By Rory Hooper, B.A.’26 & M.A.’27, History & Museum Studies
Following the Civil War, Reconstruction policies sought to reunify a nation and integrate formerly enslaved people into free American society. This period, complex and widely misunderstood in the grand scheme of American history, is the main focus of Northwestern University Professor Kate Masur’s new graphic novel, Freedom Was in Sight! A Graphic History of Reconstruction in the Washington, D.C., Region (University of North Carolina Press, 2024). On April 21, 2025, she discussed the project in a D.C. Mondays program organized by the Albert H. Small Center for National Capital Area Studies.
Author of a 2022 finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in History, Masur partnered with award-winning illustrator Liz Clark to bring the story of Reconstruction to life. By foregrounding lesser-known historical figures, especially people of color, and focusing on the nation’s capital region, the team has spun an illustrated, interdisciplinary story into a new explanation of the era’s conclusion.
Reconstruction began with Americans fundamentally trying to understand slavery’s abolition. What does freedom look like? And how would federal and state governments respond to African Americans’ widespread freedom? Masur and Clark foreground these questions and introduce younger audiences to the historical events through the perspective of a D.C. teacher: Emma V. Brown.
As the graphic novel’s narrator and a real historical figure, Brown speaks directly to readers, guiding her “students” through the history of Reconstruction. In the 1860s, Brown was the first African American teacher in the segregated D.C. public school system. In the book, she offers snippets of information based on Masur’s extensive primary and secondary research. The remaining cast of characters ranges from escaped enslaved people, church leaders, soldiers and civil rights activists to those who opposed abolition and actively fought for segregation. Masur brings to light opposing viewpoints throughout to represent the disagreements Americans navigated during Reconstruction.
Masur also highlights the diversity of experiences within Black communities by centering African Americans and slavery’s abolition. Wealth, gender and location all shaped how people navigated freedom following the Civil War, whether they were formerly enslaved or not. While the nation’s capital region is the graphic novel’s focus, Masur addresses these issues broadly, highlighting the impact on Black communities throughout the South.
Most notably, Masur’s research posits a new interpretation of Reconstruction’s conclusion. She argues the period did not end with the Compromise of 1877, in which Rutherford B. Hayes became president in exchange for the withdrawal of federal oversight and troops from Southern states. Instead, Reconstruction officially ended in the 1890s with a series of supreme court cases that established the “separate but equal” doctrine and upheld voter registration provisions limiting who could vote. The cases undercut the very idea of Reconstruction and fueled lasting racial segregation in the United States.
Through colorful illustrations and personal, local stories, Masur and Clark take audiences back in time to a critical period of American history. You can watch a video of this D.C. Mondays program below and browse upcoming talks on the museum’s website.
About the Author
Rory Hooper is an undergraduate at GW majoring in history and minoring in American studies. She is concurrently pursuing a master’s degree in museum studies and, this summer, exploring museum careers as an intern with the Albert H. Small Center for National Capital Area Studies.