250 to 250: 90. Barbara Shermund, Narrated by Liza Donnelly

Heather Cox Richardson and 250 to 250: Barbara Shermund, Narrated by Liza Donnelly

LizaDonnelly‬ is a writer and award-winning New Yorker cartoonist covering culture and politics for forty years. She pioneered live drawing, a form of digital visual journalism and directed the 2025 documentary, Women Laughing. Donnelly profiles cartoonist, Barbara Shermund whose irreverent New Yorker drawings captured the spirit of first-wave feminism and the liberated women of the 1920s and '30s.

Barbara Shermund was an American cartoonist.

• She was one of the early artists for The New Yorker magazine.
• Her cartoons were funny and sometimes challenged traditional ideas.
• She often drew modern women in the 1920s and 1930s.
• At this time, women were gaining more freedom and independence.
• The women in her cartoons had their own ideas, goals, and dreams.
• They often made their own choices about their lives.
• Her cartoons challenged traditional ideas about how women should behave.
• Her work reflected changes in women's rights and American society.
• Her cartoons became less popular after World War II.
• Today, people are again interested in her art and ideas.
• Barbara Shermund is remembered for using humor and art to show strong, independent women.

POP Interview and Civics Quiz: 

• N-400 Part 2:5 What is your sex?
• USCIS 100:77.  What did Susan B. Anthony do?
• USCIS 128:102. When did all women get the right to vote? 

Family Fun:

• Caitlin McGurk: Tell Me a Story Where the Bad Girl Wins: The Life and Art of Barbara Shermund (book)
• Cartoon Stock: Barbara Shermund
• CBS Sunday Mornings: The trailblazing cartoon art of Barbara Shermund
• Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum: Tell Me a Story Where the Bad Girl Wins: The Life and Art of Barbara Shermund (exihbit) | Digital Collection
• Brandywine: Tell me a Story Where the Bad Girl Wins: The Life and Art of Barbara Shermund (exihibit)
• Liza Donnelly: The Cartoons Of Barbara Shermund
• Monday Mandala: Garden Party | 1920s Party coloring pages
• NY Times: Overlooked No More: Barbara Shermund, Flapper-Era Cartoonist
• New Yorker: Barbara Shermund's cartoons | The Lovely Nineteen-Twenties Flapper Cartoons of Barbara Shermund

250 to 250: 89. Integration in Little Rock, Narrated by Reverend Liz Walker

Heather Cox Richardson and 250 to 250: Integration in Little Rock, Narrated by Reverend Liz Walker

Reverend Liz Walker is an award-winning broadcast journalist, humanitarian, and ordained minister best known as the first Black evening news anchor in Boston. Reverend Walker credits her experience in the second wave of desegregation at Little Rock Central High School to her trailblazing efforts for intercultural dialogue and social justice.

In 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against segregation in public schools.

• The case was called Brown v. Board of Education.

In 1957, nine Black students enrolled at Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas.

• They became known as the Little Rock Nine.
• A white crowd tried to stop the students from entering the school.
• The governor of Arkansas ordered the National Guard to block the students.

President Dwight D. Eisenhower took control of the National Guard.

• He also sent U.S. Army soldiers to Little Rock.
• The soldiers protected the students as they entered the school.
• Eisenhower said the country must follow decisions made by the courts.
• He said: "Mob rule cannot be allowed to override the decisions of the courts."

The Little Rock Nine showed great courage as they helped integrate public schools.

• Their story became an important part of the fight for civil rights and equal education.

POP Interview and Civics Quiz: 

• N-400 Part 9:7. Have you EVER ordered, incited, called for, committed, assisted, helped with, or otherwise participated in intentional harm or suffering to any person becaue of their race, religion, national origin, membership in a particular group, or political opinion?
• 100:84 / 128:112.   What did the civil rights movement do?

Family Fun:

• Center for Civic Education: The Struggle for Civil Rights playlist
• Eisenhower Library: Civil Rights: The Little Rock School Integration Crisis
• Facing History & Ourselves: The Little Rock Nine: Connecting 1957 to Today
• NMAAHC: The Little Rock Nine
• NPS: Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site | Lesson Plans | Junior Ranger activity book
• PBS American Experience: Eyes on the Prize, episode 2: Fighting Back (stream or borrow the dvds from your local library) | clip 
• Postal Museum: 37c To Form a More Perfect Union: 1957 Little Rock Nine single
• PBS Learning Media: Educational Equality in the Civil Rights Movement
• US Mint: Little Rock Nine Bronze Medal
• VOA Learning English: Brown v. Board of Education Helps Launch Civil Rights Movement
• Zinn Project: Little Rock Nine (several lesson plans)

250 to 250: 88. Jewish Community of Early Savannah, Narrated by Rabbi Robert Haas

Heather Cox Richardson and 250 to 250: Jewish Community of Early Savannah, Narrated by Rabbi Robert Haas

Rabbi Robert Haas is the 14th spiritual leader of Congregation Mickve Israel in Savannah, Georgia and a sought-after lecturer, comedian, preacher, and interfaith leader. Rabbi Haas tells the story of the Jewish refugees who arrived in Savannah in 1733 and founded Congregation Mikve Israel, the oldest Jewish congregation in the American South.

