TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - While laws and cultural norms were aligned against interracial sex in Virginia before the Civil War, a new book by Dr. Joshua Rothman, assistant professor of history at The University of Alabama, indicates it was ubiquitous throughout the state.

On April 30 beginning at 4:30 p.m. with an open house and book signing at the W.S. Hoole Special Collections Library, on the UA campus, Rothman will discuss his research and sign copies of his new book, “Notorious in the Neighborhood, Sex and Families Across the Color Line in Virginia, 1787-1861.”

The book contains stories ranging from the sexual exploitation of enslaved women to intertwined interracial families and explores race and sexuality in the pre-Civil War South, including the still brewing controversy surrounding the relationship between Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings.

The Hoole Library is located on the second floor of Mary Harmon Bryant Hall, 500 Hackberry Lane, on The University of Alabama campus.

The open house and book signing is scheduled from 4:30 p.m. to 5:15 p.m. followed by Rothman’s lecture. There will be a reception immediately following the lecture, and Rothman will sign books. Copies of the book will be available for $19.95.

For more information, contact Jessica Lacher-Feldman at jlfeldma@bama.ua.edu, or at 205/348-0500.