The U.N.I.A. conference in 1920/ Sag Harbor this week

Hello friends and history enthusiasts! Read on for various updates about Hidden Histories of Jazz Age New York from the Suppressed to the Strange, from upcoming events tro a new review.

106 yeas ago this week, one of the most monumental gatherings in US history took place in NYC: the first ever conference of the Universal Negro Improvement Association, presided over by Marcus Garvey, which lasted a month and included rallies at Madison Square Garden, Liberty Hall, and a parade through Harlem.* In Hidden Histories, I devote a chapter to Garvey and his impact on 1920s NYC, both for Black culture and beyond.

*Thanks to William J. Maxwell for contributing the guest-post about this six years ago.

ICYMI:

I am slowly getting some clips of my talks and events online, putting them on this playlist, on the NY1920s YouTube channel. New review! In The Village View, Phyllis Eckhaus writes:

I’ve been eagerly awaiting an account of the creepy parallels between early 20th century America and today. Jonathan Ezra Goldman’s Hidden Histories of Jazz Age New York: From the Suppressed to the Strange exuberantly does the job. His rollercoaster ride through New York City cultural history, focusing especially on the years 1920 through 1925, highlights how “then” often looks like a funhouse mirror reflection of “now”... Over the course of 23 engaging and wide-ranging chapters, he makes the unseen visible, using yesterday’s newspapers and today’s scholarship to sketch out less well known New York contingents... The book’s superpower is the velocity of its prose. This is a paperback you can take to the beach and entertain or annoy your companions with your discoveries.

In general, Hidden Histories of Jazz Age New York from the Suppressed to the Strange has had a dream launch so far: readings in Chicago, Buffalo, Boston, Beacon, Providence, the Lower East Side (2x), the Upper West Side (x3) and many many great conversations. (By the way, that 30% off discount code I’ve sent out before, “SNWS26,” still works at the link above.)

Now., some new business:

Spread the word! I’m teaching a 3-session online course for 92Y starting next week:

Thursday afternoons, 3-4 pm. Three sessions starting August 13. Sign up here.

MORE LAUNCH EVENTS! Know anyone visiting Sag Harbor or the South Fork this week Tell them I’m coming their way! (See below.)

I’m slowing down a bit for the summer but have a lot in the works for September and beyond.

August 6: John Jermain Library, Sag Harbor

September 25: The New York Public Library’s “7 Stories Up” Series at Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library (details TBA)

October 22: Hispanic Society Museum & Library (details TBA)

The Hidden Histories Playlist! Click here to listen to music discussed in the book!

New article! For the Indypendent, I wrote about Columbia University’s racist legacy, including its tacit acceptance of the KKK presence on its campus in the 1920s, relating to its collaborations with ICE today. Did you know that the Klan burned a cross on the CU quad in 1924? Find out more here. (Photo by Noah Obadashian)

Thanks for reading!