Cairo’s Zabbaleen and Secret Life of Trash
In Egypt's capital, members of an impoverished Coptic population strengthen community ties while making a living as ragpickers.
What is Fundamentalism?
Fundamentalism, which shifts the balance between authority structures and the indescribable divine, emerged after medieval society gave way to the modern.
Toxic Legacies of WWII: Pollution and Segregation
Wartime production led directly to environmental and social injustices, polluting land and bodies in ways that continue to shape public policy and race relations.
Origins of Child Protection
Legend has it that the campaign to save abused children in New York was driven by the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. The truth is more complicated.
Remembering the Mirabal Sisters
International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women honors three sisters who were murdered by the Trujillo dictatorship in the Dominican Republic.
The Fakelore of Food Origins
Where did potato chips come from? How about clams casino? Are the origin stories for these foods true, or do they fall into the category of “fakelore”?
The Swedish-American Coffee Tradition
For many Swedish immigrants to the United States, coffee was a key to hospitality and a way to signal prosperity.
Challenging the Hegemoon: the Geopolitics of Space Infrastructure
Cooperative space initiatives between non-US powers such as China and South America are under-explored in scholarship and misunderstood in popular politics.
The Allure of Chinese Medicine
Capitalizing on stereotypes earned Chinese-American practitioners patients, but it also helped keep them confined to the margins of American society.
The Fatal Current: Electrocution as Progress?
The electric chair was promoted as civilized and at the same time imbued with the technological sublime, the mystery of electrical power harnessed by humans.