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Letters of Love and Family During the Civil War

A talk with author & historian Rita Roberts

Rita Roberts discusses her book, "I Can't Wait to Call You My Wife", which honors the voices of African Americans of the Civil War era.

Amidst bloody battles and political maneuvering, thousands of African Americans spent the Civil War trying to hold their families together. I Can't Wait to Call You My Wife: African American Letters of Love, Marriage, and Family in the Civil War Era illuminates that struggle through their exchanged letters. Despite harsh laws against literacy and brutal practices that broke apart Black families, people found ways to write to each other against all odds. 

Roberts reframes the Civil War era by telling the story of American slavery through letters that focus on the strong bonds of love and offers a deeply human and relatable version of history.

Rita Roberts is currently retiring from her Professorship of History and Africana Studies at Scripps College, where she holds the Nathan Wright Stephenson Chair in History and Biography.

Books for sale and signing.

Complimentary dessert and refreshments.  

Registration is requested.

This program is free and open to the public.  

*Adult Services

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