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History News Network

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Roundup Top Ten for May 1, 2020

States Are in Crisis. Why Won’t Trump Help?

by Lizabeth Cohen

The abandonment of a federalist system where states are accountable to Washington and residents everywhere can expect equitable treatment is recasting the United States of America to favor States over United. 

Front-Line Workers in the COVID-19 Fight Need Unions

by William P. Jones

Without strengthening labor laws, and extending them to all sectors, we cannot ensure workers have the power to protect their own health and safety on the job and the health and safety of our communities.

As Coronavirus Magnifies America’s Housing Crisis, FDR's New Deal Could Offer a Roadmap Forward

by Jill Watts

The coronavirus crisis has exposed one of America's greatest needs: adequate and safe housing.

A History of Inconvenient Allies and Convenient Enemies

by Alexander Aviña

The history of American alliances abroad doesn't make sense as a drug control strategy, but is consistent with a strategy of invoking the war on drugs to punish governments that resist U.S. domination.

If the Great Depression Is Any Indication, Things Won’t Just Go Back to ‘Normal’ After the Coronavirus Pandemic Ends

by James C. Cobb

New Deal programs had difficulty returning the United States to "normal" life because FDR had difficulty persuading many Americans that the federal government was supporting their economic security. This failure makes a comprehensive response to COVID-19 less politically feasible.

Excluding Those in the Sex Industry from Covid-19 Relief is a Mistake

by Leah LaGrone

Government needs to back off making moral value judgments shaped by Christian values when it comes to women’s work, and instead to focus on the harsh economic reality facing millions of women. 

Why History is Hard — and Dangerous — to Teach and how to Get Kids to Stop Thinking it is ‘Boring and Useless’

by Edward Ayers

Young people love history, just not history as it is forced upon them.

My Native American Father Drew the Land O’Lakes Maiden. She was Never a Stereotype.

by Robert DesJarlait

The son of the Red Lake Ojibwe artist who redesigned "Mia" contends that taking her image off the butter package destroys a symbolic connection between indigenous people and place. 

Queen of Heaven, Empress of Hell

by Vanessa R. Corcoran

Contemporary depictions of Mary tend to be gentle in their holiness, but Christians centuries ago envisioned her as a powerful agent who fought for their salvation.

The (Yelling) Mothers of Us All

by Rachel Shteir

A review of Leandra Zarnow's biography of Bella Abzug, "Battling Bella: The Protest Politics of Bella Abzug."