Bylines

Heather Cox Richardson

The American flag on fire.

The Fight for Our America

There have always been two Americas. One based in religious zeal, mythology, and inequality; and one grounded in rule of the people and the pursuit of equality.
Recently freed African Americans receive rations.

The Origins of the Socialist Slur

Reconstruction-era opponents of racial equality popularized the charge that protecting civil rights would amount to the end of capitalism.

When Adding New States Helped the Republicans

DC statehood would be a modest ploy compared with the mass admission of underpopulated western territories.

Midterms and Troops: The Bid to Save a Party that Led to the Wounded Knee Massacre

The political context for one of the worst atrocities ever to take place on U.S. soil.
Trump smirking.

Was 2017 the Craziest Year in U.S. Political History?

A dozen historians weigh in.

The Republican Tax Bill Is a Poison Pill That Kills the New Deal

Today’s Republicans would have fit right into Herbert Hoover’s administration.
Entry in Theodore Roosevelt's diary with an "X" from the day his wife died.

Theodore Roosevelt & Valentine’s Day

How Theodore's Roosevelt's personal tragedies inspired him to reform America's cities.

Killing Reconstruction

During Reconstruction, elites used racist appeals to silence calls for redistribution and worker empowerment.

Mother’s Day or Mothers’ Day

The origins of the Hallmark holiday are rooted in a much greater cause.

John Brown: The First American to Hang for Treason

The militant abolitionist's execution set a precedent for armed resistance against the federal government with implications for those who had condemned him.