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Heed the Cornerman's Cry

by Mike McQuillan

The failure to heed the warnings of the Kerner Commission in 1968 – of a society divided by racism and inequality – has led to ongoing suffering and a politics of resentment over an ethic of mutual care.

Opportunities for a Catholic President, Then and Now

by Patrick Lacroix

Polling of religious voters might encourage Democrats to give up on reaching them. John F. Kennedy's experience shows that Joe Biden, as the second Catholic President, could succeed in narrowing the gap. 

What Becomes of a Broken Party?

by James Robenalt

The Republican Party seems to be refusing the opportunity to save itself by rejecting Trumpism. His acquittal in a second Senate trial means he will be free to demand the party bend to his will or be destroyed. 

Political Violence: Still as American as Cherry Pie

by Alan J. Singer

SNCC leader H. Rap Brown declared that violence was "American as cherry pie" in 1967. Though his remarks were scorned then, he was correct, and no movement for justice can succeed without acknowledging it.   

History, Evidence and the Ethics of Belief

by Guy Lancaster

Untrammelled freedom of belief has been enshrined as an American civic virtue. The nation, democracy, and possibly the planet are imperiled without a collective commitment to respect belief only to the extent available evidence supports it. 

Immigrant Families are the Second Casualty of War

by Elliott Young

If truth is the first casualty in war, immigrants follow as a close second. During the first and second world wars, tens of thousands of immigrants in the United States were locked up in prisons as part of a geopolitical game beyond their control.

Trumpism after Trump: Beyond Fascism

by Gavriel Rosenfeld

Understanding the future of the far-right grievance politics catalyzed by the Trump presidency, it might be helpful to think of it as "MAGA-ism," a 21st century American phenomenon.

History (and Historians) Need a New Deal

by Shannan Clark

Only a program of direct public employment for historians, along with other academics, can lead to a vibrant future for the discipline in which access to careers is expanded, with greater diversity and equity.  The history of the WPA cultural projects shows us the way.

You Call This a Peaceful Transfer of Power?

by Philip Gerard

"If we watched this scene play out in Argentina, Turkey, Ukraine, or Thailand, we would bemoan the failure of democracy, write about a fragile government battling rebel insurgents in its own capital, make dire predictions about how long such a government could stand."

To Save Democracy, We Need Historical Memory to be "Hot"

by Shannon Bontrager

Historical memory can run hot or cold; hot memory, when we make ourselves vulnerable to the pain of the past, is a force that will ensure America doesn't just move on from the needless death of the COVID pandemic or the violence of the Capitol insurrection without committing to justice and accountability.

Unforgettable Images, and Something New in TV News

by Ron Steinman

A month past the Capitol Riots, a veteran television news journalist observes that the coverage of the chaotic protest and breach of the Capitol relied on something new: masses of journalists and citizens (including the rioters) recording video on their phones where TV cameras couldn't operate, forming a rich and important composite of the day's events. 

Weaponized Whiteness: Invisible Hand and Iron Fist

by Fran Shor

There is a link between the summer's BLM protests and the Capitol riots. Both reflect a crisis of a political order based on the maintenance of white supremacy and nonwhite subordination through the "invisible hand" of institutions. 

The Constitution Forbids a Post-Presidential Impeachment Trial

by William G. Hyland, Jr.

A biographer of George Mason argues that, by the text and original intent of the Constitutional impeachment power, Donald Trump's exposure to trial ended when he left office and the Senate trial set to start on February 8 is unconstitutional.

How Democrats Lost the Great Plains

by Ross Benes

Ross Benes argues that the Democratic party has lost an entire political generation of influence in the Great Plains by forfeiting the region's legacy of farmer populism, making the Plains a Republican stronghold and a barrier to progressive legislation. 

Palin v. New York Times is a Textualist Land Mine for the First Amendment

by Richard E. Labunski

In June, trial will begin in Sarah Palin's libel case against the New York Times. The case appears to be teed up on a path to the Supreme Court, where the current "actual malice" standard for proving a public figure was libeled could be overturned. If this happens, the door will be open to lawsuits aimed at crushing press criticism of the government.

The 1776 Presidential Commissioners Forgot That Dissent is as American as Hero Worship

by David Wippman and Glenn C. Altschuler

After insisting that educators avoid “political agendas,” the 1776 Commission Report authors simply assume that their simplistic hero-worship version of history is “accurate, honest, unifying, inspiring, and ennobling.”

Trump's Lost Cause Appeal: Can Cultural Victory Follow Political Defeat?

by Paul J. Croce

Donald Trump has already begun to follow the Confederate script for a "Lost Cause" battle for cultural validation. Those tempted to join that cause should remember that aside from validating grievances and bigotry, the original Lost Cause did little to help most white Southerners. 

What J-Lo Sang

by Mark F. Fernandez

Jennifer Lopez's Inaugural performance showed that Woody Guthrie’s lyric, his notion of an inclusive America, still resonates today as Americans ponder questions of unity.

The January 6th Assault on Congress and the Fate of the GOP’s Faustian Bargain with Trump: Notes from German History

by Jeffrey Herf

It does not seem that even facing the prospect of death at the hands of a Trumpist mob will convince the Republican Party to abandon its bargain with Trump. German conservative elites made a choice to stay the course in the 1930s that led to national ruin and defeat. 

A Devil’s Dozen of the Most Important Religion Stories of 2020

by Ed Simon

Many people would like to leave 2020 behind. HNN Contributing Editor Ed Simon compiles, for those readers ready for a distanced reflection on a year that may have tested faith, a roundup of the best stories at the intersection of religion and history.