Tina Akouris

Sep 28, 2023 | chicagotribune.com | Darcel Rockett |Tina Akouris |Claire Malon

CHICAGO — Si prestaste atención en clase de historia, recordarás que el Ferrocarril Subterráneo no era un ferrocarril en absoluto. Era más bien una red fluida de lugares donde los buscadores de libertad se refugiaban de los captores de esclavos en su camino hacia una vida fuera de la esclavitud.

Sep 28, 2023 | chicagotribune.com | Darcel Rockett |Tina Akouris

CHICAGO — Al compartir las historias de Illinois y los lugares del Ferrocarril Subterráneo, estamos poniendo el foco en las personas que actuaron para abolir la esclavitud en Estados Unidos, aquellos que presionaron por la libertad de forma constante y de cualquier manera concebible. Nadie presionó tanto como los negros estadounidenses.

Sep 14, 2023 | chicagotribune.com | Darcel Rockett |Tina Akouris

As another school year gets into full swing and summer comes to an end, we also celebrate International Underground Railroad Month. September shines light on the National Park Service’s National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom, created in 1998 to show the history of resistance to enslavement. The Network to Freedom features a verified, ongoing list of Underground Railroad sites, facilities and programs in the United States.

Sep 11, 2023 | chicagotribune.com | Darcel Rockett |Tina Akouris |Claire Malon |appointment only. Sundays

If you were paying attention in history class, you’ll recall the Underground Railroad wasn’t a railroad at all. Rather, it was a fluid network of locations where freedom seekers sought refuge from slave catchers on their way to a life out of bondage. “What came to be called the Underground Railroad were the networks of assistance that emerged in response to the reality that freedom seekers were showing up,” said Illinois historian Larry McClellan.

Sep 10, 2023 | chicagotribune.com | Darcel Rockett |Tina Akouris

As we share the Illinois stories and sites of the Underground Railroad, we are putting a spotlight on individuals who took action to abolish slavery in the United States — those who pushed for freedom consistently and in any conceivable way. No one pushed harder than Black Americans. Too often, details about the hundreds of years of bondage, trauma and disenfranchisement have been avoided, ignored or blatantly misrepresented.