Professional Development for Educators
Please join us for our Election Day professional development workshop, "Teaching with Primary Sources: The Brooklyn Connections Program." This day-long event serves as an introduction to CBH Education’s signature archival education program. Participants will learn strategies for teaching with…
The Salon at CBH, Curated by Nikole Hannah-Jones
We’re thrilled by the overwhelming response to the Salon. Please understand that we expect a full house. If we reach capacity our staff will admit as space becomes available. We appreciate your patience and understanding as we work to ensure a great experience for all.
…
CBH Workshop | Exploring the Archives with Historian Prithi Kanakamedala
How do historians approach the vitally important work of conducting research in an archive? Where do they start? What is the process? And for those researching under-documented peoples and topics, how do they solve for the silences in the archives?
Join historian…
NYCHD 2025: Crafting an Argument
In this virtual workshop we will learn about how to turn our research into a historical argument. We will discuss what a thesis statement is and how to write our own. Come ready with a topic and questions the NYCHD Coordinator!
Open to all NYC teachers and students. Teachers will be…
CBH Talk | Mourning and Adorning: Woven Hair Jewelry and Victorian Mourning Traditions
Mourning jewelry – jewelry created to remember deceased loved ones – dates back to the Middle Ages, but its popularity in Western Europe reached a peak with Queen Victoria whose mourning customs following Prince Albert’s death were imitated throughout Britain and beyond. In addition…
CBH Talk | Uncrusted! A David and Goliath Story of Patents, Pizza, and the Invention of Stuffed Crusts
What better way to pay tribute to October's Pizza Month than by spending an evening with Anthony “The Big Cheese” Mongiello, whose David and Goliath fight with Pizza Hut over who owns the idea for Stuffed Crust Pizza played out three decades ago, and continues to be an…
CBH Talk | Indigenous Languages at the Brink
The violent history of erasing First Nations language and culture, and decades of assimilation, threaten to end once and for all the rich linguistic heritage of Native Americans. Language is critical to keeping Indigenous cultural heritage alive. Language is inseparable from cultural…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free curator-guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together…
NYCHD 2025: Beginning your Research
In this virtual workshop we will learn about the stages of research and how to find sources for your History Day Project. We'll discuss the many kinds of questions researchers ask and the many places they look for answers. Come ready with a topic and questions the NYCHD Coordinator!
Open…
Fall Educator Open House
The Center for Brooklyn History invites teachers and educators to our Fall Educator Open House! Unwind from your Wednesday with drinks and snacks while learning about the many ways that CBH can support you and your students throughout the year in our beautiful, landmarked building in Brooklyn…
CBH Talk | The Meaning of Everyday Places
Much of the work of being human happens in everyday places.~ Dr. Gabrielle Bendiner-Viani
Sometimes the places we take most for granted are the heart and soul of our communities. For two decades Gabrielle Bendiner-Viani has studied the…
CBH Talk | The Remarkable Story of Brooklyn’s Nineteenth Century Free Black Communities
The widely held belief that New York was one of the first states to abolish slavery is a myth. In fact, New York was almost the last Northern state to put slavery to an end. Brooklynites, with their farming economy, were especially vested in the perpetuation of enslaved labor. That…
NYCHD 2025: Choosing a Topic
In this virtual workshop we will consider how to choose a topic for this year's History Day theme, "Rights and Responsibilities in History." Come ready with ideas and questions the NYCHD Coordinator!
Open to all NYC teachers and students. Teachers will be eligible for 1 CTLE credit. This…
CBH Talk | “Excited Delirium: Race, Police Violence, and the Invention of a Disease” with Aisha Beliso-De Jesús and Elizabeth Hinton
“Excited delirium syndrome” is a controversial medical diagnosis often used in cases of police encounters that end in sudden death, especially those involving Black and Brown people. It was famously used by Derek Chauvin’s legal defense team to justify his killing of George Floyd.…
Introduction to History Day 2025
In this virtual workshop we will discuss what you need to know to enter the 2025 History Day contest and learn more about the theme "Rights and Responsibilities in History." Bring any questions you have for a Q&A with our NYCHD Coordinator!
Open to all NYC teachers and students.…
CBH Talk | NYC’s Jewel Streets and the Hazards of Climate Change
For decades New York City has neglected a twelve-block area that lies on the border of East New York, Brooklyn and Lindenwood, Queens. It’s known as “The Jewel Streets” for the street names Ruby, Emerald, Amber and Sapphire.
