Rebecca Koerselman

Charles Eastman’s story, first published in 1916, explains growing up Sioux in Northern Minnesota and Canada. At the age of 15, Eastman attended a Christian boarding school. He went on to become well-educated, receiving a Bachelor of Science degree from…

Although Frederick Douglass is speaking in the context of the antebellum era, when the abolition movement had gained momentum and the nation wrestled with what to do about slavery, his words move me. I can feel his righteous anger at…

The controversy surrounding Virginia Governor Ralph Northam’s 1984 year book photos has caused many to ask questions about blackface. Again. According to a recent headline from The Onion, a satirical news site, “Every Baby Boomer in Country Urged to Resign…

To honor Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., it is fitting to read a portion of his speech, “The Other America,” presented April 14, 1967 at Stanford University: What I'm trying to get across is that our nation has constantly…

There’s nothing like moving to give you concrete evidence of how much stuff you own. We moved from a rental to our own home and were forced to confront our possessions. Not only that, we had to pack it all,…

When December rolls around, I enjoy opening the mailbox to find Christmas cards instead of the usual fliers and bills. In fact, I look forward to it every day. Whether it is just a picture or, even better, a picture…

Not only did the Puritans not celebrate Thanksgiving, they firmly banned Christmas. (Spoiler alert: the Puritans did not celebrate Easter either.) The Puritans rejected Christmas as a pagan celebration, full of bawdy revelry and tainted by Catholic association. The Puritans…

What is the correct story of United States history? Historian Lendol Calder, in his article, “The Stories We Tell,” highlights the difficulties of choosing a narrative for the U.S. history survey course: Poor, old, American history survey course—the Charlie Brown…

If it snows in November, is it because folks are decorating for Christmas? So I have been told. But I would have to live in a cave not to see that Christmas consumption and wars over red cups and tidings…