AP African American Studies Resource Archive | Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History

“Negroes Who Obtained Freedom”

1781

Read a plea from free Black people in Philadelphia to protect their freedom.

Primary Source

A brick building with two round sections on either side, connected via a colonnade topped by a white steeple and flagpole in front of a brick fence.

“Petition to the Virginia House of Delegates”

1784

Read this plea written by Sarah Greene, a formerly enslaved woman caught in a legal fight.

Primary Source

A black-and-white photograph of a Black man wearing a dark top hat and suit riding a horse leading a procession including a band of musicians down a dirt road

Freedom Days in American History

with Jeffrey Kerr-Ritchie

Learn more about the long history of celebrating emancipation, from January 1, to August 1, to Juneteenth.

Video

Detail from a multicolored map depicting enslaved population by county in the South, along with government farms and camps set up by the Union Army during the Civil War.

Emancipation: Separating Myth from Fact

with Jeffrey Kerr-Ritchie

Break down common misconceptions about the Emancipation Proclamation and the Thirteenth Amendment in this video.

Video

A color photograph of six golden silhouette statues in a semicircle, behind a fence, with a pedestal below reading "Portsmouth African Burial Ground."

“Petition to New Hampshire State Legislature”

1779

Read a petition for freedom inspired by the American Revolution.

Primary Source

A still from a black-and-white film showing Black men and women, many in straw-boater hats with dark hatbands, marching in a parade. In the foreground is a clarinetist, followed by two American flag bearers marching at the head of the parade.

Juneteenth Flag-Waving Procession, Oklahoma

1920s

See an example of an early twentieth-century Juneteenth celebration in this silent film clip.

Video

Black Internationalism and the Expansive Meanings of Freedom

by Merve Fejzula

Learn more about how those in the Black Freedom struggle came together across the African continent and diaspora in the 1930s through the 1970s.

Essay

A photograph of a large brick hospital building with multiple wings.

Black American Contributions to Modern Medicine

by George Aumoithe

Learn more about how Black medical professionals overcame obstacles in the field and innovated despite exclusion.

Essay

A black-and-white photograph of Benjamin O. Davis, Jr. (a Black soldier in uniform and sunglasses), Joe Louis (a Black man wearing a light colored suit and a dark bowtie), Thurgood Marshall (a Black man wearing a dark suit and white shirt, his head resting on his crooked right arm), and Daisy Lampkin (a Black woman wearing a light colored dress and dark hat) seated outside under an open-air tent.

NAACP Civil Rights Convention

1947

View this photograph of four activists in the wake of the Double V movement taken by Joe Schwartz.

Primary Source

A black-and-white photograph of three women, Audre Lorde, a Black woman with an afro at left; Meridel Lesueur, a White woman with white hair and glasses in the center; and Adrienne Rich, a White woman with short black hair, at right.

Black Feminism: A History of Theory and Activism

by Dayo F. Gore

Learn more about the Combahee River Collective and other groups and individuals involved in shaping Black feminism in the twentieth century.

Essay

A green flyer for Bad Brains (featuring a Lion of Judah with a Star of David crown, its tail knocking over a building) and Minor Threat, noting the date, time, and location.

Bad Brains in Concert

1982

Learn more about this foundational all-Black punk band through this concert flyer.

Primary Source

Joe Biden, wearing a blue suit, blue dotted tie, and flag lapel pin, standing next to and listening to Opal Lee, a bespectacled Black woman wearing a white shirt and necklace.

Juneteenth: Exploring Freedom’s Stories

by Annenberg Classroom

Explore the history of Juneteenth, from its initial celebration following the Civil War through its enactment as a federal holiday.

Video

AP African American Studies Resource Library

“Negroes Who Obtained Freedom”

1781

“Petition to the Virginia House of Delegates”

1784

Freedom Days in American History

with Jeffrey Kerr-Ritchie

Emancipation: Separating Myth from Fact

with Jeffrey Kerr-Ritchie

“Petition to New Hampshire State Legislature”

1779

Juneteenth Flag-Waving Procession, Oklahoma

1920s

Black Internationalism and the Expansive Meanings of Freedom

by Merve Fejzula

Black American Contributions to Modern Medicine

by George Aumoithe

NAACP Civil Rights Convention

1947

Black Feminism: A History of Theory and Activism

by Dayo F. Gore

Bad Brains in Concert

1982

Juneteenth: Exploring Freedom’s Stories

by Annenberg Classroom

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