Historical Perspectives Wins Award Again
Exciting news: Historical Perspectives wins award again!
The 2019 edition of Historical Perspectives took second prize in the Phi Alpha Theta Nash Journal contest for 2020. This marks the third consecutive year that Historical Perspectives has taken second prize. Congratulations to the student editors Haley Butler and Maggie Oys for their excellent work.
The newest volume of Historical Perspectives has been published. The link to this new volume, 25 (2020), can be found here.
A new section has been added to this year’s volume: Reviews. It features three short pieces that focus on the Theatre and Dance Department’s spring production of Lauren
Gunderson’s The Revolutionists, as well as a review of the episode, “Red Chicago,” from the PBS series, “The Future of America’s Past.”
Brandon Schultz and Tegan Smith, the student co-editors of this volume, eloquently explain how this year’s essays are linked in their introduction:
“Although every year unearths its own challenges, we must acknowledge the unique impact of 2020 on the minds of the writers whose works appear in this edition of Historical Perspectives. In 2020, the United States witnessed one of the largest protest movements in its history in the Black Lives Matters protests, and globally, the devastating coronavirus pandemic continues to threaten organized human life everywhere. These life-changing events add to the stresses of protecting human rights and the environment. The essays in this journal undoubtedly emerged from this turbulent world, and through them we hope to gain insights to help us as we work for tomorrow.
As a result, this year’s edition includes essays united in a yearning for a better world. Exploring a wide variety of topics spanning both cultures and time periods, some essays center on the activism of key historical figures, while others focus on ongoing demands for equity, acceptance, and social justice. The papers in this journal go beyond analyzing past events by bringing them into conversation with the tribulations and triumphs of today. Whether the writers are calling for more inclusive genocide memorials or prompting readers to join ongoing movements for ecological justice, their work reflects a discerning curiosity that seeks nuanced understandings of the past so that we may envision a better future. Many of these essays explore similar topics as they are shaped by the courses offered at Santa Clara University, including classes on protest and reform movements, genocide in the twentieth century, and the history of sexuality. This year’s submissions testify to the intersections between Women’s and Gender Studies, Ethnic Studies, and History, and they demonstrate that our student writers utilize critical interpretation, insight, and creativity in order to analyze the events of the past and recognize their lasting presence in the world today. In their research, the authors contribute to a fuller picture of the past that confronts traditional narratives that have been flattened or sanitized in popular historiography.”