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The Sinking of a Bust Surfaces a Debate Over Denmark’s Past

"An anonymous group of artists had unscrewed it from its plinth, popped a black garbage bag over its head and ferried it to the edge of the canal, before tipping it in."

They Survived the Holocaust. Now they’ve Come Together to Endure the Pandemic

A Jewish historical institute in Vienna has worked to protect the health of vulnerable Holocaust survivors, but it's found the work of preserving social contact and sharing stories just as vital. 

Eroding Trust, Spreading Fear: The Historical Ties Between Pandemics And Extremism

Historian John Fea says that the COVID-19 pandemic is one of a long line of disease outbreaks encouraging paranoid thinking and a siege mentality. 

Journal Delays Print Publication of Harvard Law Professor’s Controversial ‘Comfort Women’ Article Amid Outcry

"Against the historical consensus, Ramseyer claims in his paper, entitled “Contracting for Sex in the Pacific War," that comfort women were not coerced and instead voluntarily entered into contracts with Japanese brothels."

The Founders Were Wrong About Democracy

by David Frum

The conservative commentator writes that the framers' concern with broad populist movements shouldn't overshadowing the greater damage done to democracy by a minority faction that controls key institutions and follows its own fickle self-interest.

Editorial: Leave History to the Historians

An Iowa editorial board says that the flaws of the 1619 Project are nothing in comparison to the efforts of state legislators to interfere in the content of history education. 

James Ridgeway, Hard-Hitting Investigative Journalist, Dies at 84

The journalist James Ridgeway exposed malfeasance by corporate polluters and politicians, but dedicated his greatest energy to his last crusade, to end the practice of solitary confinement in prisons. 

The Way Out of America’s Zero-Sum Thinking on Race and Wealth

by Heather McGhee

White resentment is a key political factor in America's stingy public sector; post-WWII support for social welfare, government intervention in the economy, and public investment receded after the civil rights movement demanded "jobs and freedom" for all. It's time to replace zero-sum thinking with a concept of social solidarity. 

With Mardi Gras Parades Canceled, Floats Find a New Home

In a development unseen since the city's Mardi Gras begain in 1857, New Orleans residents under COVID lockdown are turning their houses into parade floats, an informal support program for artists missing the yearly boost the parade season brings. 

Assassination, Secession, Insurrection: The Crimes of John Wilkes Booth, Jefferson Davis, and Trump

The use of force to thwart democracy is a thread connecting Confederate secession, Booth's assassination of Lincoln, and the Capitol riots against the certification of Trump's electoral defeat. 

Lawsuit Saves Trump White House Records

The lawsuit also required the preservation of WhatsApp messages from figures including Jared Kushner. 

Are Endowments Damaging Colleges and Universities?

Trends in university endowment management include investing in exotic, illiquid, and difficult-to-value assets. This would have been unthinkable to endowment managers decades ago. Does it accomplish anything besides funnelling fees to financial consultants?

The Lady Gaga Anthem That Previewed a Decade of Culture Wars

Lady Gaga's "Born This Way" was embraced as an anthem by some LGBTQ fans, but immediately raised questions about identity and cultural authority that are at the center of online culture wars today. 

Open Season on the Faculty

Despite evidence that liberal indoctrination in classrooms is rare, state legislatures are proceeding with bills that would restrict professors' freedom to teach some subjects and in the case of Iowa to survey the political affiliations of faculty at state institutions. 

New Documentary: Tuskegee Airmen: Legacy of Courage

TV journalist Robin Roberts produces a documentary on the famed Tuskegee Airmen – including her father – whose service in World War II supported the long movement for civil rights. 

Irish President Attacks 'Feigned Amnesia' over British Imperialism

“I am struck by a disinclination,” he says, “in both academic and journalistic accounts to critique empire and imperialism. Openness to, and engagement in, a critique of nationalism has seemed greater.

Barbara Dane’s Life of Defiance and Song

Barbara Dane's left politics kept her from success in the music industry, but the label she founded released and preserved protest music from around the world, a legacy now being highlighted by the Smithsonian. 

"Judas and the Black Messiah" Is an American Tragedy

The performances of the lead actors in "Judas and the Black Messiah" elevate the story of Chicago Black Panther leader Fred Hampton's assassination by the police and FBI to a complex story of the Black freedom movement. 

Curt Flood Belongs in the Hall of Fame

Sportswriter Jemele Hill makes the case for Curt Flood as an advocate for the labor rights of ballplayers and especially the right of players of color to be paid for their skill, even at the cost of being blackballed from the game. 

Impeachment Trial May Hinge on Meaning of ‘Incitement’

Although Trump's second impeachment trial may ultimately be decided by political considerations, the legal question of his culpability for incitement hinges on the question of when speech crosses a line to encouraging action and whether an impeachment trial is governed by different standards of proof than a criminal trial.