Dave Chappelle’s Comedy of Bitterness Dave Chappelle’s Comedy of Bitterness
In his recent special The Closer, and his response to critics of it, he outlines a strange version of identity politics where comedians are always the victims.
Nov 9, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Stephen Kearse
Omar El Akkad’s Odyssey of Hope Omar El Akkad’s Odyssey of Hope
His recent novel What Strange Paradise examines the personal and political toll of the refugee crisis.
Nov 8, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Adil Bhat
What “Passing” Can Still Teach Us About Identity What “Passing” Can Still Teach Us About Identity
A film adaptation of Nella Larsen’s novel dramatizes the mercurial and sometimes dangerous consequences of a person's performance of self in the public.
Nov 4, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Elias Rodriques
Colin Kaepernick, the Virginia Elections, and the Canary in the Coal Mine Colin Kaepernick, the Virginia Elections, and the Canary in the Coal Mine
The recent controversy sparked by his Netflix special’s depiction of slavery and the NFL is a microcosm of the political battles defining our country.
Nov 3, 2021 / Dave Zirin
Why Mike Nichols Was the Egalitarian Auteur Why Mike Nichols Was the Egalitarian Auteur
Mark Harris’s biography of the filmmaker shows that one cannot be an auteur without some help.
Nov 3, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Lindsay Zoladz
Francisco Goldman’s Altered States Francisco Goldman’s Altered States
In his new novel, Goldman asks readers to question the very essence of how we define ourselves.
Nov 2, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Ed Morales
Steve Bannon Steve Bannon
Defiant still is Stephen Bannon, Who could be nut-right’s loosest cannon. Contempt, which Congress now has cited, May very well get Steve indicted. If Steve’s convicted, fair and s…
Nov 2, 2021 / Column / Calvin Trillin
The History of the United States as the History of Capitalism The History of the United States as the History of Capitalism
What gets lost when we view the American past as primarily a story about capitalism?
Nov 1, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Steven Hahn
How Thousands of Black Farmers Were Forced Off Their Land How Thousands of Black Farmers Were Forced Off Their Land
Black people own just 2 percent of farmland in the United States. A decades-long history of loan denials at the USDA is a major reason why.
Nov 1, 2021 / Feature / Kali Holloway