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Black and white headshot of author Livia Gershon

Livia Gershon

Livia Gershon is a freelance writer in Nashua, New Hampshire. Her writing has appeared in publications including Salon, Aeon Magazine and the Good Men Project. Contact her on Twitter @liviagershon.

Old wedding photo
Education & Society

Marriage: Not What It Used to Be

Marriage and relationship advice has changed as the institutions evolve.
A woman in the kitchen of her mobile home in New Ulm, Minnesota, 1974
Business

Class and the Glass Ceiling

Feminism and "women's work" have looked very different for U.S. women depending on their class.
scrap heap
Politics & History

Putting Garbage Out of Sight

Recycling has always been something most people would prefer to keep at arm's length.
Wren Library, Cambridge University
Education

Political Correctness Redux

The conservative anti-PC movement of the 1990s has its roots in a backlash against the Civil Rights movement.
Hastings Muskogee Hatchery 1911
Business

When Refrigeration Was Controversial

What the ordinary egg has to do with your refrigerator.
Green Dragon Tavern
Politics & History

A Brief History of US Drinking

In 1770, the average colonial Americans consumed about three and a half gallons of alcohol per year, about double the modern rate.
42nd Street 1980s
Education & Society

Is There Really a Link between Mental Illness and Homelessness?

"Housing first” programs are helping cut homelessness in big ways. How significant is the link between mental illness and homelessness?
Riverdale Courts, Toronto
Education & Society

The Social Engineering of Affordable Housing

Pushes for affordable housing, and even social engineering be it Silicon Valley in 2016, or Toronto in 1912.
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Welref.jpg
Business & Economics

Why Welfare Reform Didn’t End Welfare Stigma

20 years after welfare reform, stigma surrounding cash benefits remains.
19th century police
Politics & Government

The Birth of the “Policed Society”

Over the course of the nineteenth century policing became increasingly professionalized.
Timothy Leary
Education & Society

How LSD Went From Research to Religion

The lines between psychological research and mysticism were blurry in the early days of LSD.
Campaign graphics
Politics & Government

Party Conventions and the Political Amateur

As the Republican and Democratic party conventions approach, many wonder which way the "political amateur" delegates will vote.
War headlines
Politics & Government

Do Terrorists Ever Win?

Surveying the purported objectives of 28 international terrorist groups and determining whether these groups achieved their aims.
smoking
Business & Economics

How to Cut Smoking Rates

A working paper released the National Bureau of Economic Research suggests that lifting people out of poverty could cut smoking rates. 
Watts
Education & Society

Did The 1965 Watts Riots Change Anything?

Sociological data from immediately after the riots in Watts, Los Angeles, in 1965 show major disparities in attitude by race.
rio olympics
Education & Society

How Olympics Host Cities Hide Their Homeless

Olympic host cities have historically cleared away and marginalized their homeless in advance of the games.
Doctor examines patient, 1942
Business

Why We Make Doctors Get Licenses

We might question why barbers or florists need licenses. But almost everyone would agree that doctors ought to be licensed.
Cornelius Vanderbilt II House
Politics & History

Why We Obsess Over Other People’s Mansions

Gilded Age mansions were remarkably public places. Newspapers breathlessly followed their construction and the social lives that happened within them
A teacher meeting a student and his parents
Education

How Parents Watch Teachers

What parents watch teachers the most? Economic class has a lot to do with report cards.
The American flag as sewn by Betsy Ross White
Politics & History

Happy Flag Day! (What is Flag Day?)

What is Flag Day, again? Early American flags were all over the place. There was no consensus about the flag until 25 years after the Revolution.
Parade goers carry a large rainbow flag at the Orlando Pride Parade
Politics & History

Why Naming Anti-Gay Violence Matters

The Orlando shooting was an act of anti-gay violence, an element of the story many politicians have ignored.
Old photo of a couple at Niagra
Education & Society

How American Tourism Began

American tourism took the scenic route over the course of the twentieth century. A growing middle class and car ownership helped.
Advertisement for Lucky Strike Cigarettes with a well-dressed smoking couple
Politics & History

A Brief History of Tobacco in America

Over the past 50 years, the portion of Americans who smoke dropped has dropped from 42 to 15 percent. The precipitous decline could mean the end of the fascination.
A group of Oberlin College students in the early twentieth-century
Education

From Dorm Rooms to Bathrooms: The Long Fight for Gender Equality

Before current uproar over transgender people and bathrooms, the country debated the place of coeducation in American society.
Black and white photo from a couple dressed in 1940s style clothing
Politics & History

When Do We Grow Up? After Graduation?

The age when we grow up and begin our adult lives has changed over the years.