Humanities Advocacy Day and the NHA Conference - March 09, 2008
On March 3 and 4, 145 members of the humanities community, including college professors, museum professionals, librarians, archivists, and independent scholars, gathered in Washington, D.C. for the 2008 National Conference of the National Humanities Alliance (NHA), of which the AHA is a member. The highlight of the conference was the ninth annual Humanities Advocacy Day.
AHA Objects to Destruction of Guantanamo Records - February 19, 2008
In letters sent to federal authorities, the American Historical Association objected to recent disclosures that the Central Intelligence Agency destroyed records from interrogations of individuals suspected of terrorism, and requested action to prevent further loss.
Advocating for History - January 03, 2008
Among the dozens of Annual Meeting sessions held yesterday was a unique panel on “Historians, Advocacy, and Public Policy .” This session, highlighted in yesterday’s morning overview, focused on a topic that many historians don’t pay much attention to: advocacy.
Update: Federal Funding for National History Day - October 25, 2007
Updating a story from earlier this week, Senators Norm Coleman (R-HI) and Daniel Akaka (D-HI) have declined to bring to the floor for a vote their amendment (S.AMDT.3364), submitted last Thursday, which would have set aside $2 million in federal funds for “activities related to” National History Day.
Federal Judge Invalidates Order Allowing Former Presidents to Withhold Records - October 01, 2007
On October 1, a federal district court judge gave historians and researchers a partial, but significant victory in a lawsuit questioning the legality of President George W. Bush’s Executive Order (EO) 13233, which broadened the rights of presidents and former-presidents to withhold federal records from the public.
New Petition Against Florida's Definition of History - March 29, 2007
Florida’s A++ Plan, an educational directive passed by the Florida state legislature in 2006, mandates that “American history shall be viewed as factual, not as constructed, shall be viewed as knowable, teachable, and testable, and shall be defined as the creation of a new nation based largely on the universal principles stated in the Declaration of Independence”. An electronic petition drive is underway to amend the mandate.
ALERT—Tell Congress to Restore Access to Presidential Records - March 08, 2007
On March 8 the House Oversight Committee unanimously approved the “Presidential Records Act Amendments of 2007.” The bill is expected to go to the House floor the week of March 12. Please tell your congressional representatives your thoughts on this bill.
Sprawling Over History - February 07, 2007
The U.S. Bureau of the Census recently reported that there are now more than 300 million Americans consuming food, land, water, and other natural resources at an incredible rate. Unfortunately, one of the first casualties of our seemingly insatiable appetites may be our history…
Blogging the IRB - January 11, 2007
Members who are troubled about the growing intrusion of Institutional Review Boards over oral history will want to take a look at Institutional Review Blog, just started by Zachary Schrag at George Mason University.
Letter to Mayor Shirley Franklin of Atlanta - January 09, 2007
In a letter to Mayor Shirley Franklin of Atlanta, Georgia, AHA President Barbara Weinstein, Past President Linda K. Kerber, and Executive Director Arnita A. Jones, expressed the AHA Council’s concern over an incident between historian Felipe Fernández-Armesto and an Atlanta police officer, that began with jaywalking and escalated to an 8 hour ordeal in jail.
A New Voice for History in Washington - December 21, 2006
Leland White, the new Director of the National Coalition for History, just posted his first report over at History News Network.
More Sunshine for the Smithsonian - December 19, 2006
In bureaucratic terms, a new report from the federal Government Accountability Office (GAO) offers a fairly damning critique of the way the Smithsonian Institution implemented its contract with the Showtime Network and provided information to the general public.
EPA Economies Put Documents on Endangered Species List - December 12, 2006
A cost-cutting move by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to shut down its national network of scientific libraries, possibly destroying thousands of pages of agency documents in the process, has raised the hackles of four key Democrats elected to the 110th Congress.
Clarifying the Clarifications - December 11, 2006
Michael Carome has once again “clarified” the federal Office of Human Research Protection’s position on oral history. According to a blog posting by Jeffrey Cohen (“an independent consultant in human research protections”), Carome reiterated his medically themed clarification of two years ago at recent PRIM&R conference of regulators. Unfortunately, it is hard to discern where Carome’s clarifications end and Cohen’s opinions begin in the blog posting.
Sunshine for Smithsonian/Showtime - November 20, 2006
The Smithsonian Institution is trying to sweep its secret contract with Showtime under a Congressional rug, according to Carl Malamud at the Center for American Progress. Malamud reports that “Smithsonian lobbyists are trying to paper over their exclusive 30-year sellout to Showtime, saying that the contract has posed no problems and nobody seems to be upset about it anymore.”
The National Coalition for History Reacts to the Recent Election - November 08, 2006
Bruce Craig, Director of the National Coalition for History, forecasts the effects of a Democrat controlled House of Representatives on history and archives in his most recent NCH Washington Update.
Debating the Need for IRBs – A Chronicle Colloquy - November 08, 2006
Yesterday the AHA’s own Robert Townsend, assistant director for research and publications, lead a live online discussion on the need (or lack there of) for institutional review boards in oral history.
Oral History and IRBs - November 05, 2006
Students, and their advisors, working on the history of the 20th century should take a look at the article on “Oral History Under Review” in this week’s Chronicle of Higher Education. The Association is on record as objecting to the often arbitrary application of IRB rules, which use criteria that seem wholly inappropriate to our field. The report documents a number of troubling cases that reinforce those concerns.
The Problem with IRBs - October 11, 2006
Anyone concerned about the extension of Institutional Review Board (IRB) oversight into humanities and social science research will want to read The American Association of University Professors new report on “Research on Human Subjects: Academic Freedom and the Institutional Review Board.” As the report details, the IRBs exercise virtually unchecked power, make up standards and criteria as they go along, and typically fail to provide any means of appealing their decisions.
AHA Opposes Changes in Archives Hours - September 06, 2006
In a letter delivered to to Allen Weinstein, Linda Kerber opposes proposed cutbacks in the hours for researchers.
Action Alert: Support Amendment to Restore NEH funding - May 17, 2006
The U.S. House of Representatives is tentatively scheduled to consider the FY2007 Interior Appropriations bill between Friday, May 19 and Tuesday, May 23. Recently, the Interior Appropriations Committee supported the President’s request and recommended funding for the NEH at $142 million. Despite the appearance of level funding, this actually is a proposed cut of $1.3 million to the agency’s core programs of research, education, preservation & access, public programs, and challenge grants.
Smithsonian Secretary Lawrence Small Replies to AHA President’s Letter - May 08, 2006
In a lengthy response to AHA President Linda Kerber’s original communication of April 14, 2006, Lawrence Small, the secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, dismissed the criticism leveled against the Smithsonian’s deal with Showtime Television Network.
Society of American Historians Concurs with AHA Position on the Smithsonian-Showtime Deal, - April 26, 2006
In a resolution it adopted on April 25, 2006, the Society of American Historians, an affiliate of the American Historical Association, has expressed its concurrence with the AHA’s statement that the Smithsonian’s relationship with Showtime constitutes a “violation of the trust of generations of Americans who have donated materials to which they believed the public would have free, open, equal, and non-discriminatory access forever.”
AHA Responds to Hurricane Katrina - September 12, 2005
As an immediate response, and to facilitate communication and exchange of information at this critical juncture, the American Historical Association has joined with the Organization of American Historians and the Southern Historical Association to sponsor a message board for historians. The site, at http://www.oah.org/katrina/, will be open to all historians regardless of their fields of study and whether or not they are members of the sponsoring organizations.