Boston University

History

Sepia photo of the aftermath of a devastating gas line explosion at the corner of Tremont and Boylston streets on on March 4, 1897, which blew up two trolley cars and left 10 people dead, just six months before the Boston subway was scheduled to open. At left, a man in a bowl hat and a long trench coat looks out into the rubble of metal and piece. A crowd of people, back right, can also be seen examining the damage. Photo by Nathaniel Livermore Stebbins, courtesy Boston Pictorial Archive via Boston Public Library

Transportation History

125 Years Ago, Like Today, Many Bostonians Feared Their Subway System

July 26, 2022

Photo of the white supremacist group, The Patriot Front marching thru the city of Boston on July 2, 2022. They walk by the statue in Boston Public Gardens holding Betsy-Ross-style flags. Their faces are covered by white-gray neck gaiters, tan baseball caps, khaki pants and blue polos. Many wear sunglasses so their face is completely hidden. There's about two dozen pictured.

History & Politics

Was the Patriot Front March in Boston a Sign of the New KKK?

July 7, 2022

Photo of one of the oldest lesbian bars in the country, Wildrose in Capitol Hill taken Sept. 14, 2016. The bar is dimly lit. In the photo, a bartender in a white shirt, with their back to the camera, fills up a bar at a tap. Behind the bar, a mirror is decorated with window paint that reads "The Wildrose, celebrating Love since 1984." The word "love" is inside a rainbow heart and smaller white hearts encircle the larger heart.

LGBTQ+ Bars

Where Are All the Lesbian Bars?

June 23, 2022

Photo collage of various women's athletic teams and players throughout the decade. The background is a turf field with a muted gray overlay. The images include: a black and white photo of the women's beanpot champions from 1981, a photo of BU women's golfer Hanako Kawasaki holding a golf club behind her back and wear a red visor; photo of Elizabeth Morse (CGS'14), left trying to keep possession of the ball with teammate Siobhan McCarthy (CGS'15) on defense during drills at BU women's lacrosse; photo of Stephanie Nasson (SAR'16) of the women's swim team mid-stroke, wearing a red cap and goggles; photo of Chiara Tibbitt (CAS'22) taking a shot during basketball practice; an old film photo of Jeanne Friedman and other women's rowing team members from the the mid-70s holding a trophy; black and white photo of Jennifer Lanctot O'Neill (Questrom'91), BU's first three-time female All-American, running with a relay stick; and photo of the BU women's soccer team in a team huddle. At center, an excerpt from Title IX is seen; it looks as if it has been torn from a page.

Gender & Sports

Title IX Turns 50: It Changed Society—but Now It Must Go Further

June 22, 2022

A WWII era plane flies through the sky with a vapor trail behind

WWII History

One BU Professor Helps Another Bury a War-Hero Relative, 75 Years Later

June 3, 2022

Photo of people praying, two young Black men and one White women, outside the scene of Saturday's shooting at a supermarket, in Buffalo, N.Y., Sunday, May 15, 2022. Behind them, the TOPS supermarket sign is seen across the parking lot. Also in the parking lot a parked police van.

Voices & Opinion

POV: CFA Dean, a Buffalo Native, on How Shooter Exploited Housing Segregation to Find His Targets

May 17, 2022

Photo of an Asian parent pointing something out to her child on a small globe in a library bookstore.

AAPI HERITAGE MONTH

POV: As We Observe AAPI Month, We Should Be Emphasizing History, Not Heritage

May 17, 2022

Photo of Lynae Vanee Bogues sitting in a dark blue velvet chair in front of small, potted palm trees with a stack of books by Black authors sitting in a neat pile on a white side table next to her. A young black woman with shoulder length faux locs and a multicolored blouse and bright yellow skirt sits with fingers crossed in front of her chin as she poses seriously for the camera.

Arts & Culture

Lynae Vanee Bogues Sheds Light on Often Overlooked Black History in Her IGTV Series Parking Lot Pimpin’

April 11, 2022

Photo of activists holding cardboard cutouts of President Joe Biden, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi protest outside of the International Monetary Fund headquarters during the World Bank/IMF Annual Meetings in Washington, Wednesday, Oct. 13, 2021.

International Relations

Why the World Monetary System Needs a New Set of Rules

February 28, 2022

Protestors in front of the US Capitol in Washington DC on January 6th, 2021

Politics

Are Trump Republicans Fascists?

February 11, 2022

Image of 4 black and white pencil-style illustrations showcasing the various steps needed for ice-cutting: scraping, grooving, planing and ribbing, and sawing, calking and breaking off.

History

Tracing the History of New England’s Ice Trade

February 4, 2022

Photo of MET alum Leon Wilson, President and Chief Executive Officer at the Museum of African American History (MAAH) sitting in a pew at the meeting house on November 18, 2021. Wilson is an older Black man with short, graying hair and large black-rimmed glasses, who smiles, wears a suit and rests his right arm on the wooden, painted pews.

Alumni

Museum of African American History President Leon Wilson is Preserving a Vital Part of Boston’s Past

January 31, 2022

Photo of Joe Biden being sworn in as the 46th president of the United States by Chief Justice John Roberts as Jill Biden holds the Bible, during his Inauguration at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Jan. 20, 2021, as their children Ashley and Hunter watch.

Politics

One Year after Joe Biden’s Inauguration, BU Experts Give Him a Mixed Review

January 19, 2022

Photo of James Schmidt, wearing a white face mask, and side-lit by a projector, as he lectures, with a clip from the classic 1959 movie Hiroshima Mon Amour projected on a screen behind him.

Humanities

Catastrophe & Memory

November 5, 2021

Listen Now

What Can a New Mayor Do to Improve a City?

October 18, 2021

Literature

Trent Masiki’s Afroethnic Renewal: Six Afro-Latino Memoirists You Should Know

September 15, 2021

Photo of three dumplings in a steamer basket with a pair of chopsticks resting on the edge of the steamer.

Things-To-Do

The Weekender: September 9 to 12

September 9, 2021

Composite image of Jay Winuk and his brother Glenn Winuk. At left, photo of Jay Winuk, at an event that passed out meals to people in need in 2019, speaking into a microphone. He wears a grayish blue t-shirt that reads “Tomorrow together.” At right, photo of a printed photo of Glenn Winuk in a blue dress uniform. He wears large circular glasses.

Alumni

His Brother’s Death on 9/11 Spurred COM Alum to Make Sure We Never Forget

September 8, 2021

Voices & Opinion

How 9/11 Changed the World

September 8, 2021

Human Rights

As Taliban Retakes Afghanistan, Experts Say Biden Administration Made Strategic Blunders

August 16, 2021

As Taliban Retakes Afghanistan, Experts Say Biden Administration Made Strategic Blunders