Learotha Williams, Jr. PhD
@learothawms.bsky.social
Professor of African American and Public History @TSUedu | Coordinator of the North Nashville Heritage Project | Historic Preservationist | Author | Foodie | Dude with a Camera | Wanderer | Memory Keeper
Website: learothawilliamsphd.com
Website: learothawilliamsphd.com
Pinned
Reposted by Learotha Williams, Jr. PhD
Commentary of the week, from Rev. Earle Fisher, pastor of Abyssinian Baptist Church in Memphis.
Democracy didn’t break overnight—2026 will reveal if Memphis lets it die • Tennessee Lookout
A crisis of faith in democratic values among Black Memphians requires a commitment to deepening civic engagement, writes Rev. Earle Fisher.
tennesseelookout.com
January 12, 2026 at 10:04 PM
Reposted by Learotha Williams, Jr. PhD
Sadly, we need to re-up this every few hours so that everyone can see it.
Can I stay silent? What kind of warrant do they need? What documents should I carry?
We asked an attorney what to do if you get stopped by ICE.
We asked an attorney what to do if you get stopped by ICE.
What to do if ICE stops you: An attorney answers some questions
With immigration enforcement activity increasing across Minnesota, many people are asking a simple but urgent question: What are my rights if ICE or other federal agents approach me?
www.mprnews.org
January 13, 2026 at 2:17 AM
Sadly, we need to re-up this every few hours so that everyone can see it.
Reposted by Learotha Williams, Jr. PhD
Good Morning Moon.
#moonoverhermitage.
#moonoverhermitage.
January 12, 2026 at 8:25 PM
Good Morning Moon.
#moonoverhermitage.
#moonoverhermitage.
Best First Day of Class Ever
At the start of the spring semester 3 years ago, my friend—noted Jazz composer Hannibal Lokumbe—asked if he could visit and play a piece he was working on for a symphony he was creating called The Jonah People. This piece was his interpretation of the Middle Passage🧵
At the start of the spring semester 3 years ago, my friend—noted Jazz composer Hannibal Lokumbe—asked if he could visit and play a piece he was working on for a symphony he was creating called The Jonah People. This piece was his interpretation of the Middle Passage🧵
January 12, 2026 at 4:11 PM
Best First Day of Class Ever
At the start of the spring semester 3 years ago, my friend—noted Jazz composer Hannibal Lokumbe—asked if he could visit and play a piece he was working on for a symphony he was creating called The Jonah People. This piece was his interpretation of the Middle Passage🧵
At the start of the spring semester 3 years ago, my friend—noted Jazz composer Hannibal Lokumbe—asked if he could visit and play a piece he was working on for a symphony he was creating called The Jonah People. This piece was his interpretation of the Middle Passage🧵
Coming this spring to TSU:
Black Nashville in History and Memory.
Join us in examining what Nashville remembers and has forgotten about the rich history of its Black Residents.
#studyhistory
#TSU
Black Nashville in History and Memory.
Join us in examining what Nashville remembers and has forgotten about the rich history of its Black Residents.
#studyhistory
#TSU
January 11, 2026 at 4:55 PM
Coming this spring to TSU:
Black Nashville in History and Memory.
Join us in examining what Nashville remembers and has forgotten about the rich history of its Black Residents.
#studyhistory
#TSU
Black Nashville in History and Memory.
Join us in examining what Nashville remembers and has forgotten about the rich history of its Black Residents.
#studyhistory
#TSU
Reposted by Learotha Williams, Jr. PhD
The U of FL Press series delves into African American religions, fostering new research methods and examining cultural influences. It explores gender, race, leadership, regionalism, and folkways in its volumes. floridapress.org/series/histo...
History of African American Religions
This series furthers historical investigations into African American religions, encourages the development of new paradigms and methodologies, and explores cultural influences upon African American re...
floridapress.org
January 11, 2026 at 1:08 PM
The U of FL Press series delves into African American religions, fostering new research methods and examining cultural influences. It explores gender, race, leadership, regionalism, and folkways in its volumes. floridapress.org/series/histo...
Reposted by Learotha Williams, Jr. PhD
Carlotta Walls LaNier discusses "Carlotta's Special Dress," her book about being part of the Little Rock Nine that made history in 1957 by desegregating Central High School, accompanied by the 101st Airborne Division www.npr.org/transcripts/...
