Migrations, Social Movements, and the Promise of Digital Local History

Dr. James N. Gregory is a Professor of History and director of the Civil Rights and Labor History Consortium at the University of Washington. He is the author of numerous articles and prize-winning books, including American Exodus: The Dust Bowl Migration and Okie Culture in California and The Southern Diaspora: How the Great Migrations of Black and White Southerners Transformed America. The role of social movements and their impact on politics and communities has been another research interest and led to the creation of The Mapping American Social Movements Project, an online resource for exploring the history and geography of dozens of civil rights movements, labor movements, and women’s movements. This is one of the twelve online projects that are part of the Civil Rights and Labor History Consortium that was launched in 2005. Most recently Gregory has led the Racial Restrictive Covenant Project which identifies, maps, and publicizes the racist property restrictions that were a primary instrument of racial segregation and subordination in Washington, California, and most other states.