Developed in partnership with The Windward School, and funded in part by a Teaching With Primary Sources grant from the Library of Congress, this collection of videos spans post-Reconstruction U.S. History. Each short film is accompanied by a primary source pack and scaffolded writing outlines to meet the needs of a variety of learners.
Fights Over American Democracy
This video explores how American democracy developed during the Revolutionary War and the challenges it faced along the way. It shows how the Founders supported democratic ideals but also feared giving the people too much power, and highlights key conflicts, especially over slavery, that shaped the nation and eventually led to the Civil War.
Mud-Slinging and Deadly Duels
Negative campaigning has been a fixture of U.S. presidential elections since the nation’s earliest days. Attacks in print or out loud often prompt observers to judge who landed the most effective blows. While these moments feel uniquely modern, going negative in politics is nothing new.
Picking a Partner
The relationship between presidents and vice presidents is unique. After Andrew Jackson’s 1828 election, a rift developed between Jackson and VP John C. Calhoun. After Jackson appointed John Eaton secretary of war, Calhoun’s wife led an effort to shun Eaton’s new wife. The fallout, along with Calhoun’s machinations against taxes on imports, led to Calhoun resigning.
Charm Offensive
For American politicians, the obsession with appealing to the everyman dates back to 1840. William Henry Harrison’s 1840 campaign set the stage for modern-day political campaigning. Harrison turned an insult into a winning strategy with parades, songs, and a log cabin image. These early tactics mirror today’s campaigns, where image can have an outsize impact.
The Culture Question
Culture wars have a long and divisive history in American politics, with gender, race and religion continuing to drive public opinion. To trace the roots of America’s culture wars, we look back at the 1856 election, where issues of slavery, gender and religion fueled political conflict.
1860 Democratic Convention
From the founding of the United States, slavery divided the nation more than any other issue. By 1860, those disagreements erupted inside the Democratic Party as leaders argued over whether slavery should expand into the western territories. As the party that had long held the Union together collapsed, the election of 1860 pushed the nation closer to civil war.
Gaffes on the Campaign Trail
Gaffes have cast a shadow on many U.S. presidential campaigns, from the scandal that rocked Grover Cleveland’s campaign in 1884 to news of modern-day missteps that spread like wildfire across the Internet. Discover how a single phrase or blunder can end up dominating political discourse, from the 19th century to today.
Lessons from the 1912 Republican Convention: Birth of the Modern Primary
The animosity between William Howard Taft and Theodore Roosevelt – who were at one point in time good friends – was palpable, with insults like puzzlewit and honeyfugler being thrown about. Their battle transformed the primary process and American politics forever.
Ida B. Wells and the Power of Primary Sources: A Case Study in Early Civil Rights Activism
Born into slavery, Ida B. Wells later became an educator, an investigative journalist and an early civil rights activist, shedding light on the plight of Black Americans across the South. After the brutal deaths of three friends who were victims of lynching, Wells began chronicling mob violence, publishing her findings in newspapers and pamphlets.
The Legacy of Native American Boarding Schools: A Lesson in Assimilation and Accountability
Between 1819 and 1969, the U.S. government, with help from religious groups, operated or supported over 400 boarding schools across the country aimed at assimilating Native Americans into white culture. Today, Native American communities are demanding accountability.
How New Deal Housing Policy Shaped the Market for Black Homebuyers
Race-based federal lending rules from New Deal programs in the 1930s kept Black families locked out of suburban neighborhoods, a policy that continues to slow their economic mobility.
Labor Union Activism Is on the Rise, Recalling the Great Depression
With the economic pain of the pandemic, new groups of American workers are pushing to form labor unions at restaurants, stores and warehouses. Experts say that it is the biggest surge of activism since the 1930s.
Double V
During World War II, the United States fought for freedom and democracy overseas, but many Black Americans were denied equal rights at home. Activists and soldiers began to demand change, connecting the fight against fascism abroad to the fight against racism at home.
Korematsu and Its Legacy: A Look at Internment, Justice and Redress
The U.S. government ordered 120,000 people of Japanese descent, most American citizens, imprisoned during World War II. An admission of wrongdoing and reparations payments came decades later, but a Supreme Court ruling had lasting impact.
