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C. Wright Mills.

C. Wright Mills’s "The Power Elite" Still Speaks to Today’s America

Mills exposed postwar American power and warned of an authoritarian turn in the book, which speaks to our own moment of inequality and right-wing anger.
A lithograph depicting the burning of copies of William Pynchon’s 'The Meritous Price of Our Redemption' by early colonists of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, who saw his book as heresy.

He Wasn’t Like the Other New England “Witches.” His Story Explains a Lot.

The little-told tale of the 1651 trial of Hugh and Mary Parsons.
Black and white photograph of two women and three children standing or kneeling and surrounded by potatoes.

Which Foods Aren’t Disgusting? On Carla Cevasco’s Violent Appetites

“The connection between a hot temper and an empty stomach,” explained through a history of colonial interactions with indigenous peoples.
Three men standing along a store sign outside of a drug store, listing the available drugs and tonics for treatment.

The Tragic Case of Poisoning That Finally Got Us Safe Drugs

The elixir had antifreeze, for flavor. Nobody blinked—at first.
Photo of Newt Gingrich speaking into a microphone.

To Understand the Modern GOP, Look at the Reactionary ’90s

The most vitriolic and morally panicked conservative figures of the 1990s contributed just as much to modern American conservatism as Ronald Reagan did.
Kyle Rittenhouse waves to cheering fans as he appears at a panel discussion at a Turning Point USA America Fest event on Dec. 20, 2021.
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Bernhard Goetz and the Roots of Kyle Rittenhouse’s Celebrity on the Right

Why vigilante violence appeals politically.
John F. Kennedy standing at a microphone, holding notes.

The Warning About Trump That JFK Never Got to Deliver

In his undelivered final speech, Kennedy warned the world against ‘voices preaching doctrines wholly unrelated to reality.’
After his shooting, a hospitalized Wallace holds up a newspaper touting his victories in the Maryland and Michigan Democratic presidential primaries.

How a Failed Assassination Attempt Pushed George Wallace to Reconsider His Segregationist Views

Fifty years ago, a fame-seeker shot the polarizing politician five times, paralyzing him from the waist down.
Oprah Winfrey speaking at a podium.
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Oprah’s Shows on the L.A. Riots Reveal What We’ve Lost Without Her Program

The power of daytime talk shows — especially “The Oprah Winfrey Show.”
2022 oil painting of Jo Collier

They Called Her ‘Black Jet’

Joetha Collier, a young Black woman, was killed by a white man in 1971, near the Mississippi town where Emmett Till was murdered. Why isn’t her case well-known today?
A portrait of Abraham Lincoln hangs behind President Biden in the State Dining Room of the White House
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Activists Have Always Been Frustrated at Allies’ Insistence on Gradual Change

Why abolitionist Lydia Maria Child raged at President Lincoln’s political calculations.
Left: stacks of The 1619 Project books; right: Daryl Michael Scott.

Grievance History

Historian Daryl Scott weighs in on the 1619 Project and the "possibility that we rend ourselves on the question of race."
Portraits of African American men revealed under torn copy of the Dred Scott Case.

The Painful, Cutting and Brilliant Letters Black People Wrote To Their Former Enslavers

The letters show a desire for freedom and a desperate longing to be reunited with their families.
A man carries a Confederate battle flag through the halls of the U.S. Capitol building on Jan. 6, 2021.

A Brief History of Violence in the Capitol: The Foreshadowing of Disunion

The radicalization of a congressional clerk in the 1800s and the introduction of the telegraph set a young country on a new trajectory.
James Brown on stage singing, with people standing in shadow behind him.

Hanif Abdurraqib Breaks Down History’s Famous Beefs

On who gets caught in the crosshairs when it comes to “beef."
Postcard image of a painting of the Mayflower at sea.

Looking for an American Myth

The fevered hunt for basic symbols.
White police officers arresting Black children, 1963

Rescuing MLK and His Children's Crusade

A new book traces the tactics of groundbreaking lawyer Constance Baker Motley amid pivotal protests in Birmingham.
Protesters holding flags of the US and Mexico.
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How Prop. 187 Transformed the Immigration Debate and California Politics

Much of the anti-immigrant rhetoric and policy in the news today is similar to a movement that swept the country 20 years ago.
Afeni Shakur holding a camera.

Afeni Shakur Took on the State and Won

Pregnant and facing decades in prison, the mother of Tupac Shakur fought for her life — and triumphed — in the trial of the Panther 21.
Volunteer putting out political signs for the Virginia governor's race.
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Virginia’s Governor’s Race May Hinge on Debates About Public Schools

Channeling conservative, white anger about public schools is a long-running political strategy.
Man standing on top of a phone booth, surrounded by rioters outside of city hall.

The Forgotten City Hall Riot

In 1992, thousands of drunken cops raged against the mayor of New York — leaving an indelible mark on the city’s likely next mayor.
Black and white photo of a man walking three tiny poodles on a sidewalk

A Vast Latrine for Dogs

A brief history of trying to save city streets from pet waste.
Collage of strips of famous African American faces in a mechanical press.

Afropessimism and Its Discontents

A guide for the perplexed, the puzzled, and the politically confused.
Yumi Doi, an activist with Group of Fighting Women, at a protest against sexual discrimination, Tokyo, June 1972

A Work in Progress

Two new books on the history of feminism emphasize global grassroots efforts and the influence of American women labor leaders on international agreements.
U.S. Capitol riot

Echo Chambers

Parallels between the American Revolution and the U.S. Capitol riot.

The Myth of the Golden Years

Whether economic times are good or bad, the lament for the old days of factories and mills never changes.
Album cover for "We Insist!", which features African American men sitting at a lunch counter

The Sounds of Struggle

Sixty years ago, a pathbreaking jazz album fused politics and art in the fight for Black liberation. Black artists are taking similar strides today.
Newt Gingrich and applauding Republicans

My Front Row Seat to the Radicalization of the Republican Party

As a political reporter, I've seen four Republican revolutions — Reagan’s, Gingrich’s, the Tea Party’s and Trump’s — each of which took the party farther right.
Job seekers wait to be called into the Heartland Workforce Solutions office in Omaha last summer.
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How Cruelty Became the Point of Our Labor and Welfare Policies

Why do so many politicians think people only work if threatened or forced into doing so?
Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.).
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House Republicans’ Leadership Fight Signals a New Direction

Leadership battles tell us a lot about where a party is headed.

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