Current Events that Relate to History
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CommentHistorical Parallels
Discussing effective historical analogies for the second Trump administration.Unpopular Front -
Study
The Console Wars, As Told By '90s Nintendo And Sega Advertisements
On the adolescent aesthetics that the federal government is co-opting to promote ICE.Aftermath -
NarrativeOver There, Again
The American Legion at home and abroad.Contingent -
LongreadTrump's War on History
As America’s 250th anniversary approaches, the president wants to control the country’s future by bulldozing its past.Mother Jones -
Book ReviewWho Owns the Founding? Akhil Reed Amar’s "Born Equal: Remaking America's Constitution"
Politics keeps refighting the Founding: Amar says liberals inherit originalism, but that tale smooths 19th-century contradictions.Liberal Currents -
ComparisonPlaying the Grinch at America’s 250th Birthday Party
How do we celebrate America's 250th anniversary as ICE and the Border Patrol threaten and abuse ordinary Americans?Washington Monthly -
exhibitFederal Bureaucracy
The federal government is the nation’s biggest employer. To many, its size is a problem in itself. This exhibit asks: how big is too big, and what do we miss when we focus on size alone?
From the HNN Archive
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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.