In “Slavery and Freedom,” panelists discuss historiographical trends in the study of slavery and post-emancipation society, illuminating how the dominant “freedom narrative” has been rethought and rewritten by various generations of scholars. Recent debates have centered on the tensions between emancipation as a turning point in American history and the limits of its aftermath. The session was held on Friday, May 20, 2016, at Warner Bros. Theater, National Museum of American History.
This session was part of The Future of the African American Past, a landmark conference concerning “what comes next” in the study of African American history. The conference took place on May 19-21, 2016, and was co-hosted by the American Historical Association (AHA) and the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC).