Current Events that Relate to History
-
AntecedentHow Somalis Became the New ‘Welfare Queens’
Trump has reinvented Reagan’s old attack, with one key twist.The Bulwark -
Book ReviewThe New History of Fighting Slavery
What we learn by tracing rebellions from Africa to the Americas.The Atlantic -
DiscoveryA Skirmish Early in George Washington’s Military Career Helped Define Him. It Could Have Killed Him
New evidence helps resolve enduring mysteries about a 1758 incident that nearly cost the future president his life—and shaped his views on the battles to come.Smithsonian Magazine -
ProfileInside Stephen Miller’s Dark Plot to Build a MAGA Terror State
Descended from Jewish immigrants, Stephen Miller's project is to close the country to people like his ancestors.The New Republic -
Museum ReviewDid We Get the History of Modern American Art Wrong?
The standard story of 1960s art is one of Abstract Expressionism leading into Pop Art and minimalism. The Whitney offers a different one centered on surrealism.The Nation -
AntecedentSerious Reservations
The Trump administration’s erasure of Indigenous history serves a larger project—yet another plunder of land.The Baffler -
OriginalBest History Writing of 2025
The short-form history writing that moved, impressed, and taught our editors the most this year.Bunk
From the HNN Archive
-
How to Succeed in Government Without Really Trying
The long history of promising an “efficient” federal government. -
If the Slipper Doesn’t Fit
A scorched shoe is a crucial part of Zelda Fitzgerald’s modern mythology. But there’s no proof it existed. -
Indifferent to the Fate of Freedom Elsewhere
Jimmy Carter is known for his defense of human rights worldwide. But in 1979, he threatened to deport thousands of Iranian student protesters. -
Elevating the Few
What JD Vance excludes from the history of the Civil War and immigration. -
Whose Side Are College Administrators On?
There’s a long history of politicians targeting student protesters — and of campus leaders abetting those efforts. -
Solve for AI
What the history of the pocket calculator reveals about the future of AI in classrooms. -
“At Any Future Time”
In 1880, the daughter of a Welsh politician turned to fiction to expose perspectives missing from the official record, upending histories for generations to come. -
Slamming America’s Door Behind Him
How a son of European immigrants fought to keep Indian immigrants out of America. -
Governing by Police
The Metropolitan Police Department in DC has been an essential component of Washington politics since its founding. -
When Good Housekeeping Meant Getting Vaccinated Against Polio
The pages of 1950s lifestyle magazines offer a glimpse of a time when childhood vaccines were anything but controversial.