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The Roundup Top Ten for April 23, 2021

Racism Has Always Been Part of the Asian American Experience

by Mae Ngai

Anti-Asian racism draws from different historical origins than Jim Crow, but their histories are part of the same conflict: whether White Americans are entitled to rule over other people, domestically or globally. 

The Derek Chauvin Verdict Won’t Stop Cops Murdering Black People.

by Kellie Carter Jackson

Historical reflection shows that Derek Chauvin's killing of George Floyd was not an anomaly. His conviction won't purge policing of racial bias. 

Why the Amazon Workers Never Stood a Chance

by Erik Loomis

"We may be in a period where economic justice concerns are more central to our politics than any time since the mid-20th century. But without a new round of labor law reform, organized labor cannot succeed."

All the President’s Historians

by Daniel N. Gullotta

Joe Biden's attraction to Jon Meacham's historical narratives of American ideals triumphant over adversity makes sense for a president dedicated to healing and reunification. 

How White Americans’ Refusal to Accept Busing has Kept Schools Segregated

by Matthew D. Lassiter

The legal distinction between "de facto" and "de jure" segregation has always been a convenient fiction allowing the perpetuation of segregation by obscuring the role of government in creating and sustaining a racially discriminatory housing market. 

What the Rise and Fall of the Cinderella Fairy Tale Means for Real Women Today

by Carol Dyhouse

"Cinderella dreams an impossible dream: she isn’t a helpful role model for today’s young girls thinking about their future, and is unlikely to regain the intense hold over the female imagination that was evident in the 1950s."

The Men Who Turned Slavery Into Big Business

by Joshua D. Rothman

"We still live in the world that Franklin and Armfield’s profits helped build, and with the enduring inequalities that they and their industry entrenched."

Calls to Disarm the Police Won’t Stop Brutality and Killings

by Maryam Aziz

Calls to disarm police departments ignore the way that policing has used unarmed forms of violence in its efforts at social control, particularly of Black communities. 

Adam Toledo's Killing is Part of a Brutal Pattern of Child Killings in America

by Keisha N. Blain

Repeated acts of police violence against children underscore the fundamentally racist roots of policing in the United States and demand a diversion of resources from police to social services. 

American Journalism’s Role in Promoting Racist Terror

by Channing Gerard Joseph

American journalism profited from the sale of advertisements for the slave trade and stirred up lynch mobs. When will the industry acknowledge its role in American racism?