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‘Fifth Girl’ In 1963 KKK Church Bombing Seeks Apology, Restitution

Sarah Collins Rudolph argues that the State of Alabama, in the person of Governor George Wallace, directly incited the racial hatred that led to the bombing of 16th Street Baptist Church. 

Donald Kendall, Who Built Pepsico into a Soda and Snack-Food Giant, Dies at 99

The late president of Pepsi-Cola was a leader in bringing American products to the Soviet bloc and Communist China during the cold war and was influential in pushing Richard Nixon to support the CIA's coup against democratically-elected socialist Salvador Allende in Chile.

These Confederate Statues were Removed. But Where Did they Go?

While many localities have moved swiftly to remove Confederate memorials from public ground, the ultimate disposition of many of the statues is still to be determined. 

Stories of Then That Still Hold Up Now

Margaret Atwood, Héctor Tobar, Thomas Mallon and Brenda Wineapple on older political novels they admire that have a lot to say about the world today.

Surrendered Court Seats

by David Leonhardt

It's far from certain that Trump and the Republicans will get their way with Ruth Bader Ginsburg's replacement. There are ample examples of botched nominations before presidential transitions and confirmed nominees who didn't meet their party's ideological expectations. 

Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Supreme Court’s Feminist Icon, Is Dead at 87

by Linda Greenhouse

Times SCOTUS reporter Linda Greenhouse presents a comprehensive chronicle of the life, career and impact of the recently deceased Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

How Jewish History and the Holocaust Fueled Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s Quest for Justice

by Gillian Brockell

The passing of the Supreme Court Justice is occasion to review her 2004 address to the U.S. Holocaust Museum. 

Princeton Admitted Past Racism. Now It Is Under Investigation.

The Trump administration opened a civil rights investigation into the university after its president acknowledged the role of systemic racism at the school.

How Jimi Hendrix’s London Years Changed Music

A new book, at the 50th anniversary of the guitar master's death, takes Jimi Hendrix's leap from chitlin circuit sideman to London sensation as a turning point for rock music. 

Presidential Campaigns are Almost Always about the Future. In 2020, the Candidates Cannot Stop Talking about the Past

American presidential elections typically give the nation time to collectively examine how we got to the present moment and what the right direction should be for the future. Not this one. 

Richard and the Revolutionaries: Why did Lefties Love Wagner?

"Wagner’s tale of the corrupting power of the golden Ring matches Marx’s musings on the “perverting power” of money."

Trump Alleges ‘Left-Wing Indoctrination’ in Schools, Says He will Create National Commission to Push More ‘Pro-American’ History

Trump's remarks asserted that teaching about the importance of slavery and racism to American history is unpatriotic and equivalent to "left-wing rioting and mayhem."

Black Leaders Launch ‘1776 Unites’ High School Curriculum

An American Enterprise Institute fellow and a Black civil rights veteran have launched a "1776 Unites" curriculum as a challenge to the "1619 Project," 

‘Viking’ Was a Job Description, Not a Matter of Heredity, Massive Ancient DNA Study Shows

A large DNA study of samples from Viking remains casts doubt on the idea that participation was a hereditary or ethnic phenomenon. Being a Viking was a job. 

Education Department Opens Investigation into Princeton University after President Deems Racism 'Embedded' in the School

The Department of Education's justification appears to boil down to the idea that acknowledging institutional racial inequality embedded over centuries is the functional equivalent of discrimination. 

Black Sabbath's Paranoid at 50: Potent Anthems of Working-Class Strife

Music critics dismissed Black Sabbath's sludgy sound and alienated lyrics, but fans ensured that the band's second album would become one of the most influential rock records of all time. The songs' channeling of working-class pain and frustration, not their fascination with the occult, explain why.

Stanley Crouch, Towering Jazz Critic, Dead at 74

Crouch's criticism pulled no punches, and tackled big questions about the relationship between race and art in American music. He became an influential and controversial figure in the popular history of jazz as a consultant to Ken Burns's documentary.

Glendale, CA City Council Debates Resolution Acknowledging History as a "Sundown Town"

HNN contributor Jim Loewen encourages readers to watch the Glendale, CA City Council discuss a resolution acknowledging the city's history as a "sundown town." 

James Jackson, Who Changed the Study of Black America, Dies at 76

James S. Jackson pioneered survey methods that allowed African Americans to be studied as a group rather than in comparison to a baseline defined by whites. 

State Auditor Investigating Ole Miss Professor Who Participated In Strike

A controversial sociologist at the University of Mississippi has drawn attention from the state auditor for participation in the #ScholarStrike protest movement.