With support from the University of Richmond

History News Network puts current events into historical perspective. Subscribe to our newsletter for new perspectives on the ways history continues to resonate in the present. Explore our archive of thousands of original op-eds and curated stories from around the web. Join us to learn more about the past, now.

The Roundup Top Ten for May 22, 2020

The Lessons of the Great Depression

by Lizabeth Cohen

The larger lesson the New Deal offers is that recovery is a complex and painful process that requires the participation of many, not directives from a few. And that, ultimately, we’re all in this together.

The Neoliberal Era is Ending. What Comes Next?

by Rutger Bregman

From higher taxes for the wealthy to more robust government, the time has come for ideas that seemed impossible just months ago.

Ida Taught Me

by Koritha Mitchell

As the United States seems determined to repeat the horrors of the last turn of the century, I remain grateful for Wells’s example. Here is just some of what she taught me.

The West Is Relevant to Our Long History Of Anti-Blackness, Not Just The South

by Walter Johnson

The Missouri Compromise paved the path to the Civil War. But it also signaled what would follow: western settlement driven by the idea of expanding a country of, by, and for white men.

When University Leaders Fail

by François Furstenberg

A university governed by long timelines and long-term thinking grows conservatively and cautiously and prepares itself prudently for potential crises. If you turn a university into a giant corporation, on the other hand, it will rise and fall with the business cycle.

Most Medical Professionals Aren’t Racist — But Our Medical System Is

by Ella St. George Carey

The medical profession perpetuates racial inequality in health outcomes in large part because medical training still treats white and nonwhite bodies as fundamentally different.

When the Economy Collapses, Talk Is Cheap—Just Look What Led Up to the Great Depression

by Robert Dallek

For American leaders, the Great Depression is as much a lesson in what not to do as it is in what to do.

How White Backlash Controls American Progress

by Lawrence Glickman

Individual backlashes are part of a common strain of reactionary politics that rejects challenges to social hierarchies. 

The ‘American Way of Life’ Is Shaping Up to Be a Battleground

by Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor

The median wealth of a U.S. senator was $3.2 million as of 2018, and $900,000 for a member of the House of Representatives. These elected officials voted for one-time stimulus checks of $1,200 as if that was enough.

The Potential Risk of Chasing a COVID-19 Vaccine

by Heidi Morefield

Vaccine development is important to fighting viruses, but can’t come at the expense of other means of prevention.