Built on low-lying wetlands, lacking…
New York City History Day Kickoff & Info Session
Brooklyn Public Library’s Center for Brooklyn History (CBH) is the host of NYC History Day! NYCHD 2025 is the regional contest for National History Day (NHD). New York City middle and high schoolers get to do original research on a historical topic of their choice and make their own exhibition,…
CBH Talk | “The Presidents and the People” with Corey Brettschneider and Alexis Coe
History shows that American presidents have often pushed the boundaries established for them by the Constitution. In The Presidents and the People: Five Leaders Who Threatened Democracy and the Citizens Who Fought to Defend It, Brown University politics and constitutional law…
CBH Talk | David Rohde and Timothy Naftali Discuss “Where Tyranny Begins: The Justice Department, the FBI, and the War of Democracy”
In Where Tyranny Begins, two-time Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist David Rohde investigates the strategies Donald Trump systematically used to turn the country’s two most powerful law-enforcement agencies into his personal political weapons.
Over the course of…
CBH Talk | Arlie Russell Hochschild and Matthew Desmond Discuss “Stolen Pride: Loss, Shame, and the Rise of the Right”
In Stolen Pride, National Book Award finalist and bestselling author Arlie Russell Hochschild travels to Appalachia where she focuses her sharp analytical eye on a group that confounds many Americans seeking to understand how one can simultaneously believe in democracy and support Donald Trump –…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
CBH Talk | The Embattled University
As the new academic year starts, join three former and current higher education leaders for a conversation about the crises and controversies on campuses across the country.Nicholas B. Dirks, veteran university administrator at both the University of California Berkeley and…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
CBH Talk | From the West Indies to Eastern Parkway: Caribbean Migration and Diaspora in Brooklyn
Just as the Great Migration brought waves of African-Americans from the South to the North, a parallel migration with as important an impact came from Afro-Caribbeans moving to the US from the island nations of Jamaica, the Bahamas, Trinidad and Tobego, Haiti, Cuba, the Dominican…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
Collage with our Collection!
We supply images of historic Brooklyn maps. You bring your creative touch! Join us for an evening of conversation and collage-making inspired by the Center for Brooklyn History’s incomparable Brooklyn map collection. We’ll have copies of some of our favorite Brooklyn maps dating as…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
CBH Talk | “We Refuse: A Forceful History of Black Resistance” with Kellie Carter Jackson and Lauren N. Williams
In We Refuse: A Forceful History of Black Resistance, historian Kellie Carter Jackson presents a radical reframing of Black resistance, exploring the many forms of activism employed against white supremacy over centuries, and offering a fundamental corrective to the historical record.…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
CBH Talk | “Treating Violence” with Rob Gore and Marlon Peterson
Dr. Rob Gore has worked in the Emergency Department of Kings County Hospital for almost 20 years. He knows all too well the violence that plagues Brooklyn’s youth, especially its youth of color.
Gore is the visionary behind Kings Against Violence Initiative (…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
CBH Talk | Jane Kamensky and Cynthia Carr Discuss “Candida Royalle and the Sexual Revolution”
In her book, Candida Royalle and the Sexual Revolution, acclaimed historian Jane Kamensky chronicles an improbable twentieth-century heroine and offers an entirely new understanding of the so-called sexual revolution.Candida Royalle was a porn star and cofounder of the feminist…
CBH Talk | Dana Mattioli and Emily Glazer Discuss “The Everything War”
The Everything War: Amazon’s Ruthless Quest to Own the World and Remake Corporate Power is the shocking exposé of Amazon’s endless strategic greed and pursuit of total domination.
In this business thriller and inside story, Wall Street Journal reporter Dana Mattioli…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
Pride Month, Music and a Movie!
CBH celebrates Pride Month and Brooklyn with this cabaret-style performance and screening!Join the incomparable Brooklyn-based drag artist Ella Fartzgerald, followed by the 2014 documentary “We Came to Sweat: The Legend of Starlite” for an…
CBH Talk | Voices of Venezuela: Art, Politics, and Survival in the Heart of Crisis
Once a beacon of prosperity in South America, Venezuela's rich tapestry has dramatically shifted. Today, it faces one of the largest displacement crises in the world. Join us for a compelling evening as we delve into the stories behind over 7 million Venezuelans who have left their…
Brooklyn Zine-In: Make Zines, Make History
Whatcha mean, What's a ZINE? A zine is a self-created and self-published work. Typically made using Do-It-Yourself methods of collage, drawing, stamping, and using found materials. Zines can be about anything and can be made by anyone!
