Historians in the News

A More Perfect Meritocracy

by Agnes Callard

Two new books take aim at the moral failures of meritocracy. But we can advocate for a more just society without giving up on merit.

Christmas Dies Hard

The urban bourgeoisie of the 19th century pushed Christmas away from a drunken celebration of leisure and toward a holiday merging piety and consumerism. 

Review: New Book Seeks To Differentiate Between Confederate History And Historical Memory

"Adam Domby’s book provides a helpful guide through White Southern memory, a place where the Civil War never really ended."

The Real Legacy of the Suffrage Movement

by Deborah Cohen

Historian Deborah Cohen reviews new books on the early womens movement by Rachel Holmes and Martha S. Jones. 

A Statue of Barbara Johns Should Replace Robert E. Lee in the U.S. Capitol

The Washington Post's editorial board recommends the young educational justice activist to replace Robert E. Lee's statue in the US Capitol. 

Brandeis U. Press and a Historian Split over how to Talk about Jews and White Supremacy

The racial justice protests of 2020 pushed up sales of Marc Dollinger's book on political relationships between Jewish and African American groups. But Brandeis University Press has balked at publishing a new introductory essay that suggests American Jews need to acknowledge and confront their privileges as white Americans.

The Real Story of George Washington’s Boozy Eggnog Recipe — and Martha’s Christmas Cake

Mount Vernon historian Mary Thompson says the legend of George Washington's super-potent recipe for eggnog is bunk, but the estate does preserve a hand-written holiday cake recipe from Martha Washington.

How Ancient Rome Defeated Donald Trump

Veteran war correspondent Tom Ricks has written a new book on the influence of Greece and Rome on the American founders, and discusses how this year's election reflects that influence. 

Historian: Polish Society Shunned Jewish Survivors Returning From Nazi Camps

Historian Lukasz Krzyzanowski argues that most Poles today are “unwilling to accept the bitter fact that they live in a post-genocidal land.”

FIRE Open Letter to the University of Mississippi, 12/18/2020

The nonpartisan Foundation for Individual Rights in Education asks University of Mississippi Chancellor Glenn Boyce to reevaluate the decision to end Professor Garrett Felber's employment, raising the possibility that the decision was related to Felber's criticism of the university. 

One For The History Books: The Historical Discipline Will Prevail Over Current Challenges

by Jacqueline Jones

Historians, their departments, and their institutions will have to respond creatively to the challenges posed by COVID, but perhaps the profession and the place of history in American culture can emerge stronger than ever. 

His University Celebrated His Success. Then It Fired Him

Historian Walter Johnson says the Garrett Felber controvery at the University of Mississippi reflects the fact that “there are a lot of energetic, critical activists, students and faculty on that campus, who are trying to hold the university to a different standard than that which it’s been held to before.” 

Best Coping And Self Care Tips from Urban Historians

Chances are you've figured out your self-care rituals after months of COVID restrictions, but it's never too late to pick up something new from the staffers of the Urban History Association's Metropole blog.

Outspoken Out of a Job?

Scholars pledge not to speak at University of Mississippi until it reinstates a colleague who publicly questioned why his chair rejected a grant, allegedly for political reasons.

How Secession Became America’s Favorite Idle Threat

With one notable exception, secession has been an idle threat in American political discourse. Richard Kreitner's book on secession movements anchors columnist Jack Shafer's analysis.

Black People Have Been Saying 'We Can't Breathe' for Decades

At 73, Dr. Robert Bullard, widely recognized as the 'Father of Environmental Justice,' is now preparing the next generation of Black leaders to lead the movement.

The American Exception: How Faith Shapes Economic and Social Policy

by Benjamin M. Friedman

Historian Benjamin Friedman's new book examines the importance of changing religious ideas in American Protestantism as influences on the development of social and economic policy. Part of the concluding chapter is excerpted here. 

Virtual Event: Political Fallout: Nuclear Weapons Testing and the Making of a Global Environmental Crisis 12/21

The Partial Test Ban Treaty of 1963 is typically viewed as marking a first step toward nuclear arms control. But Toshihiro Higuchi argues that it was also one of the first international agreements that addressed a truly global, human-induced environmental problem. He discusses his new book for the Washington History Seminar on Thursday, 12/21 at 4:00 PM EDT.

The African Roots of Inoculation in America: Saving Lives for Three Centuries

by Gillian Brockell

Knowledge carried by enslaved Africans supported rudimentary efforts at inoculation against smallpox in colonial Massachusetts.

The Year We Lost

Historians consider whether the disruptions and cancellations of 2020 are a singular conjuncture of bad news or if the year has just highlighted normal patterns of life – deferral of dreams, economic privation, and uncertainty – that the less-privileged have always lived with.