Join us for the Carl H. Chrislock Memorial History Lecture and welcome to campus Dr. Christopher Lehman, Professor of History in the Department of Ethnic and Women’s Studies at St. Cloud State University to discuss his latest book, It Took Courage: Eliza Winston’s Quest for Freedom. The book tells the story of an enslaved woman who sued for and won her freedom in Minnesota in 1860. Winston escaped and was pursued while her case was in the courts and hid in a house near Augsburg’s campus, a stop on the Underground Railroad. In honor of Winston’s courage to fight for her rights, we will be hosting a training following the lecture by the Mixed Blood Theater, Know Your Rights! Say Them Loud! You’ll get the chance to practice saying your rights with professional actors, building the confidence to do so boldly, if necessary.

To learn more about the life of Eliza Winston and slavery in Minnesota, you can visit the exhibit that Dr. Lehman helped curate at the Hennepin History Museum, Winston: A Woman’s Fight for Freedom in Minnesota. The exhibit is up until October of 2027.