Links to Recent Articles of Interest
“The Regional Origins of America’s First Comprehensive Immigration Law”
By Devin E. Naar, Made by History – Time, posted July 6
On the background of the Immigration Restriction Act of 1924 and its author, Rep. Albert Johnson (R-Wash). “Even as the primary targets of immigration restrictionism have shifted over the century, the consequences for immigrants and their communities remain profoundly shaped by the system created in 1924.” The author teaches history and Jewish studies at the University of Washington in Seattle.
“Nuclear Arms Race Intensified under Trump’s Presidency”
By Lawrence S. Wittner, The Hill, posted July 5
A brief rundown of Donald Trump’s relation to nuclear weaponry as president in 2017-21. Besides ramping up the US nuclear arsenal,”Trump sabotaged key nuclear arms control agreements of the past and the future.” The author is a professor emeritus at SUNY Albany and has written several books about nuclear weapons and the movement against them.
“‘The Dred Scott of Our Time’”
By Sean Wilentz, New York Review, posted July 4
A lengthy, historically based critique of the Supreme Court’s July 1 decision on presidential immunity, comparing it to the sweeping Dred Scott v. Sandford decision of 1857. The author teaches US history at Princeton University and among his books is No Property in Man: Slavery and Antislavery at the Nation’s Founding (Harvard U. Press, 2018).
“Extreme Court Repeals the Magna Carta and Revokes Declaration of Independence”
By Alan Singer, Daily Kos, posted July 3
A short, trenchant evocation of two revered historical documents to attack the US Supreme Court’s July 1 ruling on presidential immunity. The author is a historian who teaches at Hofstra University and is director of social studies education programs there.
By Juan Cole, TomDispatch, posted July 2
Gives the historical background of the attacks being conducted by Houthis on Red Sea shipping in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, with drastic consequences for traffic in the Suez Canal.The author teaches Middle East history at the University of Michigan.
By Kevin A. Young, The Conversation, posted July 1
An interpretation of local successes of the 1950s-60s civil rights movement, leading to passage of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. “As firsthand accounts from the era make clear, the movement won because it directly hurt the interests of white business owners.” The author teaches Latin American history at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and has also written widely about power dynamics in US society.
“Prolonging the Ukraine War Is Flirting with Nuclear Disaster”
By Ivana Nicolic Hughes and Peter Kuznick, Responsible Statecraft, posted June 27
Lays out possible scenarios in which continuing escalation of the war in Ukraine could lead to the accidental (or deliberate) detonation of nuclear weapons. Peter Kuznick teaches history at American University, where he directs the Nuclear Studies Institute.
“Stop Listening to David Petraeus”
By Gregory Daddis, Responsible Statecraft, posted June 25
Critiques a recent article by retired general David Petraeus that offers advice to the Israeli military drawn from Petraeus’s role in the Iraq War. “At best, this is a narcissistic portrayal from a retired general seeking relevance by pontificating on all matters military. At worst, this is flawed history advocating for more bloodshed, conflating America’s disastrous wars in Iraq with a slaughter-house in Gaza. “The author is a 26-year US Army veteran who teaches military history at San Diego State University. He has written five books on the US war in Vietnam
By Ilan Pappe, NewLeft Review Sidecar, posted June 21
Sets forth six developments that, taken together, signal the weakening of the Israeli state, claiming that “Whether people welcome the idea or dread it, the collapse of Israel has become foreseeable.” The author is an Israeli historian and political scientist who formerly taught at the University of Haifa and now teaches at the University of Exeter, UK.
By Kevin M. Kruse, Substack, posted June 19
Traces the Louisiana law mandating display of the Ten Commandments in classrooms to the 1950s promotional campaign for Cecil B. DeMille’s blockbuster movie The Ten Commandments. The author teaches US history at Princeton University and has written, among other books, One Nation Under God: How Corporate America Invented Christian America (Basic Books, 2015).
“How Donald Trump Worked to Destroy America’s Labor Unions”
By Lawrence Wittner, CounterPunch, posted June 19
Catalogs the systematic anti-labor policies that characterized Trump’s term as president, especially through his appointments to the National Labor Relations Board. The author is a professor emeritus of history at SUNY Albany.
“The Pinochet Regime Declassified”
Edited by Peter Kornbluh and John Dinges, National Security Archive, posted June 18
June 18 of this year marked the 50th anniversary of the creation of the Chilean Secret Security Force (DINA) by the Pinochet dictatorship in Chile. Documents obtained by the National Security Archive under the Freedom of Information Act show the scope of the regime’s repressive measures, with US support. The authors are longtime staffers of the National Security Archive, affiliated with George Washington University.
“A Notorious Photograph from a US Massacre in the Philippines Reveals an Ugly Truth”
By Kim A. Wagner, New Lines Magazine, posted June 17
A chilling piece about a 1906 photograph of US troops amid the bodies of dead Moro men, women and children at the Bud Dajo volcano in the southern Philippines. The photo is compared to photographic postcards of the same era commemorating lynchings of African Americans in the US. The author teaches global and imperial history at Queen Mary University of London and has written Massacre in the Clouds: An American Atrocity and the Erasure of History (Hatchette, 2024).
Thanks to Rusti Eisenberg and an anonymous reader for flagging articles that are included in the above list and to Roger Peace for valuable consultation. Suggestions can be sent to jimobrien48@gmail.com.