With recent German heritage films, according to Anne Fuchs (2008), bad history emerges as a good story. I have added updates to this Dec. 18, 2011 post.
Phantoms of War in Contemporary German Literature, Films and Discourse (2008) is part of a publishing series at the University of Birmingham entitled New Perspectives in German Studies. The paragraph I have chosen to focus upon is on p. 143 of Chapter 5, which is entitled: “Narrating Resistance to the Third Reich: Museum Discourse, Autobiography, […]
The coolie speaks: Chinese indentured laborers and African slaves in Cuba (2008)
The coolie speaks by Lisa Yun describes particular experiences in a slave society in the Americas. The book’s introduction begins (p. xv) with a quotation from George Orwell’s 1942 essay on Rudyard Kipling, in which Orwell notes that “We all live by robbing Asiatic coolies, and those of us who are ‘enlightened’ all maintain that […]
Archaeology in the school system: The Archaeological Resource Centre (Karolyn Smardz)
I recently read an article by Karolyn Smardz Frost entitled Archaeology in the school system: The Archaeological Resource Centre. To be more precise, the article was written when the author’s name was Karolyn Smardz. The article offers a great overview of what can be done with archaeology in schools as occurred in the Toronto Board of […]
Barbara J. Little (2007) relates the story of a runaway people
Recently I’ve been reading Historical Archaeology: Why the Past Matters (2007) by Barbara J. Little. I began by reading the second paragraph on p. 111 which notes that Charles Orser and Pedro Funari have identified and investigated several historical sites where fugitive communities used to live in the capital of Macaco, also known as Serra da Barriga (Potbelly […]
David Juliusson has shared a list of valuable resources for helping us to position Samuel Smith as a historical figure
We owe thanks to David Juliusson, Program Officer, Historic Fort York, City of Toronto, for sharing some great resources regarding the history of warfare it relates to the story of Colonel Samuel Smith: Crowder, Norman K. Early Ontario Settlers, A Source Book. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1993. Fernow, Berthold, ed. Documents relating to the Colonial History of the […]
Ron Williamson shares an overview of early North American warfare in “The House of Cut-Off Heads”
Recently I read Chapter 8 of a book entitled The taking and displaying of human body parts by Amerindians (2007). Beautifully written and informative, the chapter is by the Canadian archaeologist Ron Williamson. The full title of the chapter is: “Otintsiskiaj ondaon” (“The House of Cut-Off Heads”): The history and archaeology of Northern Iroquoian trophy […]
What does ‘citizen involvement’ mean in the context of Mimico 2020? (December 7, 2011 meeting highlights)
I found the Mimico 2020 meeting on Dec, 7, 2011 most interesting. We have an audio file of the meeting and look forward to posting reports, once a transcript is completed, about who said what. Here’s an overview of the meeting by Tamara Shephard of The Etobicoke Guardian. The article notes that Ruth Grier, a decades-long community […]
Cultural Cleansing in Iraq (2010)
I came across Cultural cleansing in Iraq (2010) in the course of a search for books dealing with archaeology at the Toronto Public Library. As a result of my active involvement in efforts by area residents to ensure that the Colonel Samuel Smith homestead site remains in public hands, I’ve developed a strong interest in […]
Mimico 20/20: What does community involvement entail?
Michael Harrsion has written a great overview of James Franceschini’s legacy for the recent issue of Panoram Italia Magazine. See page 12 of Vol. 1, No. 4 of the magazine. You can locate the this issue my clicking on the Archives menu of Panoram Italia Magazine. you can print out the article using the menu at […]
Toronto Parks Plan survey (deadline Dec. 16, 2011)
The following text is based on a Dec. 4, 2011 CCFEW email: The City of Toronto is developing a new Parks Plan and is seeking public input. The public meetings are over but you can take the online survey until December 16, 2011. There survey includes a section that asks you to select the parks […]