We must give young people powerful stories like this one.—Mary Niall Mitchell, Ethel and Herman L. Midlo Endowed Chair and Director, Midlo Center for New Orleans Studies at UNO

In 1976, second-grader Brian K. Mitchell told his classmates about his ancestor, Louisiana Lieutenant Governor Oscar J. Dunn. “Brian, I think you’re mistaken,” responded his teacher. “There have been no Black governors or lieutenant governors.” Mitchell’s powerful response is now in print: Monumental: Oscar Dunn and His Radical Fight in Reconstruction Louisiana.

The books we read shape the history we know—and the world we make.

Please help us in our efforts to distribute Monumental to public schools and libraries. A donation of $20 will get one copy of Monumental into a classroom or library. If you’re interested in providing books to an entire classroom or more, go here. The Historic New Orleans Collection is working with Louisiana schools and libraries to find matches for these donations, and will update donors when books are distributed.

Thank you for your generous support. Questions? Please contact Curator of Education Rachel Gaudry for more information.