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Disregard for the Electoral Process is New and Alarming

by Donne Levy

How did the nation reach the point where one party is openly rejecting the democratic process? 

The Post-Trump GOP: Rebirth or Stillbirth?

by Michael A. Genovese

The Republicans are betting that sticking with Trump's MAGA posture will usher in a political realignment with a broader GOP base. History shows that with anger and resentment standing in for a substantive policy agenda that meets the challenges of the times such a realignment is unlikely.

In 1844, Nativist Protestants Burned Churches in the Name of Religious Liberty

by Zachary M. Schrag

Rick Santorum's dismissive take on Native American history led to his ouster at CNN. But his remarks also glossed over a violent history of Protestant intolerance that should be a warning to us today about the danger of the idea that only one creed is truly American.

Political Riots are an All-American Phenomenon (But Ignoring them Shouldn't Be)

by Ron Steinman

The partisan resistance to the formation of a commission to investigate the January 6 Capitol insurrection echoes the official indifference to the race riots that overthrew Reconstruction; the nation needs the truth and needs accountability.

The Ethics of the "N-Word" in the Classroom

by Alan Singer

Neither censorious expungement nor free speech absolutism offer good practical guidelines for teaching historical sources that include racial slurs. A professor of history education explains his approach. 

What's Controversial about California's Model Ethnic Studies Curriculum?

by James Thornton Harris

At its root, the controversy over California's ethnic studies model curriculum (which no school district is compelled to implement) is whether the lived everyday experiences of people, including Californians of color, are a worthy subject of study. 

Cultures of Resentment among the Hitlerites and Trumpers

by Walter G. Moss

Recent essays have begun the work of understanding the resentments of Trump supporters. If this movement is to be stopped, proponents of liberal democracy need to address some of them, without necessarily condoning their motivations.

Racial Epistemology and its Discontents: What Really Makes Concepts "Divisive"

by Guy Lancaster

American whiteness has always included a kind of epistemic closure, refusing testimony about the world from nonwhites. Today, it is this epistemic closure that makes some state legislatures legislate against "divisive" ideas. 

Vaccine Skeptics Should Heed George Washington’s Example

by Robert Brent Toplin

With the American Revolution hanging in the balance, Washington ordered the mass inoculation of the Continental Army against a smallpox pandemic. Would today's vaccine skeptics accuse him of trampling freedom? 

Historians' Perspective on Media Bias: Where it Came from, and What Can be Done?

by Walter G. Moss

Historical perspective shows that media bias is nothing new, but the stakes for democracy are high today. Can historians teach and practice better ways of reading and debating to fight polarization and misinformation?

Are Campus Bookstores Undermining Student Learning?

by Elizabeth Stice

Today’s undergraduates are increasingly being cornered into ongoing financial commitments for everything, while they never take possession of anything. Rejecting digital book programs run by campus bookstores outsourced to third parties could help reverse this trend.

FDR's Court Packing Plan Backfired in the South. Will Biden Repeat The Error?

by James C. Cobb

FDR's court packing efforts were based in a miscalculation of the president's political capital, especially with southern Democrats. It seems like Joe Biden is working to avoid similar overreach.

Remember The Essential Workers After COVID: They Deserve Better

by Joshua B. Freeman

All of us literally owe our lives to our essential workers.  Let’s not forget it.  Giving them a fair shake is not only a moral obligation, it will make a better city for all of us.

“Not Your Fetish”: Protesting Racism and Misogyny Against Asian American Women

by Hao Zou

The Atlanta massage parlor killings reflect a century and a half of history in which racist and misogynistic stereotypes of Asian women have been normalized in American culture. Protests are demanding change.

Mars Perseverance and the King's Bay Plowshares: A Study in Priorities

by Mike McQuillan

The Kings Bay Plowshares group deserve a parade for protesting a nuclear submarine base. Instead seven of them are in jail as the United States spends billions of dollars a day on weaponry.

Walter F. Mondale and the Creation of the New Vice Presidency

by Joel K. Goldstein

Walter Mondale worked with Jimmy Carter to redefine the vice presidency from a stepping stone to a key public servant, and infused this new role with compassion. 

Is the Presidency a License to Kill? War Powers and the Constitution

by Paul W. Lovinger

The Framers' failure to defend war powers from the presidency has given us endless war. It's time to admit that failure. 

Sadly, Hatred is Very Much American

by Ralph E. Shaffer

"Lieutenant Cable, and Oscar Hammerstein, had it wrong in "South Pacific."  Americans don't have to be "carefully taught " to hate. Historically, it's been inherent, one generation after another. The only change has been the target."

Prosecuting Sedition in a Divided Nation is a Challenge as Old as America

by William H. Pruden III

America's cultural value on free expression makes conviction of far-right radicals on sedition charges unlikely. The Ft. Smith, Arkansas trial in 1988 was a PR victory for the far right when 14 defendants accused of plotting against the government were acquitted. 

Holocaust Remembrance 80 Years After the Beginning of Hitler's Campaign of Genocide

by Rick Halperin

We must see our lives as inextricably linked to both the past and future, so that all peoples, individually or collectively, do not have to know of a world with genocide.