Demonizing Immigrants in the 1880s
American newspapers portrayed members of immigrant groups as potential anarchists, linking the ideology to other anxieties and stereotypes about foreigners.
Politicizing Intelligence: Nixon’s Man at the CIA
James R. Schlesinger was only head of the CIA for six months, but he nevertheless ranks as the least popular director in the agency’s history.
Police Misconduct and State Legitimacy in Central America
In countries such as Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras, police corruption and misconduct have eroded public support for the political order.
Hamilton’s Real Immigration Story
The popular musical poses Alexander Hamilton as a symbol of the value of immigrants brought to America, but over time, his party became increasingly xenophobic.
Moral Economy and the Causes of Wage Inequality
How important are labor unions for combating wage inequality in the United States?
Colonialism, Resistance, and Liquor
For both the Shawnee of North America and the Sámi of northern Europe, alcohol provided by colonizing powers was a symbolic and practical political issue.
Labor Day: A Celebration of Working in America
Our best stories about workers' rights, labor unions, and international movements to improve working conditions, from the factory to the farm.
Christopher, the Dog-Headed Saint
Although the tradition has largely faded in the Western church, Saint Christopher sported a canine head through much of Christian history.
The Wonderful World of the Water Ski
Invented in 1922, water-skiing quickly became shorthand for American ideas on beauty, athleticism, and affluence.
Mexico, 1910: An Influential Sneeze or a Home-Grown Revolution?
Historians are rethinking the claim that the Panic of 1907 in the United States helped spark the Mexican Revolution.