Join us in partnership with Booklyn, Inc. for a…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
CBH Talk | Frank Barry and Morgan Pehme Discuss “Back Roads and Better Angels.” Special Musical Guest Xavier Cardriche.
In his new book, Back Roads and Better Angels: A Journey into the Heart of American Democracy, Frank Barry gives a captivating, unvarnished, and deeply thoughtful account of his road trip across America, sharing his on the ground, first hand observations about the tensions that pull…
CBH Talk | Transforming Cancer Survival for All: A Conversation with Bruce Ratner and Errol Louis
Despite tens of billions of dollars spent on research and treatment, cancer remains the number two killer in the United States. Not surprisingly, it’s people of color, along with poor and rural patients, who die from this disease the most.
In his book, Early Detection…
Meet Up: NYC Neighborhood Oral History Projects Summer Social
Doing a local history project in New York City? This event, co-hosted by the Oral History Association, Oral History in the Mid-Atlantic Region, the Queens Memory Project, and Columbia University's Oral History MA program, provides the space for you to come meet people from other neighborhood…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
CBH Talk | Voices from New Netherlands: Unsealing the Vrooman Letters
The Dutch scholar Frans R.E. Blom had an experience that every historian dreams of. He was the first to open and read sealed documents of historic significance that were centuries old – in his case letters written by Dutch migrants newly settled in the colony of New Netherlands. The…
Just Conversations | Making NYC Home: The Trials and Triumphs of Asylum Seekers and Migrants
About Just ConversationsJust Conversations is a series co-presented by the Center for Brooklyn History and Brooklyn Org that brings into dialogue issues facing our borough, city, and society and gives voice to the change makers who move us towards a more equitable future. Tonight we are joined by…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
Mapping Memory: The Legacy of Slavery, Abolition, and Freedom in Brooklyn
In Brooklyn, the history of slavery, abolition, and freedom is all around us: not just in museums and historic houses, but in the names of our streets and even the soil beneath our feet. In this professional development workshop, educators are invited to uncover the (sometimes buried) history of…
CBH Talk | The Brownstone Boys and "For the Love of Renovating"
In 2018, Barry Bordelon and Jordan Slocum bought a 130 year-old Brooklyn brownstone and blogged about the trials and triumphs of renovation under the byline “the Brownstone Boys.” The upshot was a devoted following of fellow renovators, a thriving restoration business, and now – a book!…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
CBH Talk | Elizabeth Gloucester, The Most Powerful Black Woman Lost to History
Co-presented by the Center for Brooklyn History and The Brooklyn Heights Association
Elizabeth Gloucester, was born into slavery in 1817 in Richmond, Virginia. When she died in Brooklyn Heights six decades later, the Brooklyn Eagle described her as “the wealthiest colored…
CBH Talk | Natalie Foster and Tressie McMillan Cottom Discuss “The Guarantee”
The Guarantee asks us to imagine an America where housing, health care, a college education, dignified work, family care, an inheritance, and an income floor are not only attainable by all but guaranteed, by our government, for everyone.
