Tag: 1950s

S6, E6 “The 1958 Federal Switchblade Ban” with Dr. Jason Barr

Dr. Jason Barr, FHSU History M.A. student, joins Hollie Marquess to discuss the 1958 Federal Switchblade Ban. Jason explores the cultural setting of the 1940s and 50s, including perceptions of race and juvenile delinquency, that led to Public Law 85-623. Jason also discusses popular media like films, novels, and magazine articles that led to ideas about who was using switchblades and how, creating a frenzy about teen gangs in the era.

You can find this episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or any of the major podcast platforms. Make sure to subscribe so you never miss an episode. While you’re there, give us a review. Let us know what you like and share widely!

Selected Bibliography:

Athanas, Verne. “Switchblade.” Saturday Evening Post. 1958, 231 (10), 24–50. https://search-ebscohost-com.ezproxy.fhsu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=19537375&site=ehost-live&scope=site.

Crowther, Bosley. “The Screen: ‘Blackboard Jungle:’ Delinquency Shown in Powerful Film.” New York Times, March 21, 1955, 21. https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1955/03/21/93731664.html.

“It’s Time to Disarm Switch-Blade-Toting Juvenile Hoodlums.” July 12, 1958. Saturday Evening Post. 231 (2), 10. https://search-ebscohost-com.ezproxy.fhsu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ulh&AN=19533675&site=ehost-live&scope=site.

Wertham, Fredric. Seduction of the Innocent: The Influence of Comic Books on Today’s Youth. New York: Rinehart and Company, 1955.

Are you interested in a history degree? We have online and on campus B.A. programs and we also have online and on campus M.A. programs in history or public history. Learn more at https://www.fhsu.edu/history/academic-program

Season 6, Episode 1- “1950s North Carolina Women’s Prison Riots” with Chelsea Kiefer

Photo of a Christmas program in the Raleigh Women’s Prison. Chelsea discusses this image in the episode.

Season six begins with a familiar guest, Chelsea Kiefer. Chelsea joins Hollie to discuss “When the Powerless Stand Up: Social Dynamics in 1950s North Carolina Women’s Prison Riots.” She discusses riots that happened in 1954 and 1956 that occurred in the women’s prison in Raleigh, North Carolina. These riots, both motivated by very different circumstances, demonstrate that the women felt that rioting was the only way they could create change. However, the riots resulted in even less power for these women in an era before the major inmate rights movements.

You can find this episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or any of the major podcast platforms. Make sure to subscribe so you never miss an episode. While you’re there, give us a review. Let us know what you like and share widely!

Selected Bibliography:

“18 Women Inmates Riot.” The New York Times, September 23, 1956.
https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1956/09/23/95810601.html?pageNumber=59.

Alexander, Michelle. The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness. New York: New Press, 2020.

Faith, Karlene. Unruly Women: The Politics of Confinement and Resistance. New York: First Seven Stories Press, 2011.

“History of NC Prisons.” North Carolina Department of Public Safety.
https://www.doc.state.nc.us/admin/page1.htm.

“Prison Quiet After Riot Over Death of Tied Girl.” Norfolk Journal and Guide, August 28, 1954. The State Library of North Carolina. Raleigh, NC.

Book recommended by Hollie in the episode: https://www.hughryan.org/house-of-d

Are you interested in a history degree? We have online and on campus B.A. programs and we also have online and on campus M.A. programs in history or public history. Learn more at https://www.fhsu.edu/history/academic-program