Roundup

The Myth of "Open Borders"

by Anna O. Law

Recent efforts by Texas and other states to claim the power to apprehend suspected undocumented immigrants reflects a conflict of federalism that traces back to the efforts of slave states to control the movement of free Black people in their territories and of northern states to keep out poor immigrants.

Why a Liberal Education is Worth Defending

by Steve Mintz

Roosevelt Montas’s forthcoming "Rescuing Socrates: How the Great Books Changed My Life and Why They Matter for a New Generation" makes a powerful case for engagment with the Great Books as a way to subvert hierarchies and promote equity. 

No, John Calhoun Didn't Invent the Filibuster

by Robert Elder

A new book castigating the filibuster traces it back to the parliamentary maneuvers of pro-slavery ideologue John C. Calhoun. One needn't embrace either Calhoun or the filibuster to recognize this is historically incorrect. 

Fights over Tenure Aren't About Tenure

by Molly Worthen

"The fight over tenure is not really about tenure. It’s a proxy for a larger debate about the meaning of academic freedom and the priorities of higher education." If academics want to successfully protect tenure, they must engage the culture war battle, too. 

Teach the Truth About America's Less Than Glorious History

by Richard T. Hughes

"Not a single student in my class professed to know anything at all about this tragic chapter in our nation’s history. I shouldn’t have been surprised. We witness every day similar ignorance, coupled with a persistent reluctance to acknowledge our nation’s crimes."

Why Didn't We Leave Afghanistan Before Now?

by Carter Malkasian

Above all other considerations, America's interminable military presence in Afghanistan was driven by politicians' fears of blame for a future terrorist attack. 

The Culture War Over Schools Is Worse Than Ever

by Jonathan Zimmerman

The 20th century pluralist strategy to resolve the "history wars" – including examples of heroes and leaders representing progressively more social groups – is no longer able to cover over fundamental conflicts over what America is and what students should learn about the nation. 

After Afghanistan: Will Peace Get a Chance?

by William Astore

"Here’s the rest of my message to my fellow citizens. Stop rewarding the Pentagon and its failed generals and admirals with yet more money."

The Complex Politics of Vaccine Resistance

by Nicole Hemmer

Despite the fact that no major religion forbids vaccination, vaccine resisters often leverage religious exemptions to gain moral authority for what are often political or conspiracy-based views. Public health advocates need to recognize that exemption claims are a tool, not a belief.

The Hard Seltzer Trend Echoes the 19th Century Craze for Lager

"Lagers were introduced by a wave of German immigrants pouring in from Europe. To uninitiated Americans, lager was simply weird. But for Germans-turned-German-Americans, the beer was inseparable from the culture of its consumption."

Adjunct Professors Need a Better Ground Game

by Mia Brett

If universities aren’t going to invest in tenure track teaching lines, then we need to make sure that they participate in and support the professionalization of adjuncts. Statewide adjunct unionization may be the way to make that happen. 

The Roundup Top Ten for September 17, 2021

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

Homelessness and Eviction in the Land of the Free

by Liz Theoharis

Homeless activists in the 1980s and 1990s began to push back against the narrative that mass homelessness reflected the defects of individuals instead of a profit-driven housing system. As the Supreme Court has thrown out a federal eviction moratorium, that lesson is more relevant than ever. 

Politicians, not Migrants, are Fueling the Pandemic's Resurgence

by Randa Tawil

At the height of colonialism, European governments rejected calls for quarantine to keep global commerce humming, and blamed supposedly unsanitary local populations for the inevitable spread of cholera. Governors in some US states are repeating this mistake today. 

Cajun Punk Musician Louis Michot on Saving the Bayous

by Andy Horowitz

Can the DIY punk ethos of mutual aid, plus broadly distributed solar power, save the Louisiana Cajun country from the climate threat? 

Dosing Arkansas Prisoners with Ivermectin Just Latest Incident of Medical Abuse

by Lydia Crafts

"News that an Arkansas prison doctor deceived inmates to take Ivermectin as a COVID preventative shows that nonconsensual research and the experimental use of drugs on vulnerable people remain common — despite evidence of its danger and laws designed to prevent it."

Martin Luther King Knew: Fighting Racism Meant Fighting Police Brutality

by Jeanne Theoharis

Despite contemporary efforts to portray contemporary movements like Black Lives Matter and radical groups like the Black Panther Party as deviators from the "respectable" movement led by MLK, the SCLC leader insisted on the need to combat police brutality despite the unpopularity of that position,

The Significance of Yasuke, the Black Samurai

by Warren A. Stanislaus

"While media coverage of Afro-Japanese encounters overwhelmingly focuses on incidents of racism or misunderstandings, Yasuke’s interaction with Japan has helped illuminate a rich but overlooked history of Afro-Japanese connectivity." 

On the Eve of Destruction: Breaking the Double-Bind of the Nuclear Arms Race

by Richard Rhodes

Politicians and defense contractors who wanted American nuclear supremacy won out over scientists seeking international effort to contain the extinction-level threat posed by thermonuclear weapons, even to the point of denying the planet-destroying power of the H-bomb. 

The 70s are Back, But Not How You Think

by Lauren Rebecca Sklaroff

"In the coronavirus era, disco themes resonate. People long for community and wonder if leaders have our backs. Social media offers some of the trappings that defined disco — from the clothes to the allure of being seen in a new way."