About this event

This graphic history of Reconstruction, Freedom Was in Sight: A Graphic History of Reconstruction in the Washington, D.C., Region, emphasizes the impact of slavery’s abolition and explores how Black Americans sought to build their lives in freedom. Using text and color illustrations, the book shows how the Civil War loosened enslavers’ grip on power, enslaved people bravely sought freedom, Black families searched for relatives sold away in the slave trade, and Americans debated the future of a fractured nation. Grounded in the history of Washington, DC, and the surrounding region, Freedom Was in Sight challenges Reconstruction’s conventional end point of 1877.

Author Kate Masur will share more about the book, narrating the hopes and betrayals of a critical period in American history. Copies of the book will be available for purchase during and after the event, and Masur will be signing following the program.