They Want Our Rhythm, but Not Our Blues: African American Innovation through Pop Culture

O.O. Howard House 750 Anderson St., Vancouver, WA, United States

The freedom often denied to African Americans to move and express themselves has meant that they have had to be especially creative in building their culture. The innovations created under oppression are often appropriated by the oppressor—they want our rhythm. And such culture and creativity has been forged from their everyday struggles—but they do not […]

And It Has Pockets! The Battle for Women’s Clothing Equality

O.O. Howard House 750 Anderson St., Vancouver, WA, United States

How many times have you heard someone wearing women’s clothing exclaim, “And it has pockets!” Comparisons have shown that modern garments designed for women have about half the storage space of clothing designed for men. From their invention, pockets in women’s fashion have represented independence—so much so that in the 18th century, laws were enacted […]

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UFO Northwest: How Washington State Spawned the Men In Black

O.O. Howard House 750 Anderson St., Vancouver, WA, United States

On August 1, 1947, the tragic crash of a B-25 bomber in Washington State triggered an FBI investigation of “The Maury Island Incident”—an infamous Northwest UFO sighting, and history’s first alleged encounter with the so-called “Men in Black.” The FBI’s records from 1947, which were sealed for decades, reveal Cold War fears, jurisdictional disputes, cover-ups, […]

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