Woodrow Wilson

When Freud Analyzed Woodrow Wilson

Working with former Wilson aide William Bullitt, the founder of psychoanalysis produced a harsh depiction of the president as neurotic and self-sabotaging. The work's twisted path to publication after Freud's death was marked by doubts about Freud's actual role in the work. 

Bipartisanship Once Took Flight—To Protect Birds

by Will McLean Greeley

Senator George McLean's successful effort to pass the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, one of the most important conservation laws in American history, reflected two virtues in short supply in Washington today: bipartisan cooperation and humility. 

Why We Don't Remember Edith Galt Wilson as the "First Woman President"

by Richard Bluttal

While the First Lady ran the executive branch while concealing the extent of Woodrow Wilson's ill health after a stroke, her unofficial stewardship raises too many questions about secrecy and its consequences to be celebrated today. 

Again, Russia is at the Center of an American-Backed War for Democracy

by James D. Robenalt

The abdication of Tsar Nicholas II in 1917 removed a major principled objection to calls for Americans to fight for the sake of democracy. The moral lines are clearer today, but once again Russia is at the center of an American debate about intervention.

The Dangerous “Patriotism” of the January 6 Insurrection

by Ben Railton

The participants in the attack on the Capitol a year ago reflected a "mythic patriotism" founded on the belief in an authentic, white, Christian nation under attack by enemies dangerous enough to justify any measures in opposition. 

American Education Is Founded on White Race Theory

In the 1890s the National Education Association worked to standardize the national secondary curriculum, deciding what subjects were worthy of study, and in the process developing a white supremacist curriculum in history. 

Could Wilson have Ended the Great War Two Years Earlier? Zelikow's "Road Less Traveled" Reviewed

by James Thornton Harris

Philip Zelikow's book is a provocative and contrarian argument that Woodrow Wilson missed a chance to end the first world war in 1916. 

Peace Was on the Floor in 1916-17, but Wilson Failed to Pick it Up

by Burt Cohen

Burt Cohen discusses Philip Zelikow's book which argues that diplomatic failures by the great powers extended the first world war by two years and contributed to the catastrophes of fascism and Stalinism. 

President Biden is a Very Different Pandemic President than Woodrow Wilson

by E. Thomas Ewing

A century ago, there was little expectation that a US President would have much to say about a public health emergency, even one of national scope. 

Peace, Waiting to Be Picked Up: The Secret Diplomacy Failure of 1916 that Changed the World

by Philip Zelikow

In 1916, the major warring powers of Europe secretly pursued an American-brokered, face-saving peace. Confined to the shadows, the negotiations came close, but failed, with grave consequences for the world. 

The Complicated Racial History of the High School D.C. is Renaming

Renaming Woodrow Wilson High after Edna Burke Jackson, who taught history as one of two Black faculty members in the years after desegregation, is an obvious choice. 

Wrestling With Woodrow Wilson’s Complicated Legacy

A longtime Virginia political observer suggests that there is more to learn by considering Woodrow Wilson's complex social views and political legacy than by taking his clear racism as reason to hide him from sight. 

Trump’s Illness, like Woodrow Wilson’s Stroke, Could be Turning Point in History

by Christopher McKnight Nichols

Presidential illness and disability have historically functioned as a turning point from which presidents never fully recover even if their bodies and minds do.

How Woodrow Wilson Tried to Reverse Black American Progress

Historian Eric S. Yellin discusses the impact of Wilson's decision to impose segregation on federal employment, a major blow to black aspirations. 

Woodrow Wilson Was a Hero to Jews. What Should We do with his Racism?

by Jonathan D. Sarna

Many find it discomforting to learn that Wilson was, at one and the same time, so bad for American Blacks and so good for American Jews.

Princeton University Removes Woodrow Wilson From School Name (Audio)

Julian Zelizer discusses Princeton's decision to rename its school of Public Policy. 

Parents, Historians Urge DC’s Mayor Bowser To Initiate Wilson High Name Change

Honoring a person like Wilson sends a poor message when in general, society should be honoring the ideals of diversity, respect, equality and inclusion said Judith Ingram, co-founder of the D.C. History and Justice Collective.

‘An Inappropriate Namesake’: Princeton Strips Woodrow Wilson’s Name From Public-Policy School

Princeton's decision is all the more notable for how recently the university had resisted this precise step. 

The History That James Baldwin Wanted America to See

by Eddie S. Glaude, Jr.

"In his reflections on King, Baldwin wrote that we were witnessing the death of segregation, and that the question was how long and how expensive the funeral would be. If only he knew."

Monmouth University to Remove Woodrow Wilson’s Name From Building

Historians, including some at Monmouth, have said that Wilson believed in white supremacy and advanced policies to support his racist worldview.