Digital Commons Network^™

Framing Tragedy: Discourse And Influence In Us Media Coverage Of The 1994 Rwanda Genocide, Andrew P. Young

Journal of 20th Century Media History

There is little doubt as to the mark left by the 1994 Rwandan genocide on historical discourse and perhaps even the American cultural consciousness. U.S. evening news broadcasts carried images of suffering and death into homes across the US, and in the process made Rwanda the site of one of the most recognized traumas in human history. While cultural proximity in mass media coverage played a role, the characterization of media coverage of the genocide, often defined in the press as explicit and constant, requires analysis. This project analyzes US evening network news broadcasts to address the actualities and implications …

[De]Constructing Jimmy's Grin: Doing Cultural Studies Through The Lens Of Boston Globe Editorial Cartoonist Paul Szep's Showcase Of Carter's White House Campaign, Lori Amber Roessner

Journal of 20th Century Media History

Heeding journalism historians Hanno Hardt and Bonnie Brennan’s call for inquiries that provide a new understanding of historical working conditions, this study explored the production of a sample of Szep’s editorial cartoons that surrounded Jimmy Carter’s campaign and presidency from 1976 to 1980. In particular, the manuscript considered the historical conditions and personal circumstances that influenced the cultural production of Szep’s body of work surrounding Jimmy Carter’s presidency; representations of Carter and his White House campaign in the sample of 20 editorial cartoons produced by Szep; moments of consumption by active Boston Globe audiences; the practice of identity [de]construction related …

"Your Problem Is Not At All An Uncommon One": Visibility, Black Men, And Sexual Orientation In The Anti-Apartheid And Civil Rights Movements, Wren Addison Weddell

Dissertations and Theses

The South African Anti-Apartheid Movement and the American Civil Rights Movement are two of the most well-known examples of racial liberation movements, but there are few scholarly works that offer comparisons between the two. Furthermore, the experiences of people who fall outside the bounds of heteronormative society are often overlooked in historical research on both movements. Despite the dearth in research, there are several key factors that are revealed when comparing the lives of Black non-heterosexual men among the activists for both of these movements, including the role of the global community, unique local cultures, and how the state polices …

The 1920s And The Distortion Of Democracy: The Fourteenth Census, The Fight Over Reapportionment, And Its Consequences, William L. Paine

Department of History

Following the 1920 decennial census the United States Congress, for the first and only time in its history, failed to pass a reapportionment bill to redistribute representation in the House of Representative in a timely manner. Congress would debate and delay reapportionment for nearly a decade before finally passing the Permanent Apportionment Act of 1929, which provided for the next reapportionment after the 1930 census as well as for all future censuses. There were many factors that helped perpetuate the debate over reapportionment in the 1920s, some of which were unique to the decade and some of which weren’t. The …

[2026 Honorable Mention] Impact Of Chicana Rewritings Of La Virgen De Guadalupe And La Malinche, Destiny Villarreal Quintero

Ethnic Studies Research Paper Award

This piece elaborates on the cultural significance of La Virgen de Guadalupe and La Malinche in Mexican/ Chicanx communities and how they impact women's gender roles.

The 1778 Fort Pitt Treaty: U.S. Relations With The Lenni-Lenape Nation And The Unraveling Of Early Promises, Veronica E. Riddle

Masters Theses

This study examines the Treaty of Fort Pitt (1778), signed in present-day Pittsburgh, as the first formal diplomatic agreement between the United States and the Lenape (Delaware) Nation during the American Revolutionary War. Formed amid the military and political instability of the Revolution, the treaty promised mutual military assistance, recognition of Lenape sovereignty west of the Alleghenies, protection from settler encroachment, and the unprecedented possibility of Native representation within the emerging American confederation. However, following the deaths of key Lenape leaders, escalating frontier violence, and the failure of the Continental Congress to ratify or uphold critical provisions, the treaty rapidly …

