Cameron Neale is a senior majoring in history within the UNC College of Arts and Sciences and journalism within the UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media. She studies how women used religion and religious spaces to create socially acceptable and credible forms of labor organizing in 1920s and ’30s Southern textile towns. More specifically, she explores the varying roles of Christianity between upper-class and working-class women, and how they understood and utilized religion and labor.
Q: How did you discover your specific field of study?
A: I’ve always loved history and knew that I wanted to spend my time reading and writing about the stories that built the world I know. But my specific topic was something I really stumbled on.
The Greensboro History Museum introduced me to the Thelma O’Brien papers on union organization in the city’s textile mills. As I started exploring existing scholarship and archival material related to a preliminary topic of women and Southern labor organizing, I saw repeated mentions of the importance of church, religious organizations, and personal faith. Despite having no background in labor history or religious history, I was fascinated by this intersection between highly contentious, often violent Southern labor struggles and the realm of Christian faith.
Impact Report
16,000+ undergraduate students are engaged in research at Carolina, from humanities to health care.
Undergraduates like Cameron represent the next generation of researchers preserving our history and sharing the lessons to be learned from it.
Q: Academics are problem-solvers. Describe a research challenge you’ve faced and how you overcame it.
A: Trying to cover a niche piece of history that combines two different areas of existing scholarship. There is a fair amount of work published on women’s participation in labor organizing, then another decent body of scholarship on how religion influenced Southern politics and industry. Since I’m studying specifically how women interacted with religion, I’ve had to weave these two areas together and try to fill in the missing pieces. The Southern Oral History Program’s archives have been an invaluable resource in hearing the voices of these women and understanding their stories.
Q: Describe your research in five words.
A: Divine discontent in Southern industry.
Q: Who or what inspires you? Why?
A: Women historians, at all levels and in all career paths. It makes me giddy to learn how they got to where they are. I think, in the public eye, history is still considered a male-dominated field, and for so long the research historians did was incredibly male-centered. I love the support that women in the field offer aspiring female historians and learning more about why the work they pursue is important to them.
Q: If you could pursue any other career, what would it be and why?
A: Architectural preservationist! A lot of my historical interest is rooted in material culture, and I’m a hardcore advocate for admiring and preserving it in the physical landscape. My friends are unwilling participants in my random architectural history lessons when I see a cool building. I don’t think I could be much happier than working to keep beautiful homes alive as landmarks of art and design.