Japan’s Atomic Bomb Survivors
On Aug. 6, 1945, the U.S. dropped the first atomic weapon on Hiroshima, Japan, instantly killing tens of thousands of people and unleashing suffering that has lasted for generations. Survivors were left with disfiguring injuries, radiation sickness and social stigma. This video shares accounts from survivors to show the lasting human impact and legacy of atomic weapons.
How a Cold War Airlift Saved Berlin With Food, Medicine and Chocolate
A Soviet blockade around Berlin cut the divided city off from the West. But in 1948 U.S. and British pilots began to fly food, fuel and medicine to the Allied sectors. That effort laid a foundation for international partnerships still in place today.
How the U.S. Wages War: The Korean War and Presidential Power
During the Cold War, President Harry Truman watched with alarm as North Korean Communists invaded South Korea. Truman believed the U.S. had to intervene. But his decision to rush troops to stop the Communist advance had unintended consequences that shape the world today.
The Cold War on TV: Joseph McCarthy vs. Edward R. Murrow
Senator Joseph McCarthy used bold accusations and populist appeal to fuel Americans’ fear about the spread of communism in the 1950s. He met his match in a hard-hitting journalist, Edward R. Murrow, whose television commentary was sharply critical of McCarthyism.
The Cold War Arms Race and the Ongoing Risks of Nuclear Weapons
Russian President Vladimir Putin controls the world’s largest nuclear arsenal, and his invasion of Ukraine is a reminder that Russia, the U.S. and many other countries have thousands of nuclear missiles, even as safeguards once in place have fallen away.
How the Cold War Fueled a Sprint to the Moon
A U.S.-Soviet competition in science and engineering took off in 1957 with the launch of Russia’s Sputnik satellite, and culminated in 1969 with the U.S. landing the first humans on the Moon in the Apollo 11 mission.
The Human Cost of the Atomic Age: U.S. Soldiers and Nuclear Testing
As America rose to global power at the dawn of the atomic age, some American soldiers paid a heavy price. This video explores how the U.S. government exposed soldiers and sailors to radiation during early atomic testing, then later denied compensation and recognition to veterans who experienced a range of illnesses.
Vietnam War Fallout: A Look at Agent Orange and Its Human Impact
During the war in Vietnam the U.S. military sprayed Agent Orange over millions of acres of jungle. But dioxin, a contaminant in Agent Orange, has since been blamed for creating a range of crippling health problems – from cancers to birth defects – among American vets and the Vietnamese.
The Cuban Missile Crisis Revisited: A Look at Cold War Conflict and Modern Parallels
Russia’s recent nuclear threats have revived Cold War animosity with roots in the Cuban missile crisis. During a standoff in 1962, a tense confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union nearly resulted in a nuclear war.
Rachel Carson and the Environmental Movement
In 1962, the publication of “Silent Spring” by Rachel Carson set the stage for the environmental movement. Carson’s carefully researched book exposed the hazards of the pesticide D.D.T. and raised tough questions about how human behavior might damage the environment.
A Bridge to the Ballot: How Geography and M.L.K. Shaped Voting Rights in Alabama
Weeks before Selma’s Bloody Sunday in 1965, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. urged residents of Gee’s Bend, Ala., to vote, and fed a continuing fight over a small ferry that would last for decades.
The Daisy Political Ad
This lesson examines the 1964 “Daisy” political advertisement, a brief television spot from the presidential campaign of Lyndon B. Johnson. Although it aired only once as a paid ad, it was widely discussed in news coverage and helped shape public perceptions of nuclear risk during the election.
What the 1966 Midterms Reveal About Modern Voting Trends
Following sweeping Republican victories in 2024, party leaders and political analysts are keen to unpack how the electorate has changed. To explore how voting blocs and party affiliations shift over time, we’ve updated this video about the 1966 midterm elections.
Sports and Social Justice: A Look at Athlete Protest Across Generations
When N.F.L. players starting with Colin Kaepernick took a knee during the national anthem to protest police mistreatment of African-Americans, their actions ignited an uproar over injecting politics onto the playing field. Their protest had surprising ties to the silent black-power salute by two sprinters at the 1968 Olympics.