But isn’t this pie-in-the-sky…
I See My Light Shining: Baldwin-Emerson Elders Project Launch
Join the Emerson Collective and Columbia University in-person at the Center for Brooklyn History for the launch event of "I See My Light Shining: The Baldwin-Emerson Elders Project." This event is hosted by the Baldwin-Emerson Elders Project and will feature a collection of oral testimonies…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
CBH Talk | Severe Mental Illness: Our Collective Response and Responsibility
Jonathan Rosen’s acclaimed book, The Best Minds: A Story of Friendship, Madness, and the Tragedy of Good Intentions, has helped move the needle on our understanding of severe mental illness and the ways that society -- at the governmental, medical, and individual levels -- has failed…
CBH Talk | Blackface Minstrelsy and the Racial Foundation of American Musical Culture
In his new book, Blacksound: Making Race and Popular Music in the United States, musicologist Matthew Morrison unpacks the political legacy of blackface minstrelsy, showing not only how blackness was commodified by white people as popular entertainment during the nineteenth century,…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
CBH Talk | Ari Berman and Chris Hayes Discuss “Minority Rule”
As the United States moves steadily towards a majority-minority future, time and time again the white conservative minority has effectively pushed back representative democracy through voter suppression, election subversion, legislative power grabs, immigration restrictions,…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
CBH Talk | Exploring “The White Bonus” with Tracie McMillan and Darrick Hamilton
White Bonus is the money white people receive or save when racism works in their favor. In her new book, The White Bonus: Five Families and the Cash Value of Racism in America, Tracie McMillan asks a pressing question: If racism denies people of color so much, just how much does it…
Celebrating Brooklyn Poets, Past and Present
Dip into the Center for Brooklyn History’s collection and you will find a vast range of poetry. There are works by household names like Walt Whitman, Jean-Michel Basquiat, and Marianne Moore, as well as hundreds, perhaps thousands, of poems by writers whose works live in the nooks and…
University Open Air: In Search of Lyricism
In lyric works, emotions are expressed through imagery, musicality, rhythm. Hence, reading and watching lyric works is a highly enjoyable experience. Yet, as the mermaids’ song, lyricism can draw us in to better drown us in what we’d turn away from: pain, grief, injustice, or our daily life.…
University Open Air: Conferencia: Mapa Sonoro de la Música Salsa en Nueva York. En Español
La lectura se realizará en español como un homenaje a todxs lxs inmigrantes afrocaribeñxs que llegaron a Nueva York en los años cuarenta y que, con su cultura y nostalgia por su tierra, crearon la música Salsa. Los participantes en esta conferencia recibirán el magazín Sursystem 08 en español, y…
University Open Air: Creative Calligraphy & Ink Wash Workshop
Traditional Chinese is the written script used in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Macau. In this interactive workshop, we will practice, write and discuss select characters in ink. Then, channel your creativity by integrating calligraphy into personalized ink wash paintings. Choose themes inspired by…
University Open Air: Beauty and Ugliness in French and Francophone literature and the Arts
French society’s obsession with taste shows up in many areas. We will examine some laudatory and critical devices used in some emblematic works to present the concept of beauty and ugliness, starting from XVII century literature and visual arts to arrive in modern times. Works from Madame de…
University Open Air: Healing: Ancient Tibetan Chod Healing Cleansing Negativities and Restoring Positivities
Chöd means “to cut.” Suffering that we human experience arises mainly through grasping at self and self-cherishing attitude. Cutting through this self-grasping and self-cherishing attitude is the main goal of Chöd practice. Chöd…
University Open Air: Chinese Tea Ceremony
Chinese Tea Ceremony has rich history and different forms. Depending on the regions, we have various types of ceremonies. In today's ceremony, I will perform one of the authentic ways, to show you the beauty of it. Let's enjoy the ceremony; watch the tea leaves blooming; smell and taste good…
University Open Air: Transform Your Life in one Week with Mystic Breathing, Meditation, and Healing Yogas
In this session, we will teach the body posture and four characteristics of mystic breathing first. Then we will learn to feel the mystic breathing. Then we will learn to feel the subtle sensations in our body…
University Open Air: Sound Map of Salsa Music in New York. In English
In this lecture, you will explore the origins of salsa music in the South Bronx through its sound and its connection to the territory. You will discover the people who created the new genre from the traditional Latin music brought to NYC by the Caribbean immigrants who settled in the Bronx from…
University Open Air: Unlocking Subconscious Potential: Empowering Emotional Wellness and Stress Management
In this dynamic session, you will explore the transformative power of your subconscious mind. Gain insights into fostering emotional resilience, managing stress, and unlocking your inner potential for greater well-being in just one empowering lecture.
University Open Air: Mind Training: How to Deal with Destructive Emotions. Tibetan Buddhist Psychology and Methods
Students will learn some simple and effective methods on how to deal with negative emotions, particularly useful for when we are overwhelmed by those feelings.
…
University Open Air: AI for Everyone
The headlines are filled with news about Artificial Intelligence (AI), making it difficult to separate hype from reality. AI presents many opportunities as well as challenges for our communities. It can help us solve complex problems, but it can also displace jobs and harm our civil rights if…
University Open Air: Tibetan Yoga: The Five Movements for Balancing the Five Elements in our Bodies
Learn five standing yoga movements that release tensions and blockages in our gross body and subtle energy channels. Physical movement, breath, and awareness are coordinated to harmonize our body, energy, and mind. These five movements especially open…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
University Open Air: Making Music from our Surroundings
How can we make music drawing inspiration from our daily lives? Can we translate into sound what we observe in, for instance, a tarot card or a painting? What lies behind notes and rhythm? In the past few decades, musicians have been exploring alternative ways to compose and perform…
University Open Air: What’s in the day to day?
