Posts from the Schomburg Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division

Explore Schomburg Center collections and exhibitions which highlight the history, artists, leaders and events that have shaped Harlem and influenced the world.

Check out these suggestions of music-related materials you can see in-person when you make a research appointment at one of our five divisions, plus explore our exhibitions.

Throughout American history, law enforcement and those with racial prejudices have weaponized the law in attempts to imprison, punish, and silence Black people. Using the Schomburg Center’s resources, learn about past court cases that have impacted the Black community and activists, and how they responded.

Use Schomburg Center materials to continue the conversations on the concepts of freedom, which were raised during panel discussion during the 2021 Schomburg Center Literary Festival.

In honor of the many battles faced by Black LGBTQIA+ individuals and communities, we're spotlighting archival materials that document some of the battles won and those that are still being fought for equity, inclusion, and respect.

Throughout American history, law enforcement and those with racial prejudices have weaponized the law in attempts to imprison, punish, and silence Black people. Using the Schomburg Center’s resources, learn about past court cases that have impacted the Black community and activists, and how they responded.

In this episode, Bridgett Pride and Kadiatou Tubman of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture discussed ways that they have used zines and zine-making projects to help students of all ages explore historical research, express their creativity, and envision themselves as historians.

Police killings of Black people are painful reminders of not only our history in this nation but, all too often, our present.

Earth Day, which promotes protecting the environment, is on April 22. The day can also be a starting point on discussions such as climate change, environmental racism, agriculture, and more. Zakiya Collier, digital archivist in our Manuscripts, Archives, and Rare Books Division, and Michael Mery, acting curator of our Photographs and Prints Division, share digital resources to help spark those conversations.

Novella Ford, associate director of Public Programs and Exhibitions, share her picks of Livestream talks to watch.

The Schomburg Center has over 1,100 digitized collections and 300 Livestream programs online. Curators, librarians, and staff share their picks of materials to explore.

Tammi Lawson, curator of the Art & Artifacts Division, shares her pick of a Schomburg Center digital collection to explore.

Dr. Brian Jones, associate director of Schomburg Educational Programs, shares his suggestions for compelling education content including projects by the Junior Scholars and Teen Curators programs.

Staff of the Jean Blackwell Hutson Research Research and Reference Division suggest some highlights of the collections to explore.

Dr. Michelle Commander shares her picks of Schomburg Center digital collections and Livestream conversations to explore.

Cheryl Beredo, curator of the Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division, and Digital Archivist Zakiya Collier share their picks of digital collections to explore.

Michael Mery, acting curator of the Photographs and Prints Division, shares his picks of digital collections to explore.

In this episode, the Schomburg Center's Zakiya Collier and Dr. Yarimar Bonilla of Hunter College and CUNY Graduate Center explored Schomburg's #Syllabi web archive collection and the Puerto Rico Syllabus, and discussed erasure and underrepresentation in academia, digital protest, and ways of deploying Hashtag Syllabi in the classroom.

In celebration of Women's History month, learn about some of the books featuring Black women writers in Arturo Schomburg's Collection. Digital replicas are available to read via the HathiTrust Digital Library.