Leaders of the civil rights movement called their protests "demonstrations" because they aimed to make visible the systems of political repression and physical violence that were all too often hidden from public view. Because they wanted to force the nation to confront the ugly realities of racism and
The Trump administration is, at its core, a white nationalist project. The president's personal racism, of course, has always been crystal clear, not just from the start of his political career but from the much older start of his public career. His first mention in The New York
Over the past year and, in particular, over the past month, the United States has suffered an alarming rise in the number of verbal threats, physical assaults, and even murders committed by agents of the federal government against citizens and undocumented immigrants alike. Encouraged to act irresponsibly by Acting President
Work in Progress is a recurring feature on CAMPAIGN TRAILS, in which I share some of the more interesting materials I’ve uncovered in my book-in-progress on the work of John Doar and the Civil Rights Division in the 1960s. There's currently a rebellion brewing in the Department
Work in Progress is a recurring feature on CAMPAIGN TRAILS, in which I share some of the more interesting materials I’ve uncovered in my book-in-progress on the work of John Doar and the Civil Rights Division in the 1960s. In my last post, I talked about the Trump White
The term "revisionist history" routinely gets thrown around in popular discourse as a shorthand for "lying about the past." I've noted before that this is actually quite different from how historians use that term, as we understand that all good historical work is inherently
This week, I saw someone on social media trot out a notorious quote from Lee Atwater that's wildly misunderstood. I went back to dust off my old Twitter thread about it, but I found that a lot of the links there have decayed or been deleted. So I&
Using the Past to Make Sense of the Present
When it comes to American politicians who say little and do less, the gold standard remains former President Calvin Coolidge. As most people know, Coolidge was quiet, deeply reserved, and generally unsmiling. His nickname, after all, was "Silent Cal." In one popular story, a woman at a party
Before diving in, I should apologize for light posting over the past month or so. I'm in the home stretch for the book I'm writing on John Doar and the Civil Rights Division. The draft is due to my press next month, but all I have
As the seemingly endless NYC mayoral campaign enters its final weeks, the howls of the Democratic establishment in the city are only getting louder. They've really convinced themselves that the election of a (gasp) Democratic Socialist will mean the absolute destruction of the city. Cops will quit! Billionaires
As the nation reckons with the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, there has been a notable trend from mainstream pundits and press outlets. They have tended to downplay or outright ignore the ugly things that he said and instead to stress the polite ways he said them. It'
The steady decline of American media continued this week with word that David Ellison, the new owner of Paramount, plans to purchase The Free Press and give its founder Bari Weiss a top position at CBS News. Now, I should acknowledge at the outset that I am not the son
Work in Progress is a recurring feature on CAMPAIGN TRAILS, in which I share some of the more interesting materials I’ve uncovered in my book-in-progress on the work of John Doar and the Civil Rights Division in the 1960s. In my last post, I noted in passing that more
Work in Progress is a recurring feature on CAMPAIGN TRAILS, in which I share some of the more interesting materials I’ve uncovered in my book-in-progress on the work of John Doar and the Civil Rights Division in the 1960s. As I noted in my last post on the Voting
Work in Progress is a recurring feature on CAMPAIGN TRAILS, in which I share some of the more interesting materials I’ve uncovered in my book-in-progress on the work of John Doar and the Civil Rights Division in the 1960s. This week marks the sixtieth anniversary of the Voting Rights
Once upon a time, it was expected that the President of the United States would work for all the people of the United States, not just the ones who voted for him. The Biden administration, for instance, repeatedly worked to make life better for Americans in rural, red states. Take
Elon Musk, who has famously always delivered on his promises – like getting a million robot-taxis on the streets by 2020, sending a manned mission to Mars by 2021, or creating a 29-minute "hyper loop" on the East Coast – has now vowed to create his most stunning achievement to
The success of Zohran Mamdani in the mayoral primary in New York City has predictably set off the worst possible takes from the worst possible people. And while I'm generally loathe to drag out any posts from the dilapidated Nazi bar that was once known as Twitter, this
During these early months of Trump II: The Revenge, we've all been subjected to an overwhelming flood of outrages – unconstitutional power grabs, international emergencies, economic chaos, an assault on higher education, a wave of white nationalist race-baiting, bigoted culture warrior nonsense and so, so much more. The effort