Roundup

The History of the Holocaust Site Recently Struck by a Russian Missile

by Jeffrey Veidlinger

The memorialization of the Nazi killing field at Babi Yar near Kyiv has long been entangled with the competing versions of history favored by communists, Ukrainian and Russian nationalists, and the descendants of Jews, Roma, and other victims of wartime massacres. 

Is Emma Camp Correct That College Students Silence Themselves?

by Claire Potter

Do the writings of an intellectually self-assured college senior actually reflect a crisis of self-censorship, or a long tradition of finding and campaigning against alleged "conformism"? 

Thanatos Triumphant

by Mike Davis

Russian's invasion of Ukraine has revealed the nihilism of the world's leaders from Moscow to Washington, and the failure of the American left to develop a meaningful alternative to a global death-wish led by oligarchs.

West Side Story and the Tragedy of Progressive Hollywood

by Éric Morales-Franceschini

Critical debates about the "West Side Story" remake focus on representation, but ignore the politics of Puerto Rico. 

Century-Old Racist Tropes Guide US Policy on Venezuela

by Tim Gill

In justifying a neocolonial exercise of power over Latin America, U.S. policymakers have depended on many of the same racist ideas as their 19th-century forebears.

The Most Revealing Moment in Former Louisville Police Officer's Trial

by Matthew Guariglia

Former officer Brett Hankison didn't hesitate to defend his actions (shooting 10 bullets through a glass door during an unannounced raid) as legitimate. Policing has shaped the law in such a way that his confidence is justified. 

The Story of Adeline Henson

by Martha S. Jones

Adeline Henson's story shows the necessity of digging beneath the surface of documentary sources to uncover the humanity of enslaved people. 

What Binds Some American Evangelicals to Putin's Regime and War?

by Bethany Moreton

Russia's embrace of both religious nationalism and gender traditionalism makes many American evangelicals feel that Putin is their ally in a war against spiritual degeneracy. 

When Musicians Went on Strike – and Won

by Joey De La Neve Defrancesco

Professional unionized musicians in the 1940s struck to stop the impact of recording technology on their livelihoods. It's an example for musical artists being squeezed by streaming services today. 

Ukraine's Wakeup Call: A Global Age is Here

by Karen J. Greenberg

Whether it's cyberwarfare or energy prices, the impacts of the invasion of Ukraine on Americans will be significant, and national leaders need to respond in ways that recognize global interconnections. 

The Roundup Top Ten for March 4, 2022

The top opinion writing by historians and about history from around the web this week. 

The History of Tying Up Traffic for Protest

by David Greenberg

More militant leaders in the Black freedom movement advocated obstructing traffic on a large scale as an expanded form of nonviolent direct action; the tensions these plans provoked in the movement show that there are seldom clear principles for which movement tactics are legitimate, outside of our opinions of their goals. 

Despite US Missteps, Nothing about NATO Since 1991 Justifies Putin's Invasion

by Cathy Young

Attempts to blame Putin's aggression on the post-Cold War growth of NATO have traction on the left and right, but they simplify the history of the Russian federation and ignore the expansionist moves that made Russia's neighbors draw closer to western Europe.

Putin's Claims of Genocide are Far From First Time Term has Been Exploited

by Alexander Hinton

"Governments and political leaders have long used genocide claims to make threats against other countries, or to provide a rationale for foreign intervention."

Putin's Claim of Denazification in Ukraine is Absurd in Light of History

by Jeffrey Veidlinger

"Putin’s selective telling of the past exaggerates the legacy of Nazism in Ukraine while ignoring the state’s historic struggle for pluralism and democracy. There is a good reason for this: he fears democracy more than he fears Nazism."

A Purgatorial Message from JFK to Joe Biden

by Andrew Bacevich

"I urge you to think carefully before making the leap into such an unmourned past.  Whatever your political advisers may imagine, displays of presidential toughness aren’t what our nation needs right now."

The Antisemitism Underlying Putin's Claim to "Denazify" Ukraine

by Jason Stanley

"Putin, the leader of Russian Christian nationalism, has come to view himself as the global leader of Christian nationalism, and is increasingly regarded as such by Christian nationalists around the world."

Building a Fitness Culture with Inclusion and Creativity?

by Natalia Mehlman Petrzela

What will it take for the culture of fitness and bodily health to draw in people with disabilities and push out narrow normative ideas of the ideal body? 

The World is at Financial War

by Adam Tooze

Ukrainian resistance to invasion has affirmed its sovereignty, pushing NATO nations to take actions that would have been politically difficult before, including imposing economic sanctions as a clear instance of taking sides in the conflict. But it's clear those nations are thinking hard about the limits of aid. 

Sanctions are an Economic Weapon. Targeting Matters

by Nicholas Mulder

The Biden approach shows a reframing of economic sanctions from being a deterrent to being a non-military weapon of war. This has happened before, and history shows that sanctions against an aggressor nation can be expected to fail unless they are paired with aid to Ukraine.