Beyond Commemoration To Reparations: A Media Representation Analysis Of The Elaine Massacre Of 1919, Oyeronke Oyindamola Afolabi

Student Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines the evolving public memory of the Elaine Massacre of 1919 through a critical analysis of media representation, commemorative practices, and descendant-led advocacy. Situating the massacre within the broader history of racial violence in the United States, the study argues that its significance extends beyond the events of 1919 to include the long-term processes of historical silencing, narrative distortion, and contested remembrance that have shaped its afterlife. Drawing on interdisciplinary frameworks from memory studies, critical heritage studies, and media discourse analysis, the research employs a qualitative thematic analysis of contemporary media publications from 2018 to 2024. Guided by …

Just Hillbillies: State Power, Private Militarism, Coal, And Constitutional Crisis In The West Virginia Treason Trials, 1919-1937, Ryan Gregory Fix

Masters Theses

In August 1921, roughly ten thousand armed coal miners marched toward Logan County, West Virginia, in the largest armed labor uprising in American history. When the fighting at Blair Mountain ended, the state prosecuted union leaders for treason against the state of West Virginia. This thesis examines that legal campaign of 1921–1923 and its long aftermath, arguing that the treason trials functioned less as a search for individual guilt than as an instrument for fixing the meaning of Blair Mountain before the miners could define it themselves. Where decades of gubernatorial proclamations and martial law had exposed the limits of …

Freedom In The Press: Black Print Culture And Antislavery Activism In The United States, 1772-1857, Bernard T. Baze

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Nineteenth century African American journalists employed the press as a political, legal, and moral instrument to challenge the legitimacy of the institution of American slavery and advocate for universal emancipation. Through an analysis of the Black press, including Freedom’s Journal, Colored American, North Star, Frederick Douglass’ Paper, Provincial Freeman, and the Christian Recorder, the study highlights the agency of Black abolitionists in shaping antislavery public discourse. It contends that these writers advanced a multifaceted antislavery strategy rooted in moral suasion, constitutional argumentation, legal denunciations, and religious advocacy. Through these efforts, they revealed the contradictions between slaveholding and the nation’s professed …

Destined To Fail?: The U.S. Advisory Period And The Lost Path To Victory, 1960-1965, Alexander Patrick Fancher

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

South Vietnam experienced robust military and economic development between 1960 and 1963 under the leadership of President Ngo Dinh Diem. With the help of U.S. aid, the RVNAF improved its ability to wage war against the Viet Cong, while simultaneously pacifying the countryside. ARVN and VNN units developed new capabilities and trained officers to replace losses after the French Exodus from Vietnam. The introduction of U.S. advisors created the conditions necessary for the development of a young, inexperienced military. Acting as guides, these Americans were cautiously optimistic that South Vietnam was on the path to self-sufficiency by spring 1963 as …

“Courage, Sisters. Your Living Is The Stuff Of Freedom”: Women In The Camden 28, 1971-1973, Abbigail Madeline Ealer

Theses and Dissertations

This historical study investigated the role and experiences of the ten women in the Camden 28, which was a group of Catholic Leftists who raided the draft board in Camden, NJ in 1971 to protest the Vietnam War. In utilizing a myriad of sources from archival collections through scarcely seen personal ephemera to correspondence with individuals connected to this case, this thesis demonstrated the importance of these women to the planning and execution of the raid as well as their significance to the outcome of the trial in 1973. It also showed the need for targeted scholarship on them. Furthermore, …

Filling The Knowledge Gap: The National Automobile Theft Bureau And The Rise Of Private Intelligence, 1912–1941, William Murray

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the Automobile Protective and Information Bureau (APIB) and its successor, the National Automobile Theft Bureau (NATB), situating these institutions within the development of corporate intelligence in the United States. The rapid expansion of automobile ownership produced a form of crime defined by technological advancement and jurisdictional fragmentation that existing law enforcement could not effectively address. In response, automobile insurance companies created the APIB as a centralized clearinghouse for theft intelligence. By standardizing reporting, maintaining national records, and distributing investigative information, the Bureau developed an early private intelligence infrastructure that supported law enforcement. The limitations of local enforcement …

