It's not your imagination. Genealogists aren't the only ones struggling to get records that used to be fairly easy to obtain from the federal government . #genealogy link.propublica.net/view/5f0a06b...

“They just let the whole Privacy team go,” a now-former FOIA specialist at OPM told me by email in February 2025, referring to public records office staff. The specialist was cut the next day.

link.propublica.net

Please give this page a follow! It's a public history project by debbielinsleyliles.bsky.social mapping the migration of enslaved people into TX in the 19th century. & if you know anything about the Civil War, you know that's a lot of enslaved people especially from 1860-65, as slavery spread west 🗃️

enslavedtexas.bsky.social@enslavedtexas.bsky.social · last wk.

Working hard creating an interactive map of Texas that visualizes the forced migration of enslaved people into Texas from 1800 to 1865. Check us out at enslavedtexas.org We are about halfway in this initial stage, so visit us often for updates! debbie@enslavedtexas.org

In the 1600s, some 21,000 runaway slaves in Brazil founded an independent kingdom in the interior that lasted nearly a century (1612-1694) It had a capital of 5,000, its own king, provincial chiefs, judges, priests, and an army that raided Dutch and Portuguese plantations

For real. #noai #art

Almost certainly the best thing I was ever told about owls was when I met an owl handler at an owl sanctuary and he told me that the wild owls who lived near the sanctuary worried about the tame show owls there and sometimes stopped by to leave them shrews and mice as presents.

Wow holy shit www.them.us/story/daught...

Daughters of the American Revolution Live Up to Their Name by Rejecting Ban on Trans Women

“Transgender Americans are patriots, family members, volunteers, historians, and descendants of Revolutionary War ancestors just like anyone else.”

them.us

What this press release from the Council is saying about the libraries is deeply misleading and y'all should stop doing this: council.nyc.gov/press/2026/0... "Library Support and Restoration: $34.7 million" - THIS IS MONEY THE MAYOR HIMSELF HAD CUT FROM THE PREVIOUS YEAR'S BUDGET.

Speaker Julie Menin and New York City Council Announce Agreement with Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Fiscal Year 2027 Budget

New York City Council

council.nyc.gov

Once again, if you have never been to a WNBA game, I am pleading with you to go. The best vibes of any sporting event I have ever attended. The nonbinary lawyer who got presented with an award during a timeout for their work with LGBTQ kids seeking asylum got a standing ovation.

Do you live in or near Queens and want to learn to read and write cursive? The Bowne House is giving a workshop for adults and teens! www.bownehouse.org/events/cursi... By the way, the Bowne House has some really great historical documents in their archives. #genealogy #queensnyhistory

Cursive Handwriting Workshop Series for Teens and Adults (4 Sessions) — Bowne House

Discover the art of cursive handwriting in this engaging workshop designed for teens and adults. Whether you are learning cursive for the first time or looking to improve your penmanship, participants...

bownehouse.org

Does anyone actually call my Queens District the "Commie corridor" or did someone come up with that for a news story? Because today is the first time I ever heard it called that.

The reflecting pool is being sabotaged by paid protistas

I learned about this app last week: libraryscout.app Find free classes, workshops, clubs, and events happening at a NYC public library near you.

There’s a saying passed down from earlier generations of Black Texans who were there for the first Juneteenth: “It was not a piece of paper that freed the slaves, but the men with the guns.”

GET THEIR ASSES

Purchase with Purpose@purchase-w-purpose.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Millions of copyrighted songs were fed to AI music generators - now there's proof Suno and rivals are being sued for $150k per song. A sum that would bankrupt these companies and set an important precedent.

Hey, friends in NYC! Early voting in the D primaries has begun! Find a polling site and view your sample ballot here: vote.nyc/page/find-yo... And read on for some suggestions of folks I'd highly recommending voting for!

Greg Pak@gregpak.net · 2mo ago

@bradlander.bsky.social and @zohrankmamdani.bsky.social at the Jewish & Muslim Solidarity Rally at Carroll Park in Brooklyn! Hey, NY-10, listen to Mr. Mayor and vote for Brad Lander in the Democratic primary! Huge turnout at the rally, tremendously good vibes. More pictures coming...

As a science fiction writer I really fucking resent tech bros for ruining the phrase "artificial intelligence." 80 years of it being all about cool androids and interesting computers destroyed by five years of "Spicy autocorrect making everything shittier for money." NEVER FORGIVE.

The good taxpayers of New York have given me a pair of Meta glasses because I am low vision disabled, and I seem to have used them more than a lot of people on here, so let me say a little about my experiences:

Katie Martin@katie0martin.ft.com · 3mo ago

BAN THE PERVERT GLASSES

Attention anyone researching people in Massachusetts: www.massgencouncil.org/post/act-now...

ACT NOW! Gov. Healey’s Supplemental Budget Contains Both Good and Very Bad News for Genealogists

There is an important legislative development that could significantly affect access to Massachusetts vital records and the future of genealogical research in the Commonwealth.  What Has HappenedOn Ap...

massgencouncil.org

Saw it in an art show called "Counterhistories", in show on "Art & Democracy", and in show on the 250th Anniversary of U.S. more recently. Kent State (1970) is not completely forgotten like some U.S. atrocities like the Orangeburg Massacre that killed students in 1968, but important to talk about.

Feb. 8, 1968: Orangeburg Massacre

Two years before the Kent State murders, 28 students were injured and three were killed in Orangeburg, South Carolina — most shot in the back by the state police while involved in a peaceful protest.

zinnedproject.org

New Leibniz@newleibniz.bsky.social · 3mo ago

A lot of Star Wars fans are celebrating "May the Fourth be with you." I'm a Kent State graduate, so May 4, 1970 means something very different. You are very old if you understand the significance of this picture.

Unfortunately, this piece on The Great Resegregation has aged well. www.theatlantic.com/politics/arc...

In honor of the day #TheRising #IrishGenealogy #FamilyHistory

🗃️ Super excited to share that we’re hiring at the Adams Papers, come work with us! @mhs1791.bsky.social www.masshist.org/admin/upload...

#NewYork #Genealogy #FamilyHistory Good news: FamilySearch volunteers are currently scanning genealogy books & documents at the New York State Library. Can't wait to see/search these on FamSearch later in 2026! More info: www.familysearch.org/en/newsroom/...

Someone I know might be interested! (It’s me, & probably @vermilionink.bsky.social)

Cats of Yore@catsofyore.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Do you know someone who love cats and history? I'm thinking that if you follow my account that person might be you. Give yourself a surprise Christmas gift this year by pre-ordering this awesome book. You'll forget all about it and be DELIGHTED when the email shows up.

oh my god is it a calf, please tell me its a calf

Acyn@acyn.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Mike Johnson: Tonight we have created a new award. We are going to do something we've never done before. We will honor him with a new award. He is the first ever recipient of the America first award. That is this beautiful golden statue here, appropriate for the golden era.

omg, nailed

Yes! Yes!! Yes!!!

Liam Dutton nails pronouncing Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch

YouTube video by Channel 4 News

youtu.be

Verified Account Tracker@verified.evil.gay · 5mo ago

✅ @liamdutton.bsky.social has been verified by @bsky.app.

Reposting this because, hilariously, someone running an AI news aggregator just plagiarized the hell out of it and got shared 3x as much as the original post. So you know, here's the actual piece. Where I talk about LLMs making copies of copies of copies of copies and how that drives disinformation.

AI update: replication crisis — Jessica Kant

Regardless of who actually prints a story, it is the merger of social media and machine learning which increasingly drives narratives in the immediate wake of a major event. The next time a catastroph...

jessk.org