In John Magee’s print, Preston Brooks wields a cane against Charles Sumner, who is clutching a pen and a rolled-up speech.
John L. Magee, The New York Public Library
The beating of Sen. Charles Sumner in 1856 by Rep. Preston Brooks over a speech against slavery sparked a nationwide debate over free speech, political violence and the relationship between the two.
A monument to survival and perseverance has survived, by happenstance, to share its stories today.
Courtesy of the Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts (MESDA) at Old Salem
The staircase was originally acquired due to its craftsmanship. Only later did scholars realize that it was where Harriet Jacobs suffered abuse at the hands of her enslaver.
Francisco Rodrigues dos Santos, who was an enslaved farmworker in Brazil, clears land in 2015 in Monsenhor Gil, Brazil, after obtaining his freedom. Millions of people are still enslaved worldwide.
Mario Tama/Getty Images
To stop a crime, it helps to understand who these criminals are and how they think.
Freed slaves on the plantation of Confederate General Thomas F. Drayton in Hilton Head, South Carolina. This photograph was taken circa 1865.
Getty Images / CORBIS
