Library of Congress
Jack and the Northwest Wind: A Jack Tale Text from the American Folklife Center

05/07/2025 08:39 PM EDT

A few weeks ago we published two blog posts introducing the American Folklife Center's rich folktale collections. We focused on "Jack Tales," those stories telling the adventures of a tricky, resourceful young man named Jack. We included audio of many Jack tales within those posts, but length limitations prevented us from embedding the texts of the stories as well. So, to make the stories more accessible to a wider audience, we'll be posting a few blogs with transcriptions of some of the stories we presented in those blogs. We'll begin with "Jack and the Northwest Wind," as told by Maud Long.

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Join us on 5/22 for a Foreign and Comparative Law Webinar: “How to Handle AI? – Italian National Regulation in the Context of European Law”

05/08/2025 08:00 AM EDT

Today's blog post announces the upcoming Foreign and Comparative Law Webinar on May 22 titled: "How to Handle AI? – Italian National Regulation in the Context of European Law."

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Poetry 180: Poem 161 - "Gone"

Poem 161 - "Gone"

A poem by Eamon Grennan from the Library's Poetry 180 Project.

 

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Legal Research Reports: Thailand: Civic Space Legal Framework

The Law Library of Congress is proud to present the report "Thailand: Civic Space Legal Framework."

This report, prepared by staff of the Global Legal Research Directorate of the Law Library of Congress, surveys the civic space legal framework in Thailand. Civic space is a fundamental component of democratic governance, enabling individuals and groups to engage in public affairs, express their opinions, and hold authorities accountable. The United Nations defines civic space as the “environment that enables civil society to play a role in the political, economic, and social life of a country.” In Thailand, the 2017 Constitution serves as the primary legal framework governing civic space. Our research did not reveal many lower-level regulations that specify constitutional rights. The constitution contains provisions that shape the legal framework of civic space in Thailand, including the rights to freedom of expression, assembly, association, and information. A person whose right or liberty has been directly infringed and who has suffered a grievance or loss by an action committed by a state agency or state official has the right to submit an application to the Constitutional Court.

Read the report here

Today in History - May 8

Today in History - May 8

On May 8, 1846, General Zachary Taylor defeated a detachment of the Mexican army in a two-day battle at Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma.  Continue reading.

Dr. John S. Pemberton, a pharmacist and inventor of patent medicines, sold the first Coca-Cola on May 8, 1886, at Jacob's Pharmacy in Atlanta, Georgia.  Continue reading.

Click here to search Today in History for other historic moments.

 

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Folklife News & Events: May 14 at Noon: Ensemble Sangineto: Traditional Music from Italy

May 14 at Noon: Ensemble Sangineto: Traditional Music from Italy

 

Ensemble Sangineto

May 14 at Noon: Ensemble Sangineto: Traditional Music from Italy (Homegrown Concert)

Ensemble Sangineto is one of the most popular folk groups on the Italian scene, comprised of three talented singers and instrumentalists. Adriano and Caterina Sangineto are twins; Adriano plays Celtic harp and Caterina plays bowed psaltery and flute. Jacopo Ventura rounds out the trio on guitar and bouzouki. The group sings in three-part harmony, with Caterina’s clear voice taking the lead. The Sanginetos are children of a world-renowned luthier who has spent years crafting instruments for some of the leading folk and early music performers, so their childhood was spent meeting and listening to such musicians as Derek Bell of the Chieftains and Alan Stivell, a foundational artist of the Breton music revival. Ventura is a conservatory trained classical guitarist who has branched out to play many of the stringed instruments common in European and Asian folk music. Some of the group’s previous appearances include the Festival Interceltique in Lorient, France; the Edinburgh International Harp Festival in Scotland; Festival Kel’tskoj Arfy in Russia; Cultur Congress Centrum in Germany; Festival Internacional de Arpa in Vila de Noia, Spain; and Celtica in Italy. Their latest tour takes you on a trip through Italy via a traditional song from each region, with medieval, Celtic, jazz, and contemporary stylings among others, thrown in for good measure!

The Homegrown Concert Series is part of AFC's ongoing public programming activities highlighting the fields of folklife, ethnomusicology, oral history, and related disciplines; foregrounding its archival holdings; and fulfilling its congressionally mandated mission.