Balancing Our Capacity To Serve: A Phenomenological Exploration Of Black Women Navigating Personal, Professional, And Community Leadership Roles, Shemeka K. Brathwaite

Student Theses

This phenomenological study explores the lived experiences of Black women community leaders as they navigate a balance between their professional, personal, and community leadership roles. The research design uses the theoretical frameworks of Black Feminist Intersectionality and Role Theory, specifically addressing the cultural burdens imposed by the Strong Black Woman archetype, which adds additional role strain. The study began with a questionnaire completed by 54 Black women community leaders, followed by 20 in-depth, semi-structured interviews selected from this pool. The study’s key findings are illustrated in a Black Women’s Sustainable Community Leadership Framework. Black women community leaders exude high self-efficacy, …

Objects Of Atrocity: Material Culture And The Challenges Of Difficult Histories, Robert M. Ehrenreich, Jane E. Klinger, Gabriel H. Pizzorno, Caroline Sturdy Colls

Purdue University Press Books

The vast majority of people throughout history have left few written traces. That is especially the case for those who were brutally forced from their homes, stripped of their possessions, and swiftly imprisoned, enslaved, or murdered. Objects of Atrocity: Material Culture and the Challenges of Difficult Histories addresses how we return humanity to these people in order to avoid their erasure from history. Academics and practitioners from a variety of disciplines and cross-disciplinary approaches grapple with the challenges and possibilities relating to the collection, conservation, storage, and display of objects in the aftermath of mass atrocities. This collection confronts a …

The Flight Of The Purdue Owl: An Institutional History, Harry C. Denny, Vicki R. Kennell, Garrett I. Colón

The Founders Series

The Flight of the Purdue OWL: An Institutional History chronicles both the widely known Purdue OWL website and the lesser-known but much-celebrated on-campus writing center. Purdue University is renowned for its world-class STEM curriculum as well as its intercollegiate athletics. The university also receives considerable attention, however, for the OWL website, which is one of the most used educational resources in the world. The on-campus OWL is also a highly regarded collegiate writing center. This book tells the history of how the Purdue OWL grew out of decades of faculty working with students and their desire for a laboratory where …

Enhancing Access And Social Mobility: Metro State University's Liberal Arts Mission In Action, Kristen Lillvis, Kate Ries

Critical Humanities

This article examines how a liberal arts framework has guided Metropolitan State University’s responses to political, financial, and social pressures on higher education. Drawing on the university’s history as an access-oriented, urban institution, the authors present two case studies—the North Star Promise scholarship and emergency grant funding—to demonstrate how mission-driven investments in students’ basic needs advance social mobility and strengthen institutional sustainability. The authors argue that prioritizing student supports, including those available through short-term or contingent opportunities, yields long-term benefits for learners, their communities, and the university.

Submitted: April 13, 2026

Accepted: May 21, 2026

Industrial Democracy: Unionization, Power, And Control In Rockefeller’S Southern Colorado, Ava Welty

Undergraduate Theses, Capstones, and Recitals

By 1914, democracy was clearly connected to America’s political ethos, and Wilson and Frank Walsh only amplified the term. Against this backdrop, labor and CF&I sought to define their movement as aligned with the national project of industrial democracy, despite having divergent understandings of the term. CF&I and Rockefeller built upon decades of social betterment, in addition to new ideas of company unionism to create their definition of industrial democracy, while workers returned to union recognition as a tool of power to construct their definition of industrial democracy. This paper argues that conflicting definitions of industrial democracy after the Ludlow …

Difficult History During Difficult Times: Amache Junior Rangers, Katelyn Morkovsky

