History

LGBTQ Archives at the Schlesinger and the Sophia Smith

November 16, 2020

This essay was previously published in 2018 at the archives site, Beyond Citation, created by Eileen Clancy and Steven Brier, CUNY Graduate Center. Before we delve into the LGBTQ digital resources of the Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women at the Radcliffe Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, and of the Sophia … More LGBTQ Archives at the Schlesinger and the Sophia Smith

When a White House transcript…

September 25, 2019

…isn’t really a transcript. But go ahead and read it anyway: it’s like two bobblehead dolls talking to each other. This reminds me of a common experience college professors have: being given work that is plagiarized, but not being quite able to tell from what it is plagiarized. My sources say that we will soon … More When a White House transcript…

Don’t cry for me….

September 22, 2019

…ARGENTINA! New School economics grad student Santiago Mandirola’s super-smart essay on the ubiquitous presence of the American dollar in the life of Argentinians. At Public Seminar, of course. And even though I am going image-free at Tenured Radical 3.0 (yes, the truth is I never left you) I can’t help posting this video:

And Over at Public Seminar, My Contribution to the Jill Lepore Forum

May 8, 2019

What I love about Jill Lepore’s These Truths? Her argument that nations are built on both ideals and ugly contradictions – and that historians have an obligation to both: read it here. Read other commentaries by David Hollinger and Malinda Maynor Lowery: tomorrow, Lepore responds.

When New York City Almost Failed

June 22, 2018

Public Seminar had the privilege of printing an excerpt of historian Kim Phillips-Fein’s recent book, Fear City: New York’s Fiscal Crisis and The Rise of Austerity Politics. Originally published in 2017 by Metropolitan Books, it is now available in paperback from Picador. The book tells a complex story of an iconic moment in the so-called “urban crisis” of the 1970s, in … More When New York City Almost Failed

Why Can’t Women Bridge the Left-Right Divide?

May 24, 2018

When did coalitional organizing between feminists and conservative women become impossible? I’m not sure, but as a feminist there is one place and time that I remember vividly: Indianapolis in the spring of 1984. There, led by Mayor William Hudnut, III Republican politician Beulah Coughenour and local movement conservatives, that city became one of the … More Why Can’t Women Bridge the Left-Right Divide?

Elections Turn On Policy, Not Public Relations

May 19, 2018

My liberal and left-wing friends continue to puzzle over a single, unanswerable question: why do white, working class people vote “against their interests”?Perhaps the reason that this is an unanswerable question is that it is the wrong question. I would like to suggest that they don’t vote against their own interests– or at least, that when voters … More Elections Turn On Policy, Not Public Relations

Why We Return to Certain Books Like Clockwork

February 7, 2018

This post was originally published at Public Seminar on February 7, 2018 When people ask me what I am teaching this semester, I bury the lede. I first describe my exciting, five-section strong introduction to Internet studies. Then there is the big reveal: “I am also teaching a core course in our history graduate program,” … More Why We Return to Certain Books Like Clockwork