Black Agenda Report
Black Agenda Report
News, commentary and analysis from the black left.

  • Home
  • Africa
  • African America
  • Education
  • Environment
  • International
  • Media and Culture
  • Political Economy
  • Radio
  • US Politics
  • War and Empire

New Orleans Buries African American Skulls Used in Racist Research
Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
06 Jun 2025
🖨️ Print Article

Black Agenda Radio · New Orleans Buries African American Skulls Used in Racist Research

Nineteen Black people who died at Charity Hospital in New Orleans, Louisiana, in December 1871 and January 1872 were decapitated and their skulls were removed and sent to Leipzig, Germany for study in the racist pseudo-science known as phrenology. In 2023, the University of Leipzig contacted New Orleans officials and offered to repatriate the skulls, which were recently returned. On May 31st, a jazz funeral was held for these men and women, and the remains were properly interred. Our guest is Dr. Eva Baham. She is a professor at Dillard University in New Orleans and Chair of the Repatriation Committee.

Louisiana
Germany
Colonialism
African America
Racist Medicine

Related Podcasts

BAR Radio Logo
Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
Black Agenda Radio May 8, 2026
08 May 2026
In this week’s segment, we discuss a military attack carried out by Western-backed insurgents against the African nation Mali and the imperialist a
ACLU
Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
Louisiana v. Callais and the Black Vote
08 May 2026
The Supreme Court ruling in the case Louisiana v.
Lousiana
Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
The Struggle for Black Electoral Power in Louisiana
08 May 2026
C.C. Campbell Rock is a New Orleans-based journalist.

More Stories


  • Racial Prejudice in Cuba
    Editors, The Black Agenda Review
    ESSAY: Racial Prejudice in Cuba
    15 Sep 2021
    Contemporary conversations about racism in Cuba appear to have forgotten what it was like for Africans on the island republic before the Revolution.
  • Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
    For My Friend Keasley (Autumn and E-Crew, 25/22)
    15 Sep 2021
    For My Friend Keasley (Autumn and E-Crew, 25/22) I. In my mind—and sometimes sub-vocally—I say his name  almost every day.
  •  BAR Book Forum: Nitasha Sharma’s Book, “Hawaiʻi Is My Haven”
    Roberto Sirvent
    BAR Book Forum: Nitasha Sharma’s Book, “Hawaiʻi Is My Haven”
    15 Sep 2021
    In this series, we ask acclaimed authors to answer five questions about their book.
  • President Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya
    Don Rojas
    Historic Africa/CARICOM Summit
    15 Sep 2021
    African and Caribbean heads of government held an historic virtual meeting to strengthen international partnerships and gain true independence from neo-colonial control.
  • Manufacturing Dissent : US Imperialism and the Uses of Racism Against Cuba
    Alan MacLeod
    Manufacturing Dissent : US Imperialism and the Uses of Racism Against Cuba
    15 Sep 2021
    In Washington’s eyes, the point of funding Black, indigenous, LGBT or other minority groups in enemy countries is not simply to promote tensions there; it is also to create a narrative that wil
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us