*This is a two-part class--participants are welcome to attend either or both.
Part one is a conversation seen through the work of female artists and writers about all that surrounds us on our day to day. We’ll talk about our approach to the expected and predictable; our home, our work,…
University Open Air: Healing: Meditation on the Three-Syllable Mantra. A Simple Method of Healing Oneself and Others
The power of mantra is beyond our imagination, so is visualization. The combination of mantra recitation and visualization is more powerful. For centuries the three-syllable mantra meditation practice has been one of the key practices…
University Open Air: Yoga Training: Seven Pranayamas for Optimum Physical and Mental Wellbeing
We will explore the intricacies of pranayama (breathing technique), including breathing mechanisms, natural breathing patterns, and some profound benefits of these ancient practices. You will learn about body posture and experience the…
Inspired by Brooklyn | Music and a Movie
Singer-songwriter Tsebiyah Mishael Derry performs, followed by a screening of the 1980 film Brighton Beach, introduced by filmmaker Susan Wittenberg.About "Inspired by Brooklyn"
The Brooklyn vibe is in the room at this cabaret-style series presented in connection with CBH’s…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
Just Conversations: Medical Racism, An Issue of Life and Death
About Just ConversationsJust Conversations is a series co-presented by the Center for Brooklyn History and Brooklyn Org that brings into dialogue injustices in our borough, city, and society and gives voice to the change makers who move us towards a more equitable future. First up: Medical Racism.…
CBH Talk | Could It Happen Here? America's Illiberal History, Fascism, and the Thin Line Between Them
To view a livestream of this program, please go to this link.Throughout America’s history an illiberal strain of political thought has existed within our democratic society, argues Pulitzer-Prize winning historian Steven Hahn in his new book Illiberal America. We see it today in White…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
Professional Development: Understanding School Segregation Through Archival Sources with Miseducation Podcast
The Center for Brooklyn History and the creators of the Miseducation podcast are excited to present a professional development workshop for teachers about school segregation in NYC - past and present. This year marks the 70th anniversary of the Brown V. Board decision, and yet New York City…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
Inspired by Brooklyn | Music and a Movie
Tonight! Jazz violinist Kensuke Shoji performs, followed by a screening of the 2008 film A Hole in a Fence, introduced by filmmaker D. W. Young. About "Inspired by Brooklyn"The Brooklyn vibe is in the room at this cabaret-style series presented in connection with CBH’s…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
Inspired by Brooklyn | Music and a Movie
Singer-songwriter Zoe Tan performs, followed by a screening of the 2013 film Flex is Kings, introduced by filmmakers Michael Beach Nichols and Deidre Schoo.About "Inspired by Brooklyn"
The Brooklyn vibe is in the room at this cabaret-style series presented in connection with CBH’s…
CBH Talk | Carol Kino and Laura Raicovich Discuss “Double Click”
Join us for the launch of Carol Kino’s new book, Double Click: Twin Photographers in the Golden Age of Magazines. Kino portrays the McLaughlin sisters, the identical twin photographers who blazed new trails for women in the 1930s and 40s. While celebrated in their time as stars in their fields,…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
Mapping the Archive with Artist Erin Johnson
Join artist Erin Johnson, former resident at Pioneer Works, in this two-session workshop - on Saturday, February 24 and Sunday, February 25, from 1:00 to 3:00 PM - that explores how to expand your creative practice using the Center for Brooklyn History’s extensive archives and…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
CBH Talk | Eric Klinenberg and Nell Freudenberger Discuss “2020”
Join us for a deep dive into the profound ways that the year 2020 saw our world shift, at the launch of the new book 2020: One City, Seven People, and the Year Everything Changed. Written by Eric Klinenberg, sociologist and director of New York University’s Institute for Public Knowledge,…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together this exhibition…
CBH Talk | The Legacy of The East, Brooklyn's Center of Black Self-Determination
In 1969, following the Black-led effort to bring community control to schools in Ocean Hill-Brownsville, educator and activist Jitu Weusi and others founded The East, a groundbreaking, pan-African center rooted in the philosophy that Black people have the right to control their own communities…
Brooklyn Is... Exhibition Tour
Come for a free curator-guided tour of the exhibition Brooklyn Is...!
