Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Militant Maids: Domestic Workers’ Participation In Bus Boycotts, Voter Registration, And Head Start Programs In The Deep South, Brittany Ann Carey

Master's Theses

This thesis examines the participation of domestic workers in the Civil Rights Movement, specifically in Gulf South bus boycotts in Baton Rouge, Montgomery, and Tallahassee; voter registration efforts in Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, and Florida; and Head Start work in those same Deep South states. Domestic workers engaged in activism by joining unions, women's movements, and the Communist Party to improve their treatment in Northern and Southern cities. Modern historians have expanded their research to explore the participation of domestic workers in the Civil Rights Movement, especially in the Montgomery Bus Boycott. In some cases, researchers also have explored the complicated …

Validation In Vietnam: Motivations And Experiences Of Vietnam Veterans Who Returned To Vietnam As Tourists, Brian Washam Ii

Master's Theses

The current historiography on the memory of the Vietnam War has primarily looked at how the collective memory of the war has been constructed through various factors. Scholars such as Jerry Lembcke, Patrick Hagopian, and Marita Sturken tend to examine monuments, film, and oral histories to establish a basis for how the memory of the Vietnam War was constructed and how these legacies from the war shaped the U.S. as a society going forward. Recently, scholars have begun looking more at the return trips of veterans to Vietnam as a source for understanding how veterans remembered their service.

By engaging …

"Conserving" The Middle Ground: Tennessee's Unionist Press In The Secession Crisis, 1860-1861, Michael Singleton

Master's Theses

This thesis advances scholars’ understanding of how newspaper editors framed and presented news during the secession crisis of 1860-1861. Methodologically, it draws on the publications of seven Unionist editors from Tennessee who initially resisted secession but later pursued different courses during the Civil War. Through this period, editors balanced their roles as journalists and political actors working to advance an ideological cause. Guided by existing practices and their unique journalistic styles, these editors presented a near unified message—influenced by Whig political culture—that framed their response to outside events. This unanimity fractured in 1861 as local pressures, business interests, and personal …

"Yours For Freedom": The Life And Legacy Of Civil Rights Leader Victoria Gray Adams, Meridian Mcdaniel

Master's Theses

Understanding the life and legacy of Victoria Gray Adams (1926-2006) is key to appreciating the role of middle-aged African-American women activists in Mississippi during the Civil Rights Movement. She was born and raised in Palmers Crossing, a self-sustaining black community just south of Hattiesburg. Her upbringing fostered pride and a sense of independence in herself as a black person, which eventually influenced her efforts to inspire the local community’s involvement in the movement. Her participation and remarkable leadership in various Civil Rights groups helped solidify her role as a local, state, and national leader. The roles she held throughout her …

Emotions In Work And War: Comparisons Of Emotional-Cultures Of New Deal Ccc Enrollees And Wwii U.S. Army Enlistees, 1933-1945, Maeve Losen

Master's Theses

Though the Great Depression and Second World War were consecutive eras and overlapped in numerous aspects, scholarship often overlooks the commonalities between these periods. To demonstrate these eras’ shared qualities, this thesis examines the relationship in emotional-cultures—the cultural norms that dictated how individuals felt and demonstrated their emotions—among Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) enrollees and U.S. Army enlistees during WWII.

The broad intent of this undertaking is to place the cultural history of the Great Depression and WWII in conversation and to show the advantage of inter- and multidisciplinary work by applying anthropological and historical theories of emotion. Though the historical …