Historians in the News

How White Women Use Themselves as Instruments of Terror

Throughout history, white women have used the violence of white men and the institutions these men control as their own muscle.

Botch on the Rhine (Review)

A new book blames British Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery's thirst for glory for Operation Market Garden, an ill-fated effort to drop airborne troops behind the Rhine River to accelerate the Allied invasion of Germany.

What We Learn From FDR's New Deal

"A president alone can't do everything," says historian Lizabeth Cohen, "that president needs a supportive Congress."

How History Informs Our Current Crisis (Audio)

Historian Julian Zelizer contextualizes the mask debate, the U.S. death toll, social distancing, and the U.S.'s international standing.

Wisconsin’s Long History As Swing State

Wisconsin's status as a swing state in presidential elections is nothing new. It reflects the state's part in major trends in American history including immigration, urbanization, and the rural-urban divide.

Demanding End to 'Failed Billionaire-Backed' Policies, 200+ Teachers and Activists Urge Biden to Go Bold on Public Education

Their demands push Biden toward a progressive education platform, breaking from the status quo in Washington.

Old Saybrook Historical Society Wins Prestigious History Award, Publishes New Book

The winner of a 2020 Award of Excellence from the American Association for State and Local History's new book focuses on the Battles of Saybrook Fort during the Pequot War.

America’s Response to Coronavirus Pandemic is ‘Incomprehensibly Incoherent,’ Says Historian Who Studied the 1918 Flu

According to historian John M. Barry, Americans have not learned their lesson since 1918.

Continuing to Reshape Women’s History: The Ongoing Story of Nontraditional Women Historians

by Julie Gallagher and Barbara Winslow

The editors of a collection of essays by non-traditional women historians celebrate the impact of the Catherine Prelinger Award (of the Coordinating Council for Women in History), which aided the scholarship published in their book and is supporting a new generation of women historians expanding the scope of the field to address race, disability, indigeneity, and mass incarceration (among other issues).

Lessons From Operation 'Denver,' the KGB’s Massive AIDS Disinformation Campaign

Historian Douglas Selvage sheds light on a conspiracy theory that reverberates to this day.

Reopening too Soon: Lessons from the Deadly Second Wave of the 1918 Flu Pandemic

J. Alexander Navarro of the University of Michigan Center for the History of Medicine has compiled archival records of the 1918 Influenza pandemic in 43 U.S. cities. The findings suggest staying closed helps prevent a deadly second wave of infections.  

‘This Invokes a History of Terror’: Central Park Incident Between White Woman and Black Man is Part of a Fraught Legacy

by Errin Haines

Scholars including Ibram X. Kendi, Robin DiAngelo, and Stephanie Jones-Rogers describe the historical phenomenon that real or imagined threats to white women's safety has justified repression against black men. 

The Overlooked Black History of Memorial Day

by Olivia B. Waxman

The role of African Americans in creating a day of tribute to the Union Army has been obscured by pro-Confederate narratives of national reconcilation after the overthrow of Reconstruction.

Kenneth Pomeranz wins 2021 Toynbee Prize

Kenneth Pomeranz's work on global economic history has been recognized for driving new understanding of the history of global exchange and sparked global collaboration among historians. 

The Many Faces of the ‘Wine Mom’

Historian Lisa Jacobson explains that the "Wine Mom" meme is rooted in gender and middle class norms regulating women's obligations to their children (and women's desire for freedom from them).

Polish Historian Questions German Researcher’s Claims About Wartime Pope

"I’ve never personally encountered a situation in which 11 volumes of material, published over two decades, are suddenly countermanded by a single document, found after a few days’ research," says Jan Zaryn.

Obituary: Dr Ian Macdougall, Historian who Recorded the Voices and Experiences of Working People

MacDougall, who has died at the age of 86, was a historian with a deep affection for, curiosity in and understanding of the working men and women who are frequently overlooked when a country’s story is narrated.

The Corrupt Bargain (Review Essay)

by Eric Foner

Eric Foner argues that reasons both strategic and idealistic informed the establishment of the Electoral College, and recent books support the case for its abolition. 

These Photos Capture the Lives of African American Soldiers who Served During World War II

Pittsburgh photographer Teenie Harris focused on the patriotism of men who fought for the country abroad while being discriminated against at home.

Concerns Raised for Detained Gulag Historian Yury Dmitriyev

U.K. calls for early release after court rejects lawyers’ argument Dmitriyev is at risk of the coronavirus in Karelian detention center.