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Cornel West Is Leaving Harvard After Tenure Dispute

Dr. West’s dispute over tenure put a new focus on complaints that Black and Latino professors are underrepresented in the ranks of tenured professors, not just at Harvard. 

Of Nazis, Crimes and Punishment

Understanding the neurological changes brought on by adolescence and aging make it complicated to determine what justice is in the case of a Nazi camp guard deported from the United States to Germany in February. 

Relief Bill is Most Significant Legislation for Black Farmers since Civil Rights Act, Experts Say

The COVID-19 relief bill contains provisions that may help support African American farmers, who have been systematically harmed by prejudice, market dynamics and federal policy for the past century. 

Why Only Multiracial Solidarity and Restorative Justice Can Solve Racial Attacks on Asian Americans

Activist Margaretta Lin reflects on the post-immigration reform history of Asian American communities and argues for rejecting anti-Black framing of recent attacks on Asian Americans. 

A New Group Promises to Protect Professors’ Free Speech

Princeton's Robert George hopes that the new organization Academic Freedom Alliance can influence university administrators to resist online outrage campaigns from the right and left and protect the right of scholars to speak freely on controversial subjects. 

Latinos: The LA Times' 1983 Pulitzer Prize Winning Series Now Available

The LA Times won a Pulitzer Prize for a series of articles on Latinos in Southern California. Now this important journalistic primary source is available online. 

A University of Texas Report Will Find That ‘The Eyes of Texas’ Has “No Racist Intent”

A University of Texas Commission's report will likely serve as reinforcement for the administration's decision to keep the tradition of playing "The Eyes of Texas" after football games, pleasing many rich donors and angering student activists. 

On the Anniversary of Selma We are Sadly Reminded: Voting Rights are Still Imperiled

by Elliott Smith

The legacy of sacrifice by voting rights activists like Amelia Boynton is being imperiled by a wave of state voter suppression laws. 

Texas School’s Lesson on Chivalry Asked Girls to ‘Walk Daintily’ and Obey Men

Students interviewed were divided between recognizing the pedagogical goal of showing how chivalry could excuse the subordination of women, others (and some parents) disagreed with the method. 

We Need to Put a Name to This Violence

Attacks on Asian Americans in many cities have raised comparisons to Black-Korean tensions in Los Angeles at the time of the 1992 riots, but writer Jay Caspian Kang argues the comparison isn't apt, and more work needs to be done to determine whether a wave of hate crimes is happening, and if so, why. 

Conservative Donors Have Their Own Cancel Culture

"In 1903, the two students premiered their song at an annual campus minstrel show, where white musicians performed it in blackface. It became a tradition at subsequent minstrel shows and was soon embedded in the university’s culture. Some people apparently want to keep it there forever."

He Honors Black New Yorkers. Not All Black Activists Are Thrilled

Historian David Levering Lewis praises the dedication of Jacob Morris to advancing the cause of honoring Black New Yorkers with honorary street names. But his dogged presence at public meetings doesn't always sit well with other activist in the city. 

One Old Way of Keeping Black People From Voting Still Works

by Jamelle Bouie

The Senate filibuster thwarted a bill for federal supervison and certification of state elections, allowing Mississippi to ratify a white supremacist state constitution by suppressing  the black vote. 

Alabama Lawmakers Reject Bill Allowing Flexibility On Confederate Monument

The 2017 law, which was approved as some cities began taking down Confederate monuments, forbids the removal or alteration of monuments more than 40 years old. Violations carry a $25,000 fine.

Passed Over 3 Times, a Black Marine Colonel Is Being Promoted to General

The promotion of Col. Anthony Henderson to Brigadier General raises the possibility that he may eventually be become the first Marine who is not a white man to hold a four-star rank. 

The Deficit Hawks That Make Moderate Democrats Cower

The Commitee For a Responsible Federal Budget has lobbied both parties toward austerity policies for decades. Writer Alex Yablon examines the group's origins and impact beginning in the Clinton era. 

Why Aren’t Conservative Women Recognized During Women’s History Month?

The head of the conservative think tank argues that Women's History Month is not ideologically inclusive. 

The Capitol Riot is an Eerie Repeat of this Tense Era in American History

Historian Brian K. Mitchell tells the story of Oscar James Dunn's service as the Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana during Reconstruction; Kate Masur also comments on Reconstruction era politics. 

Commentary: A Farewell to Ithaca College after 18 Years

by Sandra Steingraber

The vulnerability of non-tenure track faculty to budget cuts and layoffs means that the interdisciplinary expertise universities need to sustain important and innovative initiatives is in jeopardy. 

He Was Born Into Slavery, but Achieved Musical Stardom

Thomas Wiggins became a musical sensation in the pre-Civil War era, but never controlled his earnings or legacy. Today, preservationists are working to separate fact from legend and showcase his compositions.