Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/1180196
O n May 2 and 3, 2019, the U.S. Capitol Historical Society hosted its annual history symposium. This year's edition, Reconstruction and the Long Reconstruction: 150 Years toward Freedom, concluded a three-year dive into the post-Civil War period of congressional and U.S. history, including explorations of the ways that Reconstruction-era events, policies, and decisions continue to reverberate through the twentieth century and the recent past. Speak- ers from across the country addressed topics ranging from Grant's presidency to current conversations about reparations, voting rights, and census questions. On Thursday, May 2, attendees met at the Hill Cen- ter at the Old Naval Hospital for a full day of presenta- tions. The morning session opened with four panelists discussing "Ulysses S. Grant: Presidency and Legacy." Joan Waugh (University of California at Los Angeles) reviewed the election of 1868, when Americans were already debating both the meaning and the memory of the Civil War. Charles W. Calhoun (East Carolina Uni- versity emeritus) walked through Grant's attempts to thread the needle of bringing southern states back into the Union and supporting and protecting civil rights for black people. Tim Alan Garrison (Portland State Uni- versity) covered Grant's early views on Indians, a summa- ry of his actions as president, and the challenges of un- derstanding those actions. Ryan P. Semmes (Mississippi State University Libraries) explored Grant's attempts to annex Santo Domingo—one way to connect domestic Reconstruction to U.S. foreign relations. Finally, all four panelists took questions from the audience. Judith Gies- berg (Villanova University) fi nished out the morning ses- sion with a discussion of her work on the 1870 census, which included two questions intended to track illegal vote suppression. (continued on p. 42) Symposium on Reconstruction Traces Its Effects to the Present Randall Kennedy speaks on May 3. NON PROFIT ORG U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT NO. 9690 WASHINGTON, DC