The colony of Georgia was founded in 1733.

• Five months later, a ship called the William and Sarah arrived in Savannah, Georgia.
• The ship carried 41 Jewish refugees.
• They came to America to build new lives and practice their religion freely.
• They brought a Torah scroll and other religious items with them.
• The group established Congregation Mikveh Israel in Savannah.
• It became the third-oldest Jewish congregation in the United States.
• It is also one of the oldest Jewish congregations in the South.

In 1820, the congregation dedicated a new synagogue.

• Thomas Jefferson wrote a letter to congratulate the congregation.
• Jefferson praised the United States for protecting religious freedom.
• He believed religious freedom could help people of different religions live together in peace.
• Jefferson wrote: 
• [America] has been the first to prove to the world two truths . . . 
• that man can govern himself, 
• and that religious freedom is the most effectual (relief) against religious dissension (violence).
• The story of Congregation Mikveh Israel shows the importance of religious freedom in American history.

POP Interview and Civics Quiz: 

• N-400 Part 9:7. Have you ever stopped someone from practicing their religion?
• USCIS 100:10. What is freedom of religion?
• USCIS 128:65. What are three rights of everyone living in the United States? 
• USCIS 100:58. / 128:73. What is one reason colonists came to America?

Family Fun:

• Breman Museum: The First Jews in Georgia
• CurrentGA: Congregation Mickve Israel Shares Letter From George Washington For America 250.
• GPB Education: The First Jewish Settlers of Georgia | Georgia Stories
• Hadassah: Savannah, a Haven for Jews Since the Colonial Era
• ISJL: Encyclopedia of Southern Jewish Communities - Savannah, Georgia
• Jewish Coloring Pages: coloring pages
• LOC: From Haven to Home: 350 Years of Jewish Life in America
• Mickve Israel Savannah: Jefferson and the Jews 1 and 2 | A History of Jewish Immigration to the United States playlist

250 to 250: 87. Sandra Day O'Connor, Narrated by Joyce White Vance

Heather Cox Richardson and 250 to 250: Sandra Day O'Connor, Narrated by Joyce White Vance

Joyce White Vance is a prominent legal analyst, Professor of Law, New York Times bestselling author, and former federal prosecutor who served as the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Alabama during the Obama Administration. Vance explores the legacy of Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, the first female Supreme Court Justice.

Sandra Day O'Connor grew up in Arizona.

• She studied law and had a long legal career.
• In 1981, President Ronald Reagan nominated her to the U.S. Supreme Court.
• The Senate voted to approve her.

She became the first woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court.

• O'Connor served on the Supreme Court for about 25 years.
• She carefully studied the facts of each case.
• She was often the deciding vote in important cases.

O'Connor retired from the Supreme Court in 2006.

• She hoped more women would serve on the Supreme Court after her.
• She said, “It’s nice to be the first, but don’t be the last.”
• Sandra Day O'Connor helped open the door for more women in government and law.

POP Interview and Civics Quiz: 

• Part 9:15a. Have you EVER been arrested, cited, detained, or confined by any law enforcement officer, military official (in the U.S. or elsewhere), or immigration official for any reason, or been charged with a crime or offense, or notified that you were being investigated for a crime?
• USCIS 100:39. How many justices are on the Supreme Court?
• USCIS 128:55. How long do Supreme Court justices serve?