Chicano Rights and the Classroom: A Look at the East L.A. Student Protests of 1968
Thousands of high school students walked out of classes in East Los Angeles in 1968 to protest inequality for Mexican Americans in the public education system. This Emmy-nominated video explores the protest that became a milestone in a movement for Chicano rights.
Unrest in Chicago: Lessons From the 1968 Democratic Convention
The turbulent 1968 Democratic Convention in Chicago holds important lessons. Anti-war sentiment and political unrest darkened the national mood and fueled violent protests.
The 1969 Occupation of Alcatraz Was a Catalyst for Indigenous Activism
In 1969, a group of young American Indians who wanted the world to know about the long history of discrimination, mistreatment and treaty violations against Native people took over Alcatraz Island in California, the site of an abandoned federal penitentiary.
Tinker v. Des Moines and Student Free Speech Rights
Tinker v. Des Moines is a landmark Supreme Court case about students who were punished for wearing black armbands to protest the Vietnam War. The case asked a question that still matters today: When can schools limit student expression, and when are students protected by the First Amendment?
Why Are Schools Still Segregated? The Broken Promise of Brown v. Board of Education
Busing seemed a logical way to implement the long overdue promise of school desegregation envisioned by the Supreme Court in its ruling in Brown v. Board of Education. But implementation turned out to be unexpectedly complicated.
The Pentagon Papers and the First Amendment
In 1971, the Nixon administration tried to stop The New York Times from publishing the Pentagon Papers, which were secret government documents about the Vietnam War. Nixon argued that publishing the documents could harm national security, while the publisher of the Times said the public had a right to know the truth.
From Women’s Suffrage to the ERA, a Century-Long Push for Equality
The Equal Rights Amendment was finally passed by Congress in 1972, and within a year 30 of the 38 states needed had ratified it. In January 2020, Virginia became the latest state to ratify. Immediately, there were challenges.
President Nixon’s 1972 Visit to China
Richard Nixon’s 1972 trip to China surprised the world because the U.S. and China had been enemies during the Cold War. Nixon wanted to work with China to balance the Soviet Union’s power, even though Taiwan was a point of disagreement. The U.S. and China delayed resolving the issue, leading to a policy in which the U.S. supports Taiwan but avoids promising to defend it.
From Saigon to Today, a Look at How the U.S. Treats Wartime Refugees
This video asks what obligation countries have to refugees. It’s a question as important today as it was in 1975, when the United States evacuated 130,000 South Vietnamese allies during the fall of Saigon and brought them to this country to start new lives.
The Equal Rights Amendment and Its Critics: A Look at Phyllis Schlafly’s Campaign
Even after the #MeToo era, many people don’t know that the Equal Rights Amendment never passed…because of one woman. Her name is Phyllis Schlafly. She honed her political skills in the conservative movement of the 1950s and 1960s, then put them to work to stop the ERA.
The Love Canal Disaster
In 1978, toxic chemicals leaking from a buried landfill in Love Canal, N.Y., forced evacuations, drew national attention and became a defining environmental disaster. The crisis transformed a neighborhood near Niagara Falls, and raised questions about corporate responsibility, government oversight and public health that still resonate today.
The 9/11 Attacks: Heroes, Memory and the National Response
Seconds after the World Trade Center towers were attacked on Sept. 11, 2001, by terrorists flying two hijacked planes, New York City mounted the largest rescue effort in its history. More than 2,000 emergency responders were dispatched to lower Manhattan. Those who survived don’t want that day to be forgotten.
How the Military Response to 9/11 Led to Two Decades of War in Afghanistan
Within weeks of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, the U.S. invaded Afghanistan to attack Taliban strongholds. By the end of the year, the mission’s main goal was accomplished. But shifting objectives led to the expansion of a war that became the longest in U.S. history, ending in chaos.
This project was made possible by a Teaching With Primary Sources grant from the Library of Congress. Retro Report is a proud member of the Teaching With Primary Sources Consortium.
