S08 E03 | Club Newspapers and Civic Collaboration at Chicago Settlement Houses

C19: America in the 19th Century

In this episode, Fiona Maxwell (University of Chicago) highlights the presence and power of youth voices in the collaborative print culture of Progressive Era Club Newspapers. Through a close look at Northwestern University Settlement House, Fiona illustrates the varied, and often fun, ways in which children and youth from marginalized communities utilized the power of collective imagination to reimagine their public sphere. The episode highlights entertaining archival materials that feature youth voices to demonstrate how collaborative creative projects such as club news inspired working-class young people to use their enhanced facility with print and spoken discourse to become community advocates. Finally, the episode returns to the present and Fiona's work at the Piven Theatre Workshop to discuss the enduring appeal and relevancy of club newspapers to the current generation of young people, who have transformed the genre into a means of fostering resilience and finding belonging in a time of crisis and isolation. Post-production support provided by Jess Van Gilder (Bluegrass Community and Technical College). Full transcript available at https://bit.ly/S08E03Transcript.