Visitors will get an interactive look at the photographs, maps, and community reflections that make up the heart of this exhibition, as well as a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the process of putting together…
CBH Talk | Protecting Children on the Internet
Join us for an insightful and crucial discussion on child online safety and privacy, featuring State Senator Andrew Gounardes, Attorney General Tish James, and founder of the #HalfTheStory Project Larissa May. Moderated by New York Times columnist Michelle Goldberg, the panel will delve into the…
CBH Talk | Centering Voices of Rikers
This program will be livestreamed here.
The Rikers Public Memory Project has collected oral histories from those impacted by Rikers since 2018. These first-hand accounts paint a picture of how Rikers has changed lives and communities, in ways that only eye-witnesses can. As New York…
The Salon at CBH | Curated by Molly Crabapple
Please note that this program has reached its registration capacity! We invite you to come on the 19th with the understanding that entry is space-permitting. Thank you!
Join us for CBH’s inaugural Salon, a curated party of music, poetry, conversation, tarot card readings,…
CBH Talk | The Glitter and Concrete Show: A Night of Drag History and Performance
Drag history is New York history is American history, and on January 11 the Center for Brooklyn History brings you all three! Join us for an evening featuring readings from Elyssa Maxx Goodman’s new book Glitter and Concrete: A Cultural History of Drag in New York City, with drag…
Karaoke at CBH
Join us for a karaoke session where you can sing your favorite songs in a safe and supportive space. We will provide all necessary equipment, including a microphone, lyric display monitor, and a catalog of songs to choose from. All ages are welcome!
Authors in the Afternoon | Rob Eschmann and Heba Gowayed Discuss “When the Hood Comes Off”
PLEASE NOTE: Jelani Cobb, originally scheduled to moderate this discussion, is unable to attend. We're grateful to Heba Gowayed for stepping in. AUTHORS IN THE AFTERNOON is CBH’s daytime series of book talks. Programs are followed by informal conversation with the author.…
CBH Talk | How Barbra Sees Herself: Discussing Streisand’s Memoir
Barbra Streisand’s newly released memoir, My Name is Barbra, clocks in at 992 pages. Famously in control of her own narrative, this long-awaited memoir gives unprecedented insight into one of Brooklyn’s most renowned daughters.
Join us as three cultural observers analyze,…
CBH Talk | Brooklyn Miniaturists
Danny Cortes, Aaron Kinard, and Jack Giambanco have many things in common. They are all longtime Brooklynites, all self-taught artists whose passion for making miniatures took hold in just the last few years, and all make work that represents Brooklyn in stunningly intricate detail. Join them in…
CBH Talk | Isaac Butler and Zoe Kazan Discuss “The Method”
Join director and culture writer Isaac Butler and actress Zoe Kazan for a spirited conversation about the history of Method acting and its impact on American culture. Butler is the author of The Method: How the Twentieth Century Learned to Act. Kazan is the granddaughter of Elia Kazan, co-…
CANCELLED - CBH Talk | What’s in a Name? A Screening and Discussion of the Short Documentary “Parker”
Note: This program has been cancelled due to circumstances beyond our control. We apologize for any inconvenience.
For African Americans, naming has always been a fraught topic. Many still carry the last names of enslavers. Others embrace names as a way to…
CBH Talk | Joe Sexton and Errol Louis discuss "The Lost Sons of Omaha"
To watch a livestream of this program, click here.
Veteran journalist Joe Sexton’s new book, The Lost Sons of Omaha: Two Young Men in an American Tragedy, unpacks two linked and tragic deaths stemming from the 2020 George Floyd protests. It tells the story of James Scurlock, a 22-year…
CBH Talk | Jocelyn Simonson and James Forman Jr. Discuss “Radical Acts of Justice”
Across the country, ordinary people are challenging the ideas that prosecutions and prisons make us safer; that public officials charged with maintaining “law and order” are carrying out the will of the people; and that justice requires putting people in cages. In her book Radical Acts of…
CBH Talk | Michael Waldman and Jesse Wegman on the Supreme Court
To watch a livestream of the program, visit this YouTube page.
