History

Will Alexander’s Epics of the Surreal

Will Alexander’s Epics of the Surreal Will Alexander’s Epics of the Surreal

As one critic put it, his poetry conjured up a world built by “an ecstatic surrealist on imaginal hyperdrive.” 

Jan 5, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Aditya Bahl

Has the United States Ever Been a Democracy?

Has the United States Ever Been a Democracy? Has the United States Ever Been a Democracy?

Blending history, political theory, and commentary on current events, Jedediah Purdy's new book examines how that the United States continues to fail to qualify as a system defined...

Jan 3, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Sophia Rosenfeld

Apocalypse No! Pseudo-Archaeology, Ancient Tech-Lords, and Ordinary People.

Apocalypse No! Pseudo-Archaeology, Ancient Tech-Lords, and Ordinary People. Apocalypse No! Pseudo-Archaeology, Ancient Tech-Lords, and Ordinary People.

Why the Netflix series Ancient Apocalypse is worth taking seriously. Hint: It’s not the science.

Dec 22, 2022 / David Wengrow

What the West Gets Wrong About the Rwandan Genocide

What the West Gets Wrong About the Rwandan Genocide What the West Gets Wrong About the Rwandan Genocide

The mass killings haunt US foreign policy and distort how we understand ethnic violence.

Dec 15, 2022 / Feature / Jina Moore

America Online: A Cautionary Tale

America Online: A Cautionary Tale America Online: A Cautionary Tale

On the rise and fall of the quintessential ’90s online service provider—and a warning about today’s social-media giants.

Dec 15, 2022 / Feature / Joanne McNeil

The Contradictions of Adam Smith

The Contradictions of Adam Smith The Contradictions of Adam Smith

A conversation with Glory Liu about the thinker's influence on American politics, the many ways his work has been misunderstood, and why we remember Smith as a champion of capitali...

Dec 14, 2022 / Q&A / Daniel Steinmetz-Jenkins

Democrats Got Tough on Crime. Now There’s a Crisis of Aging Behind Bars.

Democrats Got Tough on Crime. Now There’s a Crisis of Aging Behind Bars. Democrats Got Tough on Crime. Now There’s a Crisis of Aging Behind Bars.

California and New York legislators are trying to undo the damage caused since the 1994 Crime Bill. But elder parole isn’t working as hoped.

Dec 14, 2022 / Feature / Victoria Law

The Radical Internationalism of the Spanish Civil War

The Radical Internationalism of the Spanish Civil War The Radical Internationalism of the Spanish Civil War

A new graphic history charts the exploits of those Americans serving in the war’s International Brigades.

Dec 14, 2022 / Books & the Arts / Bill Fletcher Jr.

Sister Souljah in Harlem in 1993

How Sister Souljah Went From Radical Activist to Scapegoat to Blockbuster Novelist How Sister Souljah Went From Radical Activist to Scapegoat to Blockbuster Novelist

After Bill Clinton used her to catapult himself to the presidency, the activist Souljah was sidelined. But the novelist Souljah continued to produce work that spoke to millions.

Dec 13, 2022 / Feature / Dani McClain

How the Third Way Made Neoliberal Politics Seem Inevitable

How the Third Way Made Neoliberal Politics Seem Inevitable How the Third Way Made Neoliberal Politics Seem Inevitable

An overhyped new paradigm proved to be a slogan without a movement.

Dec 13, 2022 / Feature / Lily Geismer

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