Category: History

Remember these words: Operation Underground Railroad. Visit their site, donate to their cause, and find interviews with their founder, Tim Ballard.

If you feel like modern-day heroes do not exist anymore, look no further. They do.

Timothy Ballard was working as a special agent for Homeland Security when he was inspired to take a very brave step: leave a secure government job and start a nonprofit. Why? Because a government agency has restrictions that a nonprofit doesn’t.

Since 2013, Ballard and his organization have recruited former police officers and agents to rescue thousands of trafficked children around the world. Not only do they rescue them, but they house them in aftercare facilities to help them get the psychological, medical, and emotional help they need to heal, and to gain skills and education so they can proceed with their lives. When possible, they reunite them with their families. No matter what, O.U.R. stays in touch with all of the kids they rescue. And let’s define “kids.” These trafficked children could’ve ended up in that terrible situation at any age, from infancy to their teens. Some were sold by their very own families.

It’s as heart-breaking as it sounds, but it is something about which we need to be aware. After all, change doesn’t happen when we’re comfortable. In case you’re nervous, know that Tim Ballard is very good at shielding his readers from the “worst of the worst,” while still reminding us of its existence.

Meanwhile, he also spends time writing about the life of a Civil War era slave named Harriet Jacobs–her escape attempts, the abuse she endured, the unfairness that abounded in her life, and her minor triumphs. That time period is getting further and further away. It needs to not be forgotten.

Slave Stealers should be required reading for everyone, especially for those of us who enjoy Life’s everyday comforts and luxuries. The accounts will both outrage you and make you grateful. It will make you feel like you want to do something, even if it is just donating to O.U.R., supporting those heroes who risk their lives to save these kids from hell on earth.

9/10 Stars

If you’ve never heard of the “radium girls” and their sensational trial in the mid 1930s, you’re not alone. Until reading this book, neither had I. But it is a piece of history that needed to be told.

After Marie and Pierre Curie discovered Radium in 1898 it became the “wonder element.” Radium was put into face creams and lotions, people drank radium-infused water, and its glowing properties were put to use in special paint at the Radium Dial Company in New Jersey. “Fortunate” women were hired to paint over numbers on watches worn by American GIs fighting in WWI. Later, radium watches and clocks were sold across the US.

The highly trained women who painted the dials made more money than most in the workforce. They could help their families and still afford expensive clothing. Others longed to follow in their glowing footsteps. That’s right, the dust from the workroom clung to them, making their glowing figures instantly recognizable as they walked home each evening.

Speed was of the essence and these women kept up, 6 days a week, long hours every day. Paid by the unit, they were trained to use the “lip, dip, paint” method, a quick way to give the brush that perfect point necessary for such delicate work.

But over time the radium worked its way in deeper than the women’s skin and hair. A toothache here, a painful hip there, a sore arm, and worse. Much, much worse. Radium poisoning was making its appearance, starting slowly until it could not be ignored.

Radium Girls tells the story of these women and what they endured physically, emotionally, and financially as their health issues began dominating their lives. Eventually their illnesses forced the medical community to connect the dots and someone needed to be held accountable. So began the lawsuits against Radium Dial, who, for years, stubbornly refuted all accusations.

The book is important and I’m so grateful to finally know of this segment of history, one you would never learn about in school. These women’s suffering cannot be overstated, as you read believing…hoping…knowing that surely the company will be made to pay, right? Sometimes the company’s reactions were so, so frustrating.

A very impressive recounting of the events and, although long in coming, the vindication these women deserve.

9/10 Stars

June 2020 Update: This morning I learned that Radium Girls has been made into a film, set to release last April, but delayed due to COVID-19. This is a story that was crying out for more attention. I hope the film does it justice. More info is available HERE.

Even though it has been two years since it’s been off the air, I’ve been mourning the completion of Downton Abbey lately and will probably re-watch my DVDs soon. In the meantime, Life Below Stairs: True Lives of Edwardian Servants has been a fun, quick, informative read.

The whole idea of an upstairs/downstairs lifestyle is very foreign and outdated, but still fascinating. Until reading this book, it never occurred to me how the lack of modern appliances necessitated large amounts of servants in houses that were almost kingdoms unto themselves. However, just like when reading about famous frontiersmen and women, I was reminded that everything took longer in a time when there was no electricity, no washing machines, dishwashers, and often–no indoor plumbing.

I have new appreciation for shows such as Downton Abbey because of the nuances in servants’ characters: the obvious hierarchy among those below stairs, the fierce protection of their jobs, the back-biting and work politics , the sleeplessness, the importance of character references, and the huge amount of rules and restrictions.

And yet, for many, it was either a tireless life in service or abject poverty.

For a poor and unskilled person, but one with great personal potential and a high work ethic, going into service was a terrific opportunity. And, unlike today’s minimum wage jobs, service provided room and board and sometimes, a chance for advancement.

It makes one stop and think how many people today would leap at such a chance, despite the hardships.

This book reads almost like a interesting text book. It is very well organized and uses great “word economy.” There is no fluff, just an outline of the way things used to be in a time now gone. If this is a period in history that interests you, I recommend it.

9.5/10 Stars