Welcome to the History Department at the University of Cincinnati where we strive for inclusive excellence in our teaching, writing, research, and community engagement. The faculty, staff and students in our department are committed to supporting racial justice and equity in our local community, state, country and in the world. Studying the past is vitally necessary to understanding the ongoing inequities in our society and societies throughout the world that we have seen magnified by the Covid-19 pandemic and by the more recent killing of unarmed African American men and women by law enforcement, as well as by ongoing acts of violence and bigotry against other racial and religious minorities in the U.S. It might be helpful and indeed necessary to share recent statements put forth by the American Historical Association (AHA) and the National Council on Public History (NCPH) focusing on the history of racist violence in the United States. These statements also include links to other resources that faculty and students alike might find instructive. Now more than ever, we need to understand the history of the present; and the history of the present is all about the past.