Essay Why protests matter in American democracy June 02, 2020 As protests continue nationwide in honor of George Floyd and to express outrage with systemic racism, it remains to be seen how the current civil unrest will shape democracy long term, and impact voting in the fall. Read More
Essay Political incompetence, revolutionary reactions, and present danger April 08, 2020 Are we headed for a new set of momentous revolutions like the iconic French and Russian ones of 1789 and 1917? What causes major revolutions? Can we learn something by looking at not just the French and Russian ones but the twentieth century events such as the Mexican revolution of 1910 or the Iranian one of 1979? Read More
Essay Should an old man engage in politics? April 07, 2020 Around noon on March 5, 2020, Elizabeth Warren suspended her campaign for president of the United States, leaving Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders to run (essentially) a two-man race for the Democratic nomination. Read More
Essay The short, sad, and expensive life of mayors on the presidential campaign trail March 06, 2020 Mike Bloomberg and Pete Buttigieg each made a big bet on the 2020 presidential campaign. The voters, each believed, thought they could step past partisan bickering to with a pledge to deliver programs that worked better. Who better to do that than a mayor with proven experience? Read More
Essay The roots of Black political unity February 27, 2020 On December 12, 2017, the state of Alabama held a special general election for the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Attorney General Jeff Sessions. The race, which had Republican Roy Moore running against Democrat Doug Jones, had already captured national attention. Read More
Essay Why are Blacks Democrats? February 25, 2020 African Americans are Democrats. Since 1968 no Republican presidential candidate has received more than 13% of the African American vote and surveys of African Americans regularly show that upwards of 80% of African Americans self-identify as Democrats. However, understanding why African Americans are such steadfast supporters of the Democratic Party is not as straightforward as it seems. Read More
Interview Jedediah Purdy on This Land is Our Land November 26, 2019 Today, we are at a turning point as we face ecological and political crises that are rooted in conflicts over the land itself. Read More
Interview Amin Saikal on Iran Rising February 15, 2019 When Iranians overthrew their monarchy, rejecting a pro-Western shah in favor of an Islamic regime, many observers predicted that revolutionary turmoil would paralyze the country for decades to come. Read More
Interview Jason Brennan on When All Else Fails December 11, 2018 The economist Albert O. Hirschman famously argued that citizens of democracies have only three possible responses to injustice or wrongdoing by their governments: we may leave, complain, or comply. Read More
