The Continuing Revolution: Two and a Half Centuries of Social Change in New York

Be part of the conversation as we explore how the fight for freedom and equality didn’t end with the American Revolution—it evolved. As we commemorate the 250th anniversary of American independence, this engaging panel invites you to discover how generations of New Yorkers continued to challenge injustice and expand the meaning of liberty. In New York, independence was just the starting point. From uprisings over land and rent in the 1840s to labor activism in 20th-century classrooms and the movement for LGBTQ+ rights ignited by the Stonewall Uprising, the state has consistently been at the forefront of transformative change. Featuring historians and authors Bruce W. Dearstyne, Nancy Newman, Dennis Gaffney, and Ashley Hopkins-Benton, the panel draws on insights from Revolutionary New York: 250 Years of Social Change to highlight powerful stories of activism, resistance, and reform. Bring your questions and join the discussion as we reflect on New York’s ongoing legacy of revolution—and what it means for the future.

Panelist Presentations:
- Bruce W. Dearstyne: Revolutionary New York: 250 Years of Social Change
- Nancy Newman: Music of the Anti-Rent Movement, 1839–1846
- Dennis Gaffney: Radical Roots: The Rise of the United Federation of Teachers and the First Teachers’ Strike in New York City, 1960
- Ashley Hopkins-Benton: The Stonewall Uprising, 1969, and the Fight for Gay Rights

Questions and comments from the audience.

Panelist Biographies:

Bruce W. Dearstyne is the editor, and the panelists are all authors of chapters in Revolutionary New York: 250 Years of Social Change in New York, published in January 2026 by SUNY Press.

Bruce W. Dearstyne is the author of several books, including The Spirit of New York: Defining Events in the Empire State’s History; The Crucible of Public Policy: New York Courts in the Progressive Era; and Progressive New York: Change and Reform in the Empire State, 1900–1920: A Reader.

Dennis Gaffney is a longtime Albany writer, advocate, and activist. He has written three history books as well as articles for publications such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Mother Jones, and for the PBS websites Antiques Roadshow and American Experience. (See dennisgaffney.wordpress.com) He served as Communications Coordinator under former Albany Mayor Kathy Sheehan and as president of the Albany Public Library Board during the rebuilding of the city’s five branches.

Ashley Hopkins-Benton is a senior historian and curator of social history at the New York State Museum. Her research and collections work focuses on women’s history, LGBTQ+ history, and immigration history as well as sculpture, decorative arts, and toys. Hopkins-Benton is co-author, with Jennifer Lemak, of Votes for Women: Celebrating New York’s Suffrage Centennial (SUNY Press); contributing author, with Brad Utter and Karen E. Quinn, of Enterprising Waters: The History and Art of New York’s Erie Canal (SUNY Press); and author of Breathing Life into Stone: The Sculpture of Henry DiSpirito (Fenimore Art Museum).

Nancy Newman is Professor of Music and Joint Faculty in the Department of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at UAlbany, where she has taught for 20 years. She is the author of Songs and Sounds of the Anti-Rent Movement in Upstate New York (SUNY Press, 2025) and Good Music for a Free People: The Germania Musical Society in Nineteenth-Century America (2010). Her essay, #AlmaToo: The Art of Being Believed, examines the life and legacy of Alma Mahler-Werfel through the lens of MeToo. Dr. Newman’s current research on the Chicago Musical College was supported by a Rudolph Ganz Fellowship and the NEH Summer Institute at the Newberry Library.