Family Fun:

• ABA Journal: Sandra Day O'Connor Coloring Page
• Gilder Lehrman: Sandra Day O’Connor: A Life of Action
• iCivics: The Life and Legacy of Justice Sandra Day O'Connor | Insight | Argument Wars game | Court Quest game 
• PBS American Experience: Sandra Day O'Connor: The First
• PBS Learning Media: First Female Justice | Remembering Sandra Day O'Connor
• Sandra Day O'Connor Institute: Civics for Life
• Supreme Court: Sandra Day O’Connor: First Woman on the Supreme Court
• Untold History: Sandra Day O’Connor: “Don’t Take the Bait”

250 to 250: 86. Green Mountain Boys, Narrated by Representative Becca Balint

Heather Cox Richardson and 250 to 250: Green Mountain Boys, Narrated by Representative Becca Balint

U.S. Rep. Becca Balint has represented Vermont in Congress since 2023, making history as the first woman and openly LGBTQ+ person to do so. A former teacher and state legislator, Rep. Balint is the daughter of a working-class mother and immigrant father and has dedicated her career to fighting for working people, defending democracy, and ensuring every community has a voice. Balint talks about the Green Mountain Boys, the Vermont militia known for its heroics during the Revolutionary War. 

Ethan Allen was a farmer and landowner.

• In the 1760s, he helped form the Green Mountain Boys.
• The Green Mountain Boys were a militia group in the area that is now Vermont.
• They first worked to protect settlers and their land.
• During the American Revolution, they fought against the British.
• On May 10, 1775, they captured Fort Ticonderoga.
• This was an important early American victory.
• The Americans captured cannons and other weapons at the fort.
• The Continental Army later used these cannons near Boston.
• In March 1776, the British left Boston.
• Ethan Allen helped give the colonists hope that they could defeat the British.
• The Green Mountain Boys became famous for their role in the fight for American independence.
  

POP Interview and Civics Quiz: 

• N-400 Part 9:8.b. Have you EVER served in, been a member of, assisted (helped), or participated in any armed group (a group that carries weapons), for example: 
• paramilitary unit (a group of people who act like a military group but are not part of the official military)
• self-defense unit
• vigilante unit
•  rebel group
• or guerrilla group?
• USCIS 100:61. Why did the colonists fight the British?
• USCIS 128:77. Name one reason why the Americans declared independence from Britain.

Family Fun:

• C-SPAN Classroom: The Green Mountain Boys and the American Revolution
• Ethan Allen Homestead Museum: History 
• Fort Ticonderoga: Learn and Explore at Home (activities, puzzles, coloring pages)
• Postal Museum: Vermont Sesquicentennial Issue | Fort Ticonderoga
• Vermont History: New Frontier: The Green Mountain Boys

250 to 250: 85. Shays' Rebellion, Narrated by Senator Elizabeth Warren

 

 

Heather Cox Richardson and 250 to 250: Shays' Rebellion, Narrated by Senator Elizabeth Warren

Elizabeth Warren is a prominent and influential progressive U.S. Senator from Massachusetts with a strong focus on economic justice, consumer protection, and financial regulation. Warren recounts Shays' Rebellion, the farmers' uprising that exposed the weakness of the Articles of Confederation and spurred the drafting of the Constitution. ‪

In 1786, many farmers in western Massachusetts had money problems.

• They could not pay their taxes and debts.
• Some farmers were in danger of losing their farms.
• They asked the Massachusetts government for help.
• The government did not give them the help they wanted.
• Daniel Shays and other farmers began to protest.
• They closed some courts to stop farmers from losing their property.
• This protest became known as Shays' Rebellion.
• The national government was weak under the Articles of Confederation.
• Congress had difficulty raising money to respond to the rebellion.
• A private militia helped stop the rebellion in 1787.
• Leaders such as George Washington worried that the national government was too weak.
• In May 1787, delegates met in Philadelphia to create a stronger government.
• They wrote the U.S. Constitution.
  

POP Interview and Civics Quiz:

• N-400 Part 9:31. Do you support the Constitution and form of Government of the United States?
• USCIS 100:02. What does the Constitution do?
• USCIS 128:14. Many documents influenced the U.S. Constitution. Name one.

Family Fun:

• AmRev: How Shays Rebellion Led to Our Constitution
• AmRevMuseum: Timeline of the American Revolution: A New Nation
• America in Class: After Shays' Rebellion
• American Battlefield Trust: Shay's Rebellion
• MHS: “This Convulsed Commonwealth”: Daniel Shays Attempts to Call a Truce during Shays’ Rebellion, the Agrarian Revolt Named for Him
• Mount Vernon: Shay's Rebellion
• NCC: 3.1 Info Brief: Summary of Shays’ Rebellion
• NPS: Springfield Armory National Historic | Shays’ Rebellion: A Nation on Trial
• PBS Learning Media: Shay's Rebellion Interactive
• STCC: Shays' Rebellion and the Making of a Nation | Lesson Plans
• Zinn Education Project: Aug. 29, 1786: Shays’ Rebellion

250 to 250: 84. Apollo 11, Narrated by Senator Mark Kelly

Heather Cox Richardson and 250 to 250: Apollo 11, Narrated by Senator Mark Kelly

Mark Kelly has served his country as a U.S. Navy combat pilot, a NASA astronaut, and now as a U.S. Senator for Arizona. Kelly reflects on the improbable quest to send American astronauts to the moon. 

