
The American Civil War (1861–1865) was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, eleven southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ("the Confederacy"); the other 25 states supported the federal government ("the Union"). After four years of warfare, mostly within the Southern states, the Confederacy surrendered and slavery was outlawed everywhere in the nation. Issues that led to war were partially resolved in the Reconstruction Era that followed, though others remained [...]
At Big Other , author Curtis White shares his love for the music of Sufjan Stevens and the importance community plays in music appreciation. This may seem as if I am glorifying Sufjan in a way that his music will not support. And perhaps it is true that his music will not bear comparison to the music of Beethoven or Mahler. Well, assuming that's true (I have my doubts about knee-jerk deference to the classical masters), so what? My point is not evaluative; my point is syntactic. My point is [...]
150 years ago today the first shots of the Civil War were fired on Fort Sumter. Although no casualties were reported on either side due to the bombardment, Fort Sumter marked the start of a cruel, bloody war between 27 northern states and 11 southern states that would last four years and cause the deaths of hundreds of thousands of soldiers.
Funny how Hollywood always has two movies about similar topics in development simultaneously. The latest to get the double Hollywood rainbow is none other than Abraham Lincoln. Spielberg is still working on his with Daniel Day-Lewis, so first up is Robert Redford's The Conspirator . The picture, which stars Robin Wright, Kevin Kline, Tom Wilkinson, Danny Huston, Colm Meany, Evan Rachel Wood, Justin Long, Alexis Bledel, and James McAvoy, is more to do with the aftermath of Lincoln's assassination and the prosecution of John Wilkes [...]

Civil War Photos MP3: Malcolm X - American Civil War