Walt Whitman the… Politician?
Before Walt Whitman was a famous poet, he was a scandalous poet, but before even all that he was in the thick of local and national politics.
The Psychology of Copycat Crime
A recent wave of subway slashings in New York City is an opportunity to examine the criminology and sociology behind copycat crime.
How the March Blizzard of 1888 Challenged New Yorkers’ Self-Perceptions
Winter's not over quite yet. The great Blizzard of 1888 was in March.
The Poem at the Foot of Lady Liberty
Emma Lazarus's famous poem welcoming refugees to America was written during a period of nativist backlash against immigrants.
John Lindsay, Last of the Liberal Republicans
Yes, there was once such a thing as a liberal Republican. We take a look at the rise and fall of John Lindsay, former Mayor of New York.
The Automated Future, and Past, of Fast Food
Automat cafeterias were the precursors of contemporary fast food restaurants.
Immigrants and Politics in the 1890s and Today
A comparison between immigration policies in the 1890s and today.
E. L. Doctorow On New York
Literary giant E. L. Doctorow died in New York—where he lived his entire life—on July 21, 2015. In a 1995 interview, Doctorow reveals what the city meant to him.
Ota Benga and the Living Ethnographic Exhibit
In the book Spectacle: The Astonishing Life of Ota Benga, Pamela Newkirk tells a tale that is more than astonishing.