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Roundup Top Ten for April 17, 2020

Despite the Risks, Letting Americans Vote by Mail in November is Good for Democracy

by Jonathan W. White

Today’s debate about broadening access to absentee ballots amid a pandemic should be less controversial than the Civil War era struggle over creating an entirely new system.

The Normal Economy Is Never Coming Back

by Adam Tooze

The latest U.S. data proves the world is in its steepest freefall ever—and the old economic and political playbooks don’t apply.

Prudence in a Storm

by Yuval Levin

Restrained action in a crisis is no wiser than panic in normal times.

Dr. Fauci and My Mom

by Molly Ladd-Taylor

Let me say it now. Thank you, Dr. Fauci. Stay safe.

The Pathology of American Racism is Making the Pathology of the Coronavirus Worse

by Stacey Patton

Black America is ground zero for covid-19.

The Pandemic Is Not a Natural Disaster

by Kate Brown

Zoonotic diseases can seem like earthquakes; they appear to be random acts of nature. In fact, they are more like hurricanes—they can occur more frequently, and become more powerful, if human beings alter the environment in the wrong ways.

Trump Reveals the Truth About Voter Suppression

by David W. Blight

The president is the latest in a long line of conservative politicians to see minority voters as a threat.

Covid-19′s Disruptions Echo the Disturbances That Followed MLK’s Assassination

by Kyla Sommers

Former HNN editor-in-chief Kyla Sommers reminds us that Washingtonians have united in the face of a crisis before, and they can do so again.

‘A White Man Took Her’: Trauma, Loss, and Grief among the Enslaved

by Tyler Parry

In leaving a record of their trauma, the formerly enslaved invite their readers to approach the emotional histories of those trapped in antebellum slavery.

When Asian-Americans Have to Prove We Belong

by Jia Lynn Yang

"This isn’t the first time we’ve been treated as a threat," writes Jia Lynn Yang.