Free and open to the public, but tickets are required. 

Accessible seating is available upon request. Please request ADA accommodations at least five days in advance by contacting 202-707-6362 or ada@loc.gov.

Visit our upcoming events page and click through for each event to get your free tickets!

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Raúl Ruiz, La Raza Collection Lands at the Library

05/08/2025 10:10 AM EDT

Journalist, photographer and activist Raúl Ruiz was a driving force at La Raza, the newspaper and magazine devoted to the Chicano movement in the 1960s and '70s. The Library announced today that it has acquired his collection, some 17,500 photos by Ruiz and original page layouts for La Raza. It also has nearly 10,000 pages of manuscripts, which include original correspondence, the unpublished draft of Ruiz’s book on Los Angeles Times journalist Ruben Salazar and handwritten minutes from the staff meetings of La Raza. It's a major addition to the Library's holdings in modern Hispanic culture.

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Library of Congress Acquires Major Photography and Manuscript Collection Documenting the Chicano Movement

Collection Includes 17,500 Photos by Journalist Raúl Ruiz with Accompanying Manuscripts and Periodicals

The Library of Congress has acquired the photographs, manuscripts and periodical collection of Raúl Ruiz, a leading figure in the Chicano Movement in Los Angeles beginning in the 1960s.

Ruiz (1940-2019) was an activist, journalist, photographer, educator and political candidate who advocated for the rights of Mexican Americans. Ruiz was perhaps best known as the editor of La Raza newspaper and magazine, groundbreaking periodicals that covered the East LA Walkouts in 1968, the Chicano Moratorium during the Vietnam War and other issues of interest to the Chicano community.

Click here for more information.

 

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Congress.gov: House Floor Today Update

A concurrent resolution authorizing the use of Emancipation Hall in the Capitol Visitor Center for a ceremony to present the Congressional Gold Medal, collectively, to the United States Army Rangers Veterans of World War II. (05/08/2025 legislative day)
125 years of Binding, Part Three: Annexed

05/08/2025 11:00 AM EDT

Our exploration of 125 years of binding at the Library of Congress finds a period of great movement and change for the binding office both in physical space and where they fit in the Library structure. Starting the 1940’s with a large onsite bindery in the new Library Annex, the binding office that prepared to move to the James Madison Memorial Building in 1981 had changed in every possible way.

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Women’s Suffrage: Analyzing Conditional Arguments in Historical Primary Sources

05/08/2025 11:00 AM EDT

Using primary sources related to the women's suffrage movement, the blog includes information literacy strategies for understanding how persuasive arguments are constructed.

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Annual Summer Movies on the Lawn to Present National Film Registry Selections

Annual Summer Movies on the Lawn to Present National Film Registry Selections

The Library of Congress will host its annual “Summer Movies on the Lawn” series starting July 10. The series featuring films from the Library’s National Film Registry will be presented Thursday evenings at sundown on the southeast lawn of the Library’s Thomas Jefferson Building.

The scheduled films include:

July 10: “The Princess Bride” (1987) (2016 National Film Registry) 

July 17: “The Goonies” (1985) (2017 National Film Registry)

July 24: “Spy Kids” (2001) (2024 National Film Registry)

July 31: “The Muppet Movie” (1979) (2001 National Film Registry)

Aug. 7: “Jurassic Park” (1993) (2018 National Film Registry)

Click here for more information.

Request ADA accommodations for onsite events five business days in advance at (202) 707-6362 or ADA@loc.gov.

 

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25 Years of the National Book Festival: Highlights from 2008

05/08/2025 02:00 PM EDT

Celebrate the 25th National Book Festival with us! Each week, "Bookmarked" features videos of acclaimed authors from past festivals, as we lead up to the 2025 Festival on September 6th. This week, we remember 2008, with featured videos from Salman Rushdie and Andrew Davis Pinkney.

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Of Note: Family, Fashion, and Filipino American History

05/08/2025 05:00 PM EDT

The Milagros Gonzalez Jamias Family Photograph Album portrays aspects of Philippine society during the American colonial period, including social and economic reforms implemented by President William S. Taft, and the private life of a wealthy family.

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