Carlotta Walls LaNier discusses her book about being part of the Little Rock Nine
NPR's Scott Simon speaks with Carlotta Walls LaNier about her new children's picture book, "Carlotta's Special Dress," recounting her story as the youngest member of the Little Rock Nine.
www.npr.org
January 11, 2026 at 1:03 PM
Carlotta Walls LaNier discusses "Carlotta's Special Dress," her book about being part of the Little Rock Nine that made history in 1957 by desegregating Central High School, accompanied by the 101st Airborne Division www.npr.org/transcripts/...
Reposted by Learotha Williams, Jr. PhD
Glasgow School artist Margaret MacDonald, Embroidered Panels, 1902, silk appliqué and bead decoration on linen, in her pioneering Art Nouveau style #WomensArt
January 11, 2026 at 11:26 AM
Glasgow School artist Margaret MacDonald, Embroidered Panels, 1902, silk appliqué and bead decoration on linen, in her pioneering Art Nouveau style #WomensArt
Reposted by Learotha Williams, Jr. PhD
Suspect arrested in predawn fire that left parts of Mississippi’s largest synagogue in charred ruins
A fire heavily damaged Jackson’s only synagogue before dawn Saturday – the same house of worship that was firebombed by the Ku Klux Klan in 1967 because the rabbi had been an advocate for civil…
A fire heavily damaged Jackson’s only synagogue before dawn Saturday – the same house of worship that was firebombed by the Ku Klux Klan in 1967 because the rabbi had been an advocate for civil…
Suspect arrested in predawn fire that left parts of Mississippi’s largest synagogue in charred ruins
A fire heavily damaged Jackson’s only synagogue before dawn Saturday – the same house of worship that was firebombed by the Ku Klux Klan in 1967 because the rabbi had been an advocate for civil rights.
mississippitoday.org
January 11, 2026 at 3:07 AM
Suspect arrested in predawn fire that left parts of Mississippi’s largest synagogue in charred ruins
A fire heavily damaged Jackson’s only synagogue before dawn Saturday – the same house of worship that was firebombed by the Ku Klux Klan in 1967 because the rabbi had been an advocate for civil…
A fire heavily damaged Jackson’s only synagogue before dawn Saturday – the same house of worship that was firebombed by the Ku Klux Klan in 1967 because the rabbi had been an advocate for civil…
🤔
Winter jackets keep you warm by managing heat through the three classical modes of heat transfer – conduction, convection and radiation – all while remaining breathable so sweat can escape. (via @us.theconversation.com) https://to.pbs.org/45NdzKN
Old physics, new materials: The science behind how winter jackets keep you warm
Modern winter jackets are a testament to centuries-old physics and cutting-edge materials science.
www.pbs.org
January 11, 2026 at 9:08 AM
🤔
Reposted by Learotha Williams, Jr. PhD
Concentration camps.
The SPLC’s report, "Florida’s Gulf Correctional Institution: A Culture of Violence, a Code of Silence," explores the human toll of prison brutality, shining a light on the root causes of violence and the alarming lack of accountability at Gulf and in FDC.
https://bit.ly/4rxXJgv
https://bit.ly/4rxXJgv
January 11, 2026 at 6:16 AM
Concentration camps.
🤬
RFK Jr. recently directed the CDC to fund a study in West Africa that lays bare his cruelty and dishonesty. pauloffit.substack.com/p/rfk-jrs-tu...
RFK Jr.’s Tuskegee Experiment
RFK Jr. recently directed the CDC to fund a study in West Africa that lays bare his cruelty and dishonesty
pauloffit.substack.com
January 10, 2026 at 12:59 PM
🤬
Reposted by Learotha Williams, Jr. PhD
2026 Marks The 100th Anniversary Of Black History Month — A Brief History www.forbes.com/sites/dougme... #BHM100
2026 Marks The 100th Anniversary Of Black History Month — A Brief History
2026 marks the 100th anniversary of federal recognition for Black Americans. What began in 1926 has grown into an overall cultural observance of Black History in February
www.forbes.com
January 10, 2026 at 12:51 PM
2026 Marks The 100th Anniversary Of Black History Month — A Brief History www.forbes.com/sites/dougme... #BHM100
Reposted by Learotha Williams, Jr. PhD
Looks like the LLMs powering AI chatbots have a bias against users who have a dialect. A study of German dialect speakers judged them as uneducated, angry farm workers.