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

My research aims to understand approaches to teaching difficult histories to children at cultural heritage institutions. To do this, I examined the creation process of the Amache Junior Ranger booklet that launched at the site in the fall of 2025. Amache, a WWII Japanese American incarceration center, presents significant interpretive challenges in balancing the traumatic nature of the site with age-appropriate content as well as highlighting the agency people exercised without losing the gravity of the situation. In addition to how the booklet was made, I use my research to situate the booklet in the social and political climate in …

The Welfare System To Prison Pipeline In America: How Media, Policy, And Surveillance Extend The Reach Of Mass Incarceration Through Child Welfare Practices, Delaney A. Painter

Binghamton University Undergraduate Journal

Scholarship across youth social policy, child welfare, media studies, and criminology has documented media driven moral panic, racial disproportionality in child welfare involvement, and foster-care-to-prison pathways as related but individual, distinct phenomena. Similarly, critical frameworks by Alexander and Ritchie trace how mass incarceration unfolds across marginalized communities, yet often begin analysis at points of formal criminal legal contact.

This paper builds on an integrated framework that identifies child welfare as a distinct and underrecognized branch of mass incarceration operating at an earlier stage of the life course. Drawing on interdisciplinary literature, this analysis demonstrates how fear based media narratives shape …

The Influence Of Gustav Holst's The Planets On The Music Of John Williams, Kara Lewis

Senior Honors Theses

Throughout his six-decade career in film music, John Williams has achieved incredible success. Yet, one of the most prominent criticisms of Williams’ work is that it borrows heavily from classical repertoire. It is common to read that Williams stole from composers such as Gustav Holst. This paper examines in what aspects and to what extent the music of Williams takes inspiration specifically from Holst’s The Planets. Overall style and specific excerpts will be compared to demonstrate that, while the two share some characteristics, there is not an overall sameness of style. It shall also be demonstrated that certain excerpts …

Pretty Much From Scratch: A Braided Essay On Autistic Diagnosis, Creativity, Identity, And Community, Jenée Stanfield

Ought: The Journal of Autistic Culture

This braided essay uses memoir and research to explore autistic diagnosis, creativity, identity, and community. It examines how the misinformation around these topics harm and “other” autistics: the fallacy of diagnostic objectivity/neutrality, the dual myths of autistic hyper- and hypo-creativity, and autism as an identity defined solely by medical professionals. The memoir sections play with point of view and genre.

Jenée is a late-realized autistic with ADHD and OCD, who identifies as neurodivergent and neuroqueer. She lives in Washington state with her spouse and dog. She has a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing and is currently a Master …

Kitchen Table Press: A Case Study Of Regression To The Neoliberal Mean, Alaina Disalvo

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This thesis examines the idealistic founding of Kitchen Table: Women of Color Press in 1980 and its slow downfall, culminating in the cession of ownership of the Press to a university in 1992. It traces the ideological development of Kitchen Table Press’s key founders, Barbara Smith and Audre Lorde, and their respective relationships to the ideologies of other renowned feminist figures of the era, specifically June Jordan and Adrienne Rich. It examines the history of the Press through historical, intersectional, affective, and socialist lenses. This thesis argues that neoliberal pressures can bend even the most radical organizations away from their …

Gramsci’S ‘Democratic Philosopher’ And The Concept’S Foundations In Marxian Social Ontology, Eli Recht-Appel

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This thesis deals with the term ‘democratic philosopher’ from Antonio Gramsci’s Prison Notebooks. In order to lay the groundwork for my distinct interpretation of the ‘democratic philosopher,’ I begin by providing an overview of Gramsci’s theory of the role of intellectuals in civil and political society. I then argue that the ‘democratic philosopher’ emerges from Gramsci’s typology of intellectuals but is a category which is both temporally and ontologically distinct from his more well-known concept of ‘organic intellectuals.’ ‘Organic intellectuals,’ intellectuals who co-develop alongside their fundamental social group or class, occupy a variety of cultural and political roles in …

