Reflections on Marriage Reflections on Marriage
Feminist author Jessica Valenti's marriage to Andrew Golis of Talking Points Memo was the lead wedding story in the New York Times style section this Sunday. It was odd to see th...
Oct 19, 2009 / Melissa Harris-Perry
Did Obama Deserve the Nobel Peace Prize? Did Obama Deserve the Nobel Peace Prize?
My reaction to Barack Obama's Nobel Peace Prize elicited some decidedly "un-peaceful" responses from my friends and followers on social networking and blog sites. As r...
Oct 10, 2009 / Melissa Harris-Perry
Lose the Love/Hate, But Keep the Hope. Lose the Love/Hate, But Keep the Hope.
It seems Eyal and Richard have thrown down the gauntlet with their criticisms of the emotional, irrational, fact-proof fantasies that seem to characterize contemporary politics in ...
Sep 29, 2009 / Melissa Harris-Perry
I’m Not a Racist…I’m a Democrat. I’m Not a Racist…I’m a Democrat.
For weeks the media have been covering "racism in health care reform opposition." For the most part I've found this political moment to be an interesting opportunity to ...
Sep 23, 2009 / Melissa Harris-Perry
Can We? A Brief History of American Racism Can We? A Brief History of American Racism
Congress passed the Alien and Sedition Acts in 1798. These four acts of Congress were meant to protect the new nation from French immigrants. They reflected a broad paranoia that F…
Sep 16, 2009 / Melissa Harris-Perry
We Needed Van Jones on the Inside We Needed Van Jones on the Inside
In March, I wrote here on The Notion in celebration of the appointment of Van Jones . I am both politically committed to and academically interested in issues of environmental just...
Sep 8, 2009 / Melissa Harris-Perry
Required Reading for Health Care Town Halls Required Reading for Health Care Town Halls
I am frustrated with the deepening madness at health care reform town hall meetings. In an effort to contextualize these events I'm offering a short syllabus that may help us unde...
Aug 14, 2009 / Melissa Harris-Perry
Conservatives are the Real Joker Conservatives are the Real Joker
SOCIALISM is the tag line of a bizarre new campaign against President Obama. The word "Socialism" appears across an image portraying President Obama as Heath Ledger's J...
Aug 5, 2009 / Melissa Harris-Perry
Skip Gates and the Post-Racial Project Skip Gates and the Post-Racial Project
Over the past several days a strange characterization of Professor Henry Louis Gates, Jr. has emerged. Many are portraying him as a radical who easily and inappropriately appeals t...
Jul 22, 2009 / Melissa Harris-Perry
Sotomayor and the Politics of Public Humiliation Sotomayor and the Politics of Public Humiliation
One of the most enduring images of the Civil Rights Movement is of Elizabeth Eckford. She is being harassed and taunted by a group of white students, parents, and police on her w...
Jul 17, 2009 / Melissa Harris-Perry