Essays Archive - Public Seminar

Can American Liberalism Reinvent Itself?

How obscuring the public side of public-private partnerships from FDR to Clinton rendered the liberal state politically precarious

June 27, 2023 • by Henry Tonks

The DLC, soon to anoint Governor Bill Clinton of Arkansas as their chairman and presidential standard-bearer, were leaving the legacy of New Deal and postwar liberalism behind. They were, after all, “New Democrats.” Or were they? ...

Can American Liberalism Reinvent Itself?

Europe & Central Asia

“Deep political changes are only a matter of time”

Correspondence with Vladimir Kara-Murza

June 26, 2023 • by Anastasia Shteinert, Vladimir Kara-Murza and Alex Strelnikov

Just before his sentencing, journalists Anastasia Shteinert and Alex Strelnikov sent questions to Kara-Murza through the Russian prison postal system...

“Deep political changes are only a matter of time”

Podcast

Terrorism Begins at Home

Why Now? With Claire Potter, Episode 28

June 26, 2023 • by Claire Potter

A conversation with legal journalist Jeffrey Toobin about his new book, "Homegrown: Timothy McVeigh and the Rise of Right-Wing Extremism" ...

The Arts

Don’t Read the Wall Text

A first-time visitor confronts the jargon of International Art English at the Kochi-Muziris Biennale

June 21, 2023 • by Shweta Nandakumar

A first-time visitor confronts the jargon of International Art English in the Kochi-Muziris Biennale wall text...

Multi-Verse

Multi-Verse Episode 9: J. Mae Barizo on the Rhythm of Tenderness

“Sunday Women on Malcolm X Boulevard” explores care across space and time

June 21, 2023 • by Evangeline Riddiford Graham

In Multi-Verse Episode 9, J. Mae Barizo reads “Sunday Women on Malcolm X Boulevard” and discusses the poem with Evangeline Riddiford Graham....

Multi-Verse Episode 9: J. Mae Barizo on the Rhythm of Tenderness

Past Present

The Trump Indictment

Past Present Podcast, Episode 379

June 20, 2023 • by Nicole Hemmer, Natalia Mehlman Petrzela and Neil J. Young

In this episode, Natalia, Neil, and Niki discuss the indictment of former President Donald Trump. ...

Democracy

The 2023 Turkish Elections—A Roller Coaster Ride between Hope and Despair

The opponents of Erdogan feel “ghosted” by their leaders

June 14, 2023 • by Selin Bengi Gümrükçü

About a week after the runoff of the Turkish presidential elections in 2023, I had a vivid dream. In this dream, the elections extended to a third round, scheduled for a few weeks later, and the dates for diaspora voting were yet to be released. As a diaspora voter myself, ...

The 2023 Turkish Elections—A Roller Coaster Ride between Hope and Despair

Europe & Central Asia

“The Symbolic Equivalent of a Pogrom” in Poland

The attack on historian Jan Grabowski broke the psychological barrier limiting public anti-Semitic actions

June 13, 2023 • by Irena Grudzińska-Gross

Since there are no longer any groupings of recognizable Jews in Poland, the assault on Jan Grabowski is the symbolic equivalent of a pogrom. The otherwise inexplicable destruction of property forms part of the pogrom repertoire. ...

“The Symbolic Equivalent of a Pogrom” in Poland

Activism

Can a Walking Tour Rescue a Lost History?

As the pandemic hit and anti-Asian violence surged, Anna Huang and Chloe Chan started Mott Street Girls, a walking tour company, to make Chinese American history more accessible to the public

June 12, 2023 • by Mette Kierstein

In the future, Mott Street Girls hope to have visited every Chinatown in the country. But hearing people’s feedback is what keeps them going. They believe that history can be a form of social activism....

Can a Walking Tour Rescue a Lost History?

Gender

Eau du Easy Mark

An excerpt from Lucky Dogs: A Novel

June 8, 2023 • by Helen Schulman

My natural scent could be called “eau du easy mark,” an odor only vermin can detect, a spicy mélange of paralysis perfume with prior-history-of-abuse essence....

Podcast

Lavender and Red

June 7, 2023 • by Claire Potter

A conversation with historian Bettina Aptheker about her book "Communists in Closets: Queering the History, 1930s-1990s"...

Activism

The Pro-Nazi Artist Behind the Brooklyn Public Library’s Facade

German-American sculptor Carl Paul Jennewein, who designed the library’s iconic entrance reliefs, participated in Nazi exhibitions and espoused white supremacist beliefs

June 6, 2023 • by Daniel Fernandez

Brooklyn Public Library’s entrance artwork propagates a colonialist, white supremacist vision that is inseparable from Nazism....

Essays

Can American Liberalism Reinvent Itself?

How obscuring the public side of public-private partnerships from FDR to Clinton rendered the liberal state politically precarious

“Deep political changes are only a matter of time”

Correspondence with Vladimir Kara-Murza

Terrorism Begins at Home

Why Now? With Claire Potter, Episode 28

Don’t Read the Wall Text

A first-time visitor confronts the jargon of International Art English at the Kochi-Muziris Biennale

Multi-Verse Episode 9: J. Mae Barizo on the Rhythm of Tenderness

“Sunday Women on Malcolm X Boulevard” explores care across space and time

The Trump Indictment

Past Present Podcast, Episode 379

The 2023 Turkish Elections—A Roller Coaster Ride between Hope and Despair

The opponents of Erdogan feel “ghosted” by their leaders

“The Symbolic Equivalent of a Pogrom” in Poland

The attack on historian Jan Grabowski broke the psychological barrier limiting public anti-Semitic actions

Can a Walking Tour Rescue a Lost History?

As the pandemic hit and anti-Asian violence surged, Anna Huang and Chloe Chan started Mott Street Girls, a walking tour company, to make Chinese American history more accessible to the public

Eau du Easy Mark

An excerpt from Lucky Dogs: A Novel

Lavender and Red

The Pro-Nazi Artist Behind the Brooklyn Public Library’s Facade

German-American sculptor Carl Paul Jennewein, who designed the library’s iconic entrance reliefs, participated in Nazi exhibitions and espoused white supremacist beliefs

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