A Donegal researcher and lecturer has added a new perspective to Black History with the release of a new book.

Dr Hilary Mc Laughlin-Stonham from Carndonagh is a Lecturer and Research Specialist for Coventry University Online. This month, her new publication From Slavery to Civil Rights has come under the spotlight for its exploration of the mechanics of segregation in New Orleans.

The book chronicles segregation on the streetcars of New Orleans and discovers the impact of local and national events on a segregated system from the 1930s to the present day.

Dr Mc Laughlin-Stonham’s study has been added to the selection list for Black History Month UK this October at Foyles Books UK.    

Set in New Orleans and using the context of the streetcars, her study explores the experiences of African Americans against the background of slavery, segregation and the Civil Rights movement culminating with the impact of Hurricane Katrina.

Yet this book does not just look at the past. It analyses how African American stereotypes formed as a result of slavery and lack of rights that would be used as justification for segregation and violence towards the black community. 


Dr Hilary Mc Laughlin-Stonham is a Lecturer and Research Specialist for Coventry University Online.

Dr Hilary Mc Laughlin-Stonham graduated from Ulster University in 2018 with a PhD in History where she was also awarded with the prize for Best Final Year PhD Presentation and Best Paper Published.  On graduating she took up the post of Visiting Lecturer in American History and American Studies York St John University until commencing her current post at Coventry University.

From Slavery to Civil Rights published in September 2020 and is available via the Liverpool University Press website. The printed edition is available in hardback (£29.95) and paperback (£19.95). 

An Open Access edition of this book will be made available upon publication on the LUP website and on the OAPEN Library, funded by the LUP Open Access Author Fund.