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Louis Stokes was elected to the U.S. Congress from Ohio in 1969 and served for 30 years – a record tenure, at the time, for an African-American in the House of Representatives. In this oral history from the collection of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, Stokes details his journey from a Depression era childhood in Cleveland to the halls of Congress. And he recalls the founding of the caucus – which marks its 40th anniversary in 2011 – and early strategies to gain political power and influence.

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Charles Rangel entered the Congress as a representative from New York in 1971 and eventually served as chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. He lost that position after ethics violation charges surfaced – and his colleagues voted in early December 2010 to censure him. In this oral history from the collection of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, Rangel recalls his political career and the founding of the caucus – which marks its 40th anniversary in 2011.

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The Rev. Walter Fauntroy served as the District of Columbia’s first delegate to Congress from 1971 to 1991, and was a founding member of the Congressional Black Caucus. In this oral history from the collection of the CBC Foundation, Fauntroy talks about his civil rights work and his political career.

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Yvonne Brathwaite Burke served in the United States House of Representatives from California in the 1970s. In this never before televised oral history from the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, she recalls the work of the caucus, her efforts on behalf of displaced homemakers, and an unlikely political battle to save the Capitol beauty shop for working women.

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C-SPAN's "First Ladies: Influence & Image" follows the life of Lucretia Garfield and her influence on the 20th president, James A. Garfield.

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In this program from our 1999 "American Presidents: Life Portraits" series we focused on James Garfield's life and career. Historians discussed Garfield's military service, his election as president and assassination shortly after his inauguration. Suzanne Miller, the site manager at Garfield's home in Mentor, Ohio, talked about several of the artifacts and documents that Garfield left behind. 

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C-SPAN’s Local Content Vehicles take American History TV on the road. Throughout the weekend of May 18-20 we feature the history of Columbia, South Carolina.

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Thousands of colonists rejected the War for American Independence and many fled to the British stronghold of New York City. San Jose State University History Professor Ruma Chopra discusses the situation in the city and the perspective of those who looked upon the British as natural allies in religion, language and blood and thought the violence of rebellion was unnecessary and unlawful.

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This is a look at President Eisenhower’s views and actions in the area of civil rights, including the desegregation of the armed forces, his appointments of pro-civil rights Supreme Court justices and the dispatching of the 101st Airborne division to assist in the integration of Little Rock High School in Arkansas.  This discussion was part of a conference titled, “Ike Reconsidered: Lessons from the Eisenhower Legacy for the 21st Century,” co-hosted by Hunter College, City University of New York, the Roosevelt House Public Policy Institute & the Eisenhower Foundation.

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