Slavery Abolition

In 2016, inspired by the #OscarsSoWhite conversation and other conversations about racial diversity at the Oscars that have started since then, I volunteered to write a post listing all the white actors who had been nominated for Oscars for playing people of color.  As I did the research for that…

Excerpts from recent editorials in the United States and abroad:___Feb. 5The Miami Herald on Fred Guttenberg, father of a student killed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas in Parkland, being removed from President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address:House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s act of rebellion during President Trump’s State of the…

In The Cosmopolitan Tradition: A Noble but Flawed Ideal, renowned philosopher Martha C. Nussbaum offers a set of essays that take their cue from the Cynic and Stoic traditions to explore the tensions within the cosmopolitan ideal through the works of Cicero, Hugo Grotius and Adam Smith. Questioning the book’s positioning…

Photo by PoPville flickr user Wayne Vota “Dear PoPville, Now that the Senate, which in no way represents 700,000 DC residents, has abdicated its responsibility, why do we continue to pay taxes? Curious to see whether we can have a healthy debate on this.” Ed. Note: From a press release:…

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Before photography was invented, we had to rely on sculptures, paintings and written descriptions to figure out how some famous historical figures looked like. This, of course, did not come without some misinterpretations. For example, people are still uncertain what Napoleon’s real height was after all these years. Graphic designer…

As you watch Super Bowl LIV, bear in mind that rooting for the Kansas City Chiefs and taking no issue with either their mascot or their fans’ traditions means rooting for racism. This article first appeared in Salon. Similarly, cheering for the San Francisco 49ers after learning about the history…

As the presidential election year of 2020 begins, many news outlets will discuss the history of past presidential elections and attempt to find parallels between the past and present. Here are six interesting facts about past elections. 1. 63% of Sitting Presidents Running for Reelection Won 17 Presidents sought reelection and were rewarded with…

Yay! It’s a new month, and maybe a less gloomy one, for today is February 1, 2020. And on Sunday the sun is predicted to shine for the first time in 11 days (the record is 12). As it’s a new month, there are a number of food designations for…

Like a lot of relationships, my feelings about Black History Month are complicated. On the one hand, I deeply appreciate the time to intentionally celebrate the brilliant contributions to American culture and history by people who look like me. But while abso…