What happens when the highest court in the land no longer represents the country at large? Among the experts sounding the alarm over the Supreme Court’s hard swerve to the right is Michael Waldman, president and CEO of the…
CBH Talk | College Behind Bars
There are more than two million people living behind bars in the United States—in state and federal prisons, local jails, and immigration detention facilities. Many live in dire conditions despite some efforts to create more humane prisons and jails. In recent years, educators, advocates and,…
Center for Brooklyn History Open House (for Scholars and Faculty)
We invite you to join us at the newly-opened Center for Brooklyn History, former site of the Brooklyn Historical Society, and now a part of the Brooklyn Public Library System, for an open house event.
Come mix and mingle with other scholars interested in researching Brooklyn’s…
CBH Talk | Prison Imperialism: Indigenous and Black Histories of Subjugation and Global Freedom Dreams
In his explosive new book, historian Benjamin Weber reveals how the story of American prisons is inextricably linked to the expansion of American power around the globe. Join him in conversation with cultural strategist and organizer, Piper Anderson. A vivid work of hidden history that spans the…
Center for Brooklyn History Open House (for College Students)
We invite you to join us at the newly-opened Center for Brooklyn History, former site of the Brooklyn Historical Society, and now a part of the Brooklyn Public Library System, for an open house event.
Come mix and mingle with other college students interested in researching Brooklyn’s…
CBH Talk | A Day in the Life of Abed Salama: Anatomy of a Jerusalem Tragedy
In Nathan Thrall’s A Day in the Life of Abed Salama, the struggle over Israel/Palestine is given a profoundly human face through the heart-wrenching story of a tragic accident that killed Abed Salama’s five-year-old son. Granular in its recitation of the daily injustices that make up…
Center for Brooklyn History Open House (for Graduate Students)
We invite you to join us at the newly-opened Center for Brooklyn History, former site of the Brooklyn Historical Society, and now a part of the Brooklyn Public Library System, for an open house event.
Come mix and mingle with other graduate students interested in researching Brooklyn’s…
CBH Talk | Remembering Barbara Ehrenreich
In-person attendance for this program is at capacity! Please join the livestream on the Center for Brooklyn History Public Programs YouTube Channel. To watch the broadcast live, click HERE. Note that we generally overbook our free events to ensure a full house. Please arrive…
CBH Talk | Ms. Speaks Out: The Future of Feminism
In-person attendance for this program is at capacity. You may also watch a livestream on the CBH Public Programs YouTube channel. Note that we generally overbook our free events to ensure a full house. Please arrive early to avoid disappointment; we will do our best to…
New York City History Day 2024 Kick Off & Info Session
Brooklyn Public Library’s Center for Brooklyn History is the host of NYC History Day! NYCHD 2024 is the regional contest for National History Day (NHD). New York City middle and high schoolers get to do original research on a historical topic of their choice and make their own exhibition,…
CBH Talk | Say His Name, Arthur Miller: A Death by Police Chokehold 45 Years Ago
On June 14, 1978, Arthur Miller, a Black Crown Heights businessman, was killed by police chokehold. Miller was a respected and much-loved community leader. The calls for justice following his death echo today, 45 years later, a somber forerunner to the Movement for Black Lives. …
CBH Talk | Of Manacles and Monuments - Act 3: Our National Healing and the Role of Art
Of Manacles and Monuments is a three-part public programming series co-presented by the Center for Brooklyn History and More Art. The series is inspired by Fred Wilson’s public artwork Mind Forged Manacles/Manacle Forged Minds which is on view in Columbus Park, Downtown Brooklyn.…
CBH Talk | Of Manacles and Monuments - Act 2: Gates, Barriers, and Confinement
Of Manacles and Monuments is a three-part public programming series co-presented by the Center for Brooklyn History and More Art. The series is inspired by Fred Wilson’s public artwork Mind Forged Manacles/Manacle Forged Minds which is on view in Columbus Park, Downtown Brooklyn.…
CBH Talk | Of Manacles and Monuments - Act 1: History, Monuments, and Reframing the Narrative
Of Manacles and Monuments is a three-part public programming series co-presented by the Center for Brooklyn History and More Art. The series is inspired by Fred Wilson’s public artwork Mind Forged Manacles/Manacle Forged Minds which is on view in Columbus Park, Downtown Brooklyn.…
Creating a Historical Performance with Irondale Ensemble
Brooklyn Public Library’s Center for Brooklyn History is the host of NYC History Day! NYCHD 2023 is the regional contest for National History Day (NHD). New York City middle and high schoolers get to do original research on a historical topic of their choice and make their own exhibition,…
