Roundup

Boris Johnson’s Roman Fantasies

by Mateusz Fafinsky

Boris Johnson's recent statements that the collapse of Rome was caused by open borders are well out of step with historical understanding of the fragmenting of the Roman empire, but in line with a long legacy of political misappropriation of Rome as an allegory for the danger of immigrants.

Right-Wing Trolling Didn't Start with Trump

by Rick Perlstein

"Owning the libs" through stunts and irony didn't start with Trump. Since World War II, getting under liberals' skin has mattered as much as policy and ideology, argues the historian of the conservative movement. 

Gun Culture is Priming Americans for Authoritarianism

by Ruth Ben-Ghiat

American gun culture devalues human life, desensitizes us to the presence of deadly force in our daily lives, and underlines the message that our fellow citizens are dangerous enemies.

Why Dragons were the Dominant Medieval Monstrosities

by David M. Perry and Matthew Gabriele

Scott Bruce and Michael Psellos are among the historians shedding light on how medieval people talked about monsters and what cultural roles they played. 

Do Liberal Activists Need to Reconnect with the Religious Left?

by Julian Zelizer

The rise of conservatism in Christian political engagement and the increasing importance of Israel to many American Jewish organizations should not discourage liberal activists from reviving the legacy of Rabbi Abraham Heschel and interfaith social justice organizing. 

State Laws Mandating "Opposing Viewpoints" Corrupt the Teaching of History

by Jacqueline Jones and James Grossman

"The vague wording of SB3 not only creates absurd situations that require teachers to figure out how to offer “opposing viewpoints” on slavery, but also gives license to parents and administrators looking to challenge the teaching of incontrovertible facts relating to controversial issues."

The Roundup Top Ten for October 22, 2021

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

The Sleeper SCOTUS Case that Threatens Church-State Separation

by Kimberly Wehle

"If the plaintiffs win, states and municipalities could be required to use taxpayer dollars to supplement strands of private religious education that many Americans would find deeply offensive, including schools that exclude non-Christian or LGBTQ students, families, and teachers."

As a Black Man and Patriot, Colin Powell Embodied the "Two-ness" of African American Experience

by Chad Williams

"In America, being Black and a patriot is – as DuBois hinted at more an a century ago, and as Powell’s life attests to – a very complicated, even painful, affair."

Guantanamo's Other History

by Jeffrey S. Kahn

Reports of a bid for migrant detention contractors based at Guantanamo including speakers of Haitian Creole fed suspicion of a new connection of the military and immigration enforcement. Where Haitian refugees are concerned, the Guantanamo connection is nothing new. 

Seeing the Future When No One Believes You

by Rebecca Gordon

The recollections and rehabilitations occasioned by the 20th anniversary of the War on Terror are, predictably, giving short shrift to the voices of dissent who questioned the ability of American military power to resolve political conflicts. Like their mythical namesake, those denounced as Cassandras in 2001 were right. 

Fact and Fiction in "The Last Duel"

by Sara McDougall and David Perry

"The film effectively depicts the violence embedded in medieval ideas of elite masculinity while taking historical liberties when it comes to the real nature and function of trials by combat, or how rape accusations worked in medieval Europe."

Stephen Breyer's Delusions of an Apolitical Court

by Ryan D. Doerfler and Samuel Moyn

In his much-discussed book, Justice Stephen Breyer comes close to acknowledging that the Supreme Court is a political institution, but ultimately declares that's it's more important to preserve the noble lie that the court is above politics. 

America as a “Shining City on a Hill”—and Other Myths to Die By

by Gregg Gonsalves

"Our relationship to disease, to pandemics past, is obscured by this myth of fundamental American goodness. If we accept that we are capable of barbarity, official cruelty, these myths shatter and leave us with a national story that is far more complicated to tell, a legacy to work against."

Why Powell's UN Speech Was So Crucial (and Bad)

by Greg Mitchell

Colin Powell's 2003 speech to the United Nations was short on evidence for Saddam Hussein's WMD program, but he put down his reputation as collateral, changing history for the worse.

My University's Policies Undermined the Lessons I Was Trained to Teach, so I Quit

by Cornelia Lambert

"I could use our own university system as a case study in how political power often wins out over scientific knowledge. This would be a powerful lesson, one students would be unlikely to forget. But did I want to be part of that?"

The Critique of "Grand Strategy" at Yale is Decades Overdue

by Jim Sleeper

In a changing world, Yale's decision to follow the lead of influential donors to steer its Grand Strategy program toward the established orthodoxy of the national security state doesn't just fail the principles of liberal education, it fails the long-term ability of the United States to steer a course in world affairs.

The Second Assassination of MLK

by Ibram X. Kendi

"King’s modern-day assassins disregard everything he said about education."

A Texas Administrator Didn't "Both Sides" the Holocaust; She Acknowledged the Legal Jeopardy Facing Teachers Under a Bad Law

by Jonathan Wilson

Texas's new curriculum law opens the door to politically-driven attacks on teachers from any number of political positions; a curriculum director's recorded advice to teachers shouldn't be shocking because it reflects this reality. 

What Does it Mean to Call Someone a "Male Chauvinist Pig"?

by Julie Willett

Merging the term "chauvinism" from the old left and the radical 1960s desire to render authority grotesque, the term emerged with the second wave of feminism. But today some of the sexists labeled with it appear to have turned it into a badge of honor.