imperialism

The Daiquiri is the History of American Empire in a Cocktail

by Ian Seavey

"The daiquiri rose to prominence as a direct result of the American imperial project in the Caribbean during the burgeoning classic cocktail age from 1860 to 1920."

20 Years Later, a Massive Effort to Forget the Runup to Iraq Invasion

by Stephen Wertheim

The impulse for American leaders to forget about Iraq and move on reveals the pathologies of American primacy in world affairs. 

America Broke Iraq, and Itself

by Thanassis Cambanis

"The U.S. occupation of Iraq normalized torture, impunity, manipulation of intelligence, and a new level of official mendacity."

Iraq War at 20: What the Neocons Got Wrong

by Max Boot

"I desperately wanted to believe that spreading freedom could solve the security dilemmas confronting the United States—that by doing good in the world, it could also serve its national security interests."

Drawing the Line between Assigning and Endorsing

by Steve Mintz

Controversies about recent books about the history and legacy of colonialism raise questions about what it means to assign – or refuse to – a book for students to read, discuss, and potentially critique, and how provocation works in the liberal model of inquiry. 

Why We Went to War on Iraq

by Melvyn P. Leffler`

One foreign policy historian argues that the decision to invade Iraq was made out of genuine concern for thwarting attacks on Americans and preserving the United States' ability to use military power in the Middle East. 

Can the World Stop Imperialist War?

by Lawrence Wittner

It's past time to finish the halting progress made a century ago to rally international cooperation against imperial aggression. The stakes are too high to leave peace in the hands of individual nations. 

Ailing Empires: The Rhetoric of Decline in Britain and the US

by Jed Esty

If the US is following behind Great Britain in experiencing the strains of a collapsing empire, can Americans, their leaders, and their thinkers learn any lessons from the comparison and make a post-imperial society that is more humane and less nasty? 

The Best Classroom is the Struggle: Teaching Imperialism

by Joshua Sooter

Even students who are able to overcome the cognitive dissonance provoked by learning about American imperialism struggle to imagine how knowledge can support work for a more just and democratic world order. 

Ongoing US Territorial Possessions Perpetuate Colonialism and Racism

by Anders Bo Rasmussen

While much has changed over a century, the basic question of equal treatment for citizens in American territories has essentially remained the same.

Can We Condemn One Empire Without Affirming Another?

by Moon-Ho Jung

The experience of left-wing Japanese Americans, who rejected Japanese imperialism while being oppressed by American nationalism, shows that war forces an artificial binary of national allegiance. 

The Dangerous Trend of Imperial Nostalgia – It's not Just Russia

by Lawrence Wittner

The embrace of the belief that nations are entitled to reclaim their past dominance underlies Russia's invasion of Ukraine but also is influencing the politics of Britain, France, China, and the United States. A renewed commitment to international cooperation is needed to thwart this dangerous turn. 

Is this the End of the Russian Empire?

by Walter Russell Mead

Historic empires have all ultimately faced a moment of reckoning when the reality of their fading power overcomes triumphal myths. The next phase of fighting in Ukraine will determine if that moment has come for Putin's Russia. 

American Militarism is the Key to Understanding Today's Violence Against Asian Women

Since the Philippine-American war in the 1890s, the sexual exploitation of Asian women has gone hand in hand with American militarism in the Pacific. It's foolish to pretend that this history has nothing to do with attacks on Asian American women today. 

Richard Overy's New Book Tells WWII as Global History of Imperial Conflict

by Daniel Immerwahr

"Whatever else the Second World War was about, it was, on both sides, a war for empire."

You Can't Teach "Pros and Cons" When it Comes to Empire

by Priya Satia

Far from encouraging critical thinking, the "balance sheet" approach to teaching historical atrocities like slavery or imperialism flatters the mythologies created by the powerful to excuse violence against others, says a historian of empire and parent of a high school student. 

Putin is Following the 19th Century US in Using Separatist Movements to Justify Empire

by Elliott Young

No American observers should use the term "unprecedented" to describe Putin's claim to support self-determination as a justification for invading another country. It's part of the toolkit of empire.

A Tale of Two Dictators: Putin's Relationship to Stalin's Legacy

by Simon Sebag Montefiore

Despite their ideological incompatibility, Putin's nationalism depends on the cult of fear and repressive apparatus of the Stalinist era, which was never comprehensively demolished after the fall of Communism. 

The Seeds of War

by Gregory Afinogenov

Putin's actions belie the argument that Russia was provoked by NATO expansion; Russian imperialism is driving neighbors toward the western alliance, not the other way around. 

Read Historical Discussion of Putin's Imperial Ambitions from 2008

by Isabella Ginor and Gideon Remez

Russian incursions into Georgia in 2008 gave strong clues to the playbook for the invasion of Ukraine and efforts to justify it.