Talks in the Othmer | Legacy of Blackness: Perspectives on Family, Race, and Identity
Nabil Ayers only met his famous father, jazz musician Roy Ayers, a handful of times. Raised by a white, Jewish mother, Ayers shares his personal story in his recent book, My Life in the Sunshine. Resonating with explorations of race and racism, identity and family, belonging, not belonging, and…
Talks in the Othmer | A Northern Lynching
In 1892 a young Black man named Robert Lewis was accused of sexual assault and brutally lynched by a white mob. The incident took place where such things were ‘not supposed to’ – in Port Jervis, New York, 75 miles from New York City. At the time national newspapers condemned this violence…
CBH Talk | 10 Years After Hurricane Sandy
Hurricane Sandy hit New York City on October 29, 2012. Over the course of 48 hours ferocious wind, rain, and water left hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers without power, damaged the city’s critical infrastructure, displaced thousands of residents, and put innumerable city dwellers in…
Talks in the Othmer | The Rise and Fall of Protestant Brooklyn
In their new book, The Rise and Fall of Protestant Brooklyn, historians Stuart M. Blumin and Glenn C. Altschuler tell the story of nineteenth-century Brooklyn's domination by upper-class and middle-class Protestants with roots in Puritan New England. This lively history describes the unraveling…
Talks in the Othmer | What’s Prison For?
Nearly two million Americans are held in our country’s prisons and jails, a number widely acknowledged as a source of national shame. Steeped in violence and dysfunction, the question “Where does prison reform begin?” remains daunting. Can America’s broken system be remade to value humanity over…
CBH Talk: The Battle for the Right to Read What You Want
Last month Summer Boismier, a high school English teacher in Norman, Oklahoma, lost her job when she provided students with the QR Code to Brooklyn Public Library’s “Books Unbanned” initiative, which gives out-of-state teens access to the Library's eBook collection, including books that might be…
Talks in the Othmer: Screens, Teens & Rattled Parents
Harvard University researchers Emily Weinstein and Carrie James have spent their careers studying teens’ use of technology. In their book, Behind Their Screens: What Teens are Facing (and Adults are Missing), they explore the complex digital universe that teens inhabit and the often misguided…
Talks in the Othmer: Corey Robin on Making Sense of Clarence Thomas’s America
Corey Robin, one of the foremost analysts of the right, brings fresh and often prescient perspectives to our understanding of American conservatism. His ground-breaking books, The Enigma of Clarence Thomas, The Reactionary Mind and Fear, explain the history that brings us to these unprecedented…
CBH Talk - The Big Anniversary: Fort Greene’s Soul Summit Music Festival Turns 20
In June and July the Center for Brooklyn History opens its doors for limited, live public programs! Before renovations to our ground floor begin, join us in the building for one or more of these live programs and whet your appetite for CBH’s grand reopening later this year.Join the…
CBH Talk - A Rainbow Spin Through NYC: The LGBTQ Guide to a New York You Didn’t Know
In May and June the Center for Brooklyn History opens its doors for limited, live public programs! Before renovations to our ground floor begin, join us in the building for one or more of these live programs and whet your appetite for CBH’s grand reopening later this year.From Harlem to…
CBH Talk: One Man’s Story of Gay Rights and Asylum
In May and June the Center for Brooklyn History opens its doors for limited, live public programs! Before renovations to our ground floor begin, join us in the building for one or more of these live programs and whet your appetite for CBH’s grand reopening later this year.On the eve of Edafe…
Enacting Central Brooklyn: A Theatrical Sharing of Community and History
In May and June the Center for Brooklyn History opens its doors for limited, live programs! Before renovations to our ground floor begin, join us in the building for this special original production. The grand reopening of the building will take place later this year!Enacting…
CBH Talk - Bad Mexicans: Race, Empire, and Revolution in the Borderlands
In May and June the Center for Brooklyn History opens its doors for limited, live public programs! Before renovations to our ground floor begin, join us in the building for one or more of these live programs and whet your appetite for CBH’s grand reopening later this year.In her new book, Bad…
Opening the Archives: Finding LGBTQ+ History in the CBH Collections
When author Hugh Ryan researched his 2019 book When Brooklyn Was Queer, he delved deep into the archives at the Center for Brooklyn History. Queer history is rarely neatly labeled in finding aids or research guides. And so Hugh brought a queer lens to an array of seemingly unrelated…
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