On July 20, 1969, Apollo 11 landed on the Moon.

• Neil Armstrong became the first person to walk on the Moon.
• The Moon landing was an important victory for the United States in the Space Race with the Soviet Union.
• In 1962, President John F. Kennedy challenged the United States to send people to the Moon.
• Kennedy said Americans should do difficult things because they are important.
• He said: We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things not because they're easy, but because they are hard.

Seven years later, the United States achieved this goal.

• More than 600 million people around the world watched the Moon landing on television.
• The Apollo 11 lunar module was called Eagle.
• Armstrong famously said, “That’s one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind.”
• The Apollo 11 mission showed the importance of science, technology, teamwork, and exploration.
• The Moon landing became one of the most important achievements in American history.

POP Interview and Civics Quiz:

• N-400 Part 9:37. If the law requires it, are you willing to perform work of national importance under civilian direction (do non-military work that the U.S. Government says is important to the country)?
• USCIS 100:53. What is one promise you make when you become a United States citizen?
• USCIS 128:118. Name one example of an American innovation.

Family Fun:

• Air and Space Museum: Apollo 11 | Artifacts | Learn (many resources)
• NASA: Apollo 11 | coloring pages
• NPS: America’s Space Program: Exploring a New Frontier lesson plan | President John F. Kennedy and the Moonshot: Inspiration and Achievement
• PBS American Experience: The Untold Story of the Space Race (1957-1963) | Full Documentary | How America Won the Space Race  | Chasing the Moon (stream or borrow the DVDs from your library)
• PBS Learning Media: The Road to Apollo: An Interactive Journey
• TED-ed: NASA’s first software engineer: Margaret Hamilton - Matt Porter & Margaret Hamilton
• US Mint: The U.S. Mint and NASA Celebrate Decades of Coins and Space
• VOA News: US Marks 50th Years Since Historic Apollo 11 Mission to Moon
• VOA Learning English: Apollo Astronauts Celebrate 50 Years Since First Moon Landing
• Vox: Apollo 11’s journey to the moon, annotated
• Washington Post: Here’s how Apollo 11 forever changed how we watch TV

250 to 250: 83. Palmer Raids, Narrated by Allison Gill

Heather Cox Richardson and 250 to 250: Palmer Raids, Narrated by Allison Gill

Allison Gill hosts and executive produces the GLAAD-nominated and Webby-award-winning podcasts The Daily Beans, Cleanup on Aisle 45, and UnJustified, and is the founder of the MSW Media podcast network. Gill recounts the Palmer Raids of 1919–1920, when thousands of Americans were arrested without warrants during the nation's first Red Scare.

After World War I, many Americans became afraid of communism and political violence.

• This period was called the First Red Scare.
• In 1919 and 1920, U.S. Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer approved a series of raids.
• Federal agents searched for suspected communists, anarchists, and other political radicals.
• Many of the people targeted were immigrants.
• Federal agents arrested thousands of people.
• Many people were arrested without enough evidence or proper legal protection.
• More than 500 people were deported from the United States.
• Some Americans believed the raids were necessary to protect the country.
• Other Americans believed the raids violated civil liberties and constitutional rights.
• Federal Judge George W. Anderson strongly criticized the government's actions.
• The Palmer Raids raised important questions about national security, freedom, and individual rights.

POP Interview and Civics Quiz:

• N-400 Part 9:5.  Have you EVER been a member of the communist part or a group that opposed all governemnt?
• USCIS 100:51.  What are two rights of everyone living in the United States?
• USCIS 128:65.  What are three rights of everyone living in the United States? 

Family Fun:

• ACLU: ACLU History | Know Your Rights | Activity Book | How to Make a “Know Your Rights” Zine
• Bill of Rights Institute: The Red Scare and Civil Liberties
• Covell: Color it Rights activity book
• FBI: Palmer Raids
• ILRC: Red Cards (multiple languages)
• LOC: Palmer Raids: Topics in Chronicling America
• NCC: On this day, massive raids during the Red Scare
• PBS: Red Scare Crackdown | The Bombing of Wall Street
• New Yorker: When America Tried to Deport Its Radicals
• We Choose Welcome: Color for Welcome
• Zinn Project: Nov. 28, 1919: Jane Addams and Palmer Raids