Note: Historians for Peace and Democracy has published Empire of Sanctions, a 14-part syllabus on the nature and history of economic sanctions, focusing especially on their use by the US since the early 20th century. All the assigned readings are available on the Web. The historians who compiled it are Renate Bridenthal, CUNY (emerita); Molly Nolan, NYU; and Prasannan Parthasarathi, Boston University.
Links to Recent Articles of Interest
By Priyamvada Gopal, The Guardian, posted March 17
On pressure in Britain to prevent public attention to Churchill's “murkier side”: his views on race and empire. The author teaches Postcolonial Studies at Cambridge University and wrote Insurgent Empire: Anticolonial Resistance and British Dissent (Verso, 2020).
By George Black, with photographs by Christopher Anderson, New York Times Magazine, posted March 16
A richly illustrated article on the multigenerational health problems caused by the secret use of deadly Agent Orange in Laos during the Vietnam War, focusing especially on the work volunteers with the War Legacies Project who have brought the tragic stories to light.
By Medea Benjamin and Nicolas J. S. Davies, Nation of Change, posted March 12
“The Biden presidency is still in its early days, but it’s not too early to point to areas in the foreign policy realm where we, as progressives, have been disappointed–or even infuriated.” Medea Benjamin is a co-founder of CODEPINK for Peace and Nicolas Davies is a researcher for CODEPINK and author of Blood on Our Hands: The American Invasion and Destruction of Iraq (Nimble Books, 2010).
By Andrew Bacevich, TomDispatch.com, posted March 11
Warns against the influence of the traditional foreign policy establishment – “the Blob” – in the Biden administration.The author is a professor emeritus of history and international relations at Boston University and president of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft.
By Van Gosse, History News Network, posted March 7
On African American voting in the US between the Revolution and the Civil War. The author teaches history at Franklin and Marshall College and has written The First Reconstruction: Black Politics in America Between the Revolution and the Civil War (U. of North Carolina Press, 2021). He is co-chair of H-PAD.
By Kevin Young, Sidecar [New Left Review blog], posted March 5
On US policies toward Latin America early in the Biden administration, finding more continuity than change. The author teaches Latin American history at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. He is on the H-PAD Steering Committee.
By Roy E. Finkenbine, History News Network, posted February 28
On the disruption of numerous Black History Month on-line events with racist and obscene imagery. The author teaches history at the University of Detroit Mercy.
By Daniel N. Gullotta, The Bulwark, posted February 25
“It is worth remembering that even the more wild and unhinged accusations of Satan-worshipping have a long history in this country—and by studying the precedents, we might be able to better understand the dynamics and future of QAnon.” The author is a PhD candidate in religious history at Stanford University.
By Brook Thomas, History News Network, posted February 21
Warns against romanticizing either the nation's founders or President Grant, whose limited support for racial justice during Reconstruction is often exaggerated. The author is a professor emeritus at UC Irvine and author of The Literature Of Reconstruction: Not In Plain Black And White (Johns Hopkins U. Press, 2017).
'What 'America Is Back' Really Means”
By Andrew Bacevich, Spectator US, posted February 21
“The idea that a US-led bloc of Western nations will determine the future of the planet will become increasingly implausible.” The author is a professor emeritus of history and international relations at Boston University and
president of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft.
president of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft.
Thanks to Jerise Fogel, Rusti Eisenberg, and an anonymous reader for flagging some of the articles included in the above list. Suggestions can be sent to jimobrien48@gmail.com.