Conga Santiaguera: A Century Of Innovation And Competition, Nick Herman

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Santiago de Cuba is home to the island’s biggest, oldest, and most famous carnival.  Any local resident will confirm that “sin conga no hay carnaval (without conga there is no carnival).” In Santiago, conga refers to a vibrant street procession, the music that drives it, and the ensemble that makes the music.  Conga Santiaguera: A Century of Innovation and Competition presents a musical history of the conga from roughly 1910 to 2010.  This project, https://cuny.manifoldapp.org/projects/conga employs an eBook, musical analysis, oral histories, and audiovisual media to show how the conga has been constantly reinvigorated by innovation, competition, and Afro-Diasporic …

Beyond The Veil Of Modernity: René Guénon, Prophet Of The Metapolitical Imaginary, Frederic Colier

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Heralded by some as one of the greatest intellectuals of the 20th century, French metaphysician René Guénon (1886-1951) is also the controversial father of Primordial Tradition, a metaphysics designed to remedy the decline of Western civilization. Guénon viewed the West in the grip of a prolonged cycle of degeneration. He sought to implement a pseudo-authoritarian spiritual reset that required a total rejection of its Western intellectual heritage and an embrace of Eastern doctrines.

Focusing on his landmark book The Crisis of the Modern World (1927), the dissertation examines how Guénon implemented his controversial reset. After outlining the religious, cultural, and …

The Record, Issue 3, Bank Street College Of Education. Archives

The Record

The third quarterly newsletter from the Bank Street Archives

A History Of The Underground Comix Scene: The Seriousness Of An Unserious Genre, Harris Darcie Shugart

Master's Theses

The Underground Comix Scene of the 1960s and 1970s was born out of an age of censorship. The Comics Code Authority, a regulatory body created by the Comics Magazine Association of America in 1954, established guidelines requiring publishing houses to self-regulate following a recommendation from the United States Senate Subcommittee on Juvenile Delinquency in 1953. Comix with an X, for their X-rated nature, represent an emerging counter-culture in the latter half of the 1960s and the 1970s, with an epicenter of San Francisco. These comix and their artists were not interested in obtaining the looming ‘Seal of Approval’ from the …

Rethinking Pakistan Studies: The Grounds Of Regional Knowledge After South Asia, Zoya Sameen

FAS Pakistan

This article rethinks Pakistan Studies as both a pedagogical project and a field of knowledge by examining the limits of history as a tool of legitimation. It argues that in the public sphere, history often serves to authorize the present, and shows how Pakistan Studies has historically operated within this framework. At the same time, the article suggests that this condition opens up another possibility: to understand history not as passive inheritance but as an active demand upon the present. Seen in this light, Pakistan Studies emerges not as a stable body of knowledge but as a series of shifting …

Vestigial Choreographies: Climate Consciousness In The Long Nineteenth Century, Alexandra A. Rego

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The aims of this project are twofold: (a) to develop a method of theoretical analysis and (b) to put this method into pointed use. In service of (a), I propose a method of choreographic analysis. This method operates relationally, highlighting the production of movement and stillness among and between bodies, objects, and encounters. Choreographic analysis draws from methods typically sequestered to dance studies. Towards aim (b), this project demonstrates the relevance and breadth of choreographic analysis by connecting it to ecocriticism. Throughout this project, I apply choreographic analysis to a diverse set of case studies. I use choreographic analysis to …

Materializing The Interface: Personal Data Feeds Generative Art, Erin Livingston

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Materializing the Interface: Personal Data Feeds Generative Art is a data-studio capstone project that reconstructs elements of desktop and mobile interfaces as handmade mixed-media artifacts, then digitizes them as an interactive website where generative text and images are fed by personal data flows. Twenty-one paper collage windows — built from cardstock, risograph-printed paper, and mixed media — were photographed, digitized, and activated using code to become the interactive surface of a desktop view driven by browser history. A corresponding mobile view renders a corpus of 500 Instagram advertisement screenshots through a risograph print aesthetic, fed by a hand-tagged emotion and …