Lunch in the Library with Anne Hawkins at SCCC

Join the Seward County Community College Library for Lunch in the Library with Anne Hawkins and her presentation “Lawbreakers for the Common Good” on Wednesday, March 21 at noon.

The program explores true accounts of the little-known people who worked illegally on the Underground Railroad in Kansas, the secret network that helped guide enslaved people to freedom. In the mid-1800s, some Kansans defied federal, state, and territorial laws in pursuit of a common goal: liberty for all.

“Operatives–both white and black–worked together secretly on the Kansas Underground Railroad,” Hawkins said. “But what we often overlook in the excitement of these tales is that these underground railroad workers were lawbreakers. Slave owners and bounty hunters in the U.S. had the might of the law on their side.

“Kansans literally lay their lives on the line to help freedom seekers,” she continued. “And the ways they worked together for the common good offer examples of what is possible for equality and justice in our own time.”

Hawkins teaches United States history at Washburn University, as well as U.S. and world history classes for home-educated youth ages 5–17 across northeast Kansas. She received her Master’s in history from the University of Kansas, and has published numerous writings on state history.

The presentation, which is made possible by the Kansas Humanities Council, is free and open to the public. Sandwiches and refreshments will be served. For more information, contact the Library at 620-417-1160.