Similar studies exist for English dialects from places India, Ireland (😐) and Nigeria.
My piece for Deutsche Welle 🧪
Similar studies exist for English dialects from places India, Ireland (😐) and Nigeria.
My piece for Deutsche Welle 🧪
AI chatbots are 'alarmingly' biased against dialect speakers – DW – 12/29/2025
Don't speak perfect Oxford English? You may face "shocking" levels of discrimination when using large language models, researchers have found. New customized AI models could be the answer.
www.dw.com
January 9, 2026 at 1:54 PM
Looks like the LLMs powering AI chatbots have a bias against users who have a dialect. A study of German dialect speakers judged them as uneducated, angry farm workers.
Similar studies exist for English dialects from places India, Ireland (😐) and Nigeria.
My piece for Deutsche Welle 🧪
Similar studies exist for English dialects from places India, Ireland (😐) and Nigeria.
My piece for Deutsche Welle 🧪
Reposted by Learotha Williams, Jr. PhD
Amanda Gorman wrote this poem for Renee Good and that’s it for me tonight.
January 9, 2026 at 2:54 AM
Amanda Gorman wrote this poem for Renee Good and that’s it for me tonight.
Reposted by Learotha Williams, Jr. PhD
A few dozen people have gathered outside an ICE field office in Nashville this morning after the killing of Renee Good by an ICE agent in Minneapolis yesterday.
January 8, 2026 at 2:41 PM
A few dozen people have gathered outside an ICE field office in Nashville this morning after the killing of Renee Good by an ICE agent in Minneapolis yesterday.
Reposted by Learotha Williams, Jr. PhD
How the Enslaved Changed the Course of the Civil War: A Conversation With Tom Zoellner 🗃️ open.substack.com/pub/kevinmle...
How the Enslaved Changed the Course of the Civil War: A Conversation With Tom Zoellner
Thanks to Tom Zoellner for sitting down with me to discuss his new book, The Road Was Full of Thorns: Running Toward Freedom in the American Civil War. Zoellner carefully explores how thousands of ens...
open.substack.com
January 7, 2026 at 11:30 PM
How the Enslaved Changed the Course of the Civil War: A Conversation With Tom Zoellner 🗃️ open.substack.com/pub/kevinmle...
Reposted by Learotha Williams, Jr. PhD
A 1944 Pastoral: Land Girls Pruning at East Malling' by painter Evelyn Dunbar who recorded UK women's work during the Second World War #WomensArt
January 7, 2026 at 4:37 AM
A 1944 Pastoral: Land Girls Pruning at East Malling' by painter Evelyn Dunbar who recorded UK women's work during the Second World War #WomensArt
Playing hide and seek with the moon this morning. It seems like the sun is sleeping in today. 🤔
#astrophotography
#moonshots
#luna
#moon
#astrophotography
#moonshots
#luna
#moon
January 5, 2026 at 6:32 PM
Playing hide and seek with the moon this morning. It seems like the sun is sleeping in today. 🤔
#astrophotography
#moonshots
#luna
#moon
#astrophotography
#moonshots
#luna
#moon
Reposted by Learotha Williams, Jr. PhD
I hope historians discussing 19th-century U.S. history this term are including William Walker and the filibuster campaigns in Nicaragua in their lectures, if they aren’t already.
January 4, 2026 at 4:39 PM
I hope historians discussing 19th-century U.S. history this term are including William Walker and the filibuster campaigns in Nicaragua in their lectures, if they aren’t already.
Reposted by Learotha Williams, Jr. PhD
A brown libation, a spectacular Wolf Moon, and a classic Blues tune provide a much-needed respite from a long day. 🧵
#WolfMoon
#moonshot
#astrophotography
#Blues
#WolfMoon
#moonshot
#astrophotography
#Blues
January 4, 2026 at 3:27 AM
A brown libation, a spectacular Wolf Moon, and a classic Blues tune provide a much-needed respite from a long day. 🧵
#WolfMoon
#moonshot
#astrophotography
#Blues
#WolfMoon
#moonshot
#astrophotography
#Blues