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Engaging Toxic Nostalgia on Confederate Memorial Day

by Richard Brown

"For those of us who have a visceral objection to Confederate Memorial Day—who are appalled at not only commemorating but celebrating an economic and social system that oppressed a race for over two centuries—how should we engage a worldview that doesn’t see the harm of such celebrations, or that embraces the mythology of the Lost Cause?"

MAGA School Board Faces Backlash in Colorado

When a right-wing slate of school board candidates took office in Woodland Park, Colorado, they hoped to "flood the zone" with rapid changes to curriculum, teacher policy, charter schools, and more. The public has become less enthusiastic, even many conservatives. 

As Politicians Attack Campus Diversity Initiatives, HBCU Campuses Wonder How They'll be Affected

Many HBCU students fear that bans on teaching "divisive concepts" could be applied to undermine the historic mission of campuses serving African American students and promoting Black intellectual communities. 

Faith Leaders and Scholars on "Letter from Birmingham Jail" 60 Years Later

A recent conference of faith leaders emphasized that King's demand to pursue positive justice applies to many situations today, including the necessity of teaching about the nation's history of racial oppression and struggles for equality. 

LOC Opens Personal Papers of Justice John Paul Stevens to Public

The justice's personal papers show, among other things, that Antonin Scalia and Anthony Kennedy were upset that the harshness of dissenting opinion in Bush v. Gore would lead to public criticism of the conservative justices who helped George W. Bush to the White House. 

8th Grade History Scores Have Plunged

Are partisan efforts to restrict the content of history instruction to blame? A shift of resources to STEM and reading? 

Academic Freedom Battleground Shifts from Classroom to Institutions

by Jeffrey Sachs, Jeremy C. Young and Jonathan Friedman

Conservative leaders like Adam Kissel are advising lawmakers to defeat First Amendment protections for what professors say in the classroom by shifting legislation's focus to defining concepts as outside the bounds of academic disciplines and academic fields as outside the bounds of the university's mission. 

Controversy Dogs Another Florida Campus Presidential Search

by Francie Diep

The elevation of Henry Mack III, a senior leader at the state education department, to the final tier of candidates for the presidency of Florida Gulf Coast University has raised questions whether academic experience or political considerations are the driving factor. 

How Maus Changed the Place of Comics in Culture

Two new books trace the path of Art Spiegelman's masterpiece from an underground serialized story to an educational text, a process which has unfortunately tended to shape the work to the needs of a society that is obliged to teach about the Holocaust but uncomfortable learning about it. 

William Casey (Almost) Certainly Delayed the Release of Iran Hostages to Help Reagan

by Jonathan Alter, Gary Sick, Kai Bird and Stuart Eizenstat

It has long been suspected that Reagan's campaign chief William Casey convinced Iran that they could get a better deal by releasing American hostages after the election of Ronald Reagan. Available documents, recent interviews, and the vast circumstantial evidence present a damning case, argues a team of policy vets and journalistic experts on the Carter years. 

Emmett Till Family Responds to Death of Carolyn Bryant Donham

The Rev. Wheeler Parker Jr., a cousin of the slain youth, expressed regret that no one would be held accountable for the killing, but reminded that there remains a collective accountability for overcoming racial injustice. 

Why a Book About Two Bunnies Marrying Was Banned in 1959

Illustrator and author Garth Williams feigned incredulity that his tale of a white and black rabbit's romance ran afoul of Jim Crow sensibilities, but it's hard to see how else it was likely to be perceived, says Sharon Patricia Holland of the University of North Carolina. 

Inside the New New College

by Michelle Goldberg

Hopes that the incoming regime at the New College of Florida would tread lightly on the school's unique culture were dashed by administrative moves to recruit student athletes, establish fraternities and sororities, and deny tenure to the faculty members who sought it this year. 

From Mayor to Homeless: Craig Coyner's Life Tracked the Changes in Bend, Oregon and the West

Deindustrialization, addiction and high housing costs, plus frayed social services and mental health care, have fed a housing crisis on the west coast. One town's mayor experienced this firsthand. 

As a Massachusetts Museum Exhibits Parts of "Hanoi Hilton," Survivors Reflect

Salvaged remnants of the POW camp have been reconstructed by the American Heritage Museum in Massachusetts. 

My Paper Sued Florida for the Same First Amendment Violations DeSantis is Making. We Won.

by Edward Wasserman

A flamboyant Florida sheriff took action against a small newspaper in 1988 by moving its mandatory legal notices to another paper. Given that the current governor has in his own book declared his intention to punish the Disney company for its "woke," precedent suggests he's in trouble. 

Missouri Group's Claim to Standing in SCOTUS Debt Relief Case Based on False Claim of Harm

In Biden v. Nebraska, the court used the "shadow docket" to accept a case for review without verifying the facts presented in the complaint. As it turns out, the claim by a Missouri-based student loan servicing agency that it would be harmed by debt relief appears to be flatly untrue. 

A Painful Shared Bond: Their Ancestors were Enslaved by Robert E. Lee

Descendants of people enslaved by Robert E. Lee have met with his other descendants in an effort to expand dialogue about the public history presented at Arlington House, with the guidance of historian Susan Glisson. 

The Dirty, Deadly History of Depleted Uranium Munitions

by Joshua Frank

If British shipments of depleted uranium munitions to Ukrainian forces are matched by Russian invaders, Ukraine will face an environmental and health catastrophe that will outlast the war. Regardless of who wins, Ukrainians will lose. 

The Comics Writer Who Became a Legend-and a Martyr of Argentina's Dirty War

Héctor Germán Oesterheld died in an Argentine prison as an enemy of the country's dictatorship after a long career of depicting the political aspirations of Argentine leftists like himself. In death, his admirers made him a comic hero.