Richard Maxwell Brown, 1927-2014

Richard Maxwell Brown, who recently passed away in his mid-80s, was a mentor to me in many ways.  Dr. Brown (he became "Dick" only once I had earned my Ph.D.) was my dissertation adviser.  He was a very active and supportive adviser who always made time for my meandering monologues on my research, and he wrote countless letters of reference for me.  He was a giant in the history of interpersonal violence, so his backing was critical in whatever success my dissertation and the book it was based on achieved.

More than that, though, Dr. Brown (I still can't quite bring myself to think of him as "Dick") modeled what it meant to be a scholar.  He had a ferocious work ethic, no doubt honed during his Dakota boyhood, and was humble and eager to help others, his very impressive list of publications and other accomplishments notwithstanding.  More than that, though, he had a great enthusiasm for learning.  There's a popular misconception that a historian is someone who knows everything.  Dr. Brown knew a lot  He once complained that he was beginning to forget the details from some of the books he had read forty years ago.  But what really set him apart was his unstinting curiosity.  I guess that's where his humility came in handy.  Rather than trying to prove what he already knew, Dr. Brown was always interested in exploring what he didn't know.  He showed me that history, like the human prospect itself, is not a field to be mastered, but a fascinating puzzle to be explored.

Thank you for everything, Dr. Brown, for a life well lived.

Balancing Individual Freedom and Collective Responsibility

I just finished reading a set of posts from my students in courses on the history of the U.S. family on the tensions between individual freedom and collective responsibilities.  One of the great parts of teaching at PSU is that the students have such varied backgrounds in terms of ethnicity, age, gender, and life circumstances.  Many of them, particularly the women, speak of balancing family and school, are coming back to school after being away for some time and find themselves balancing their personal interests and making a good living for their families.

The title of my own book on the history of the family is subtitled From Obligation to Freedom, and in it I suggest that we have moved too far toward freedom and away from obligation  But my students remind me, often by example, that in fact most people remain deeply committed to their families, much more so than popular culture suggests.  They also remind me that although most women remain focused on their families, that a healthy dose of individualism can make one a better life partner and parent and friend.

For myself, raised to focus on individual achievement, surrendering a goodly chunk of my personal freedom for the well being of others has been a great--if at times terrifying--blessing.  For others, raised to always defer personal goals, a focus on their own dreams can enrich not only their lives, but the lives of those whom they love.

Save the Date: Yo Ghana! Bash May 3

We are having our first big Yo Ghana! event May 3, 2:00 to 4:00 at the PSU Ballroom, a venue made possible by the generosity of the Association of African Students of PSU.

I'll provide more details in the coming weeks, but for now I'll just emphasize that we want this to be a fun event that doesn't cost you much money to enjoy.  Most of us have been to fundraisers where the ticket to get in is $50.00 or more, and the goal is then to get people inebriated so that they will write checks for larger amounts than they would have done if they were sober.  Or maybe to bid higher on silent-auction items than they really should have.

We decided that we wanted our event to be open to everyone interested in attending, so entry is $10.00 to $20.00 if you can afford it, and no charge if you can't.  There will be Ghanaian food and music and dancing, plus some speeches made and awards handed out.  There will be donation envelopes available and some fun Yo Ghana! shirts available to purchase.  But the board's main two goals for the event are these: 1) To say "thank you" to our Oregon teachers for their hard work; 2) To bring together a goodly fraction of the 1,000 Oregon students we work with, and their families, with the warm and extensive community of Ghanaians living in the Pacific Northwest.

You can reserve a place at: yoghana.org@gmail.com

We are hoping to have a big event for our Ghana teachers in the summer of 2016, by the way.