Tales from the Reuther Library

Recent Episodes

No Equal Justice: The Legal and Civil Rights Legacy of George W. Crockett Jr.

Posted October 13, 2022 • 00:40:41

Peter Hammer describes the life and legacy of civil rights icon George W. Crockett, Jr. A Black lawyer who fought racism and defended constitutional...

A Miasma of Metals: The Steelworkers’ Environmental Call Following the Donora Smog of 1948

Posted September 2, 2022 • 00:32:30

Louise Milone recounts how smog produced by the southwestern Pennsylvanian steel industry poisoned the air in the Monongahela Valley town of Donora...

A “Most Conscientious and Considerate Method”: Grosse Pointe’s Gross Post-War Housing Point System

Posted August 11, 2022 • 00:28:26

Emma Maniere describes how homeowners associations in Grosse Pointe, an affluent suburb bordering Detroit, developed a point system following the Second...

Labor’s End: Automation’s Failed Promise of Freedom

Posted July 14, 2022 • 00:45:18

Dr. Jason Resnikoff explains that the rise of automation in the mid-20th century workplace was heralded as a way to free workers from manual labor,...

Detroit vs. Everybody: Exploring Race, Place, and Black Superheroes in DC Comics

Posted June 16, 2022 • 00:39:50

Dr. Vincent Haddad explains that while Detroit has often served as the inspiration for crime-ridden settings in comics, DC Comics rose above those stereotypes...