In November 2020, then president Donald Trump announced his 1776 Commission, a commission charged with delivering a conservative alternative to The New York Times 1619 Project. There were no American historians on the commission, but there was plenty of room...
1619? 1776? 1865? 1940? 1964? Which date defines the nation? Here is McGill University historian Gil Troy at the Jewish News Syndicate: In August 2019, The New York Times launched the 1619 Project—pivoting American history around racism’s evils, starting with the first slave ship’s...
This is a fascinating essay by Timothy Messer-Kruse of Bowling Green State University. It covers Josh Hawley’s “Love America Act” and Hillsdale College’s 1776 Curriculum. For most of the last two centuries, patriotic schooling was not a partisan issue. Both...
According to an Reuters-Ipsos poll 43% of Americans said they are “familiar” with critical race theory. 30% have never heard of it. Other findings from this poll: 24 % of Americans know about the 1619 Project. 22% know about the...
Princeton historian Matthew Karp offers a stinging criticism of the “stamped from the beginning” view of American history. Here is a taste of his Harper’s piece “History as End: 1619, 1776, and the politics of the past.” Whatever birthday it...
If you are not familiar with the 1776 Commission, get up to speed here and here and here. Here is The Washington Examiner: The education advisory commission set up by former President Donald Trump will resume operations despite being disbanded by President Joe...
Here is Rob Way and Jared Kofsky of WCSC TV: South Carolina lawmakers are considering a bill that would require “instruction in United States foundational history” for all public middle and high school students in a way that is consistent...
Brandi Collins-Dexter and Joan Donovan of the Harvard Kennedy School’s Shorenstein Center research media manipulation and disinformation. Columbia Journalism Review just published their fascinating piece about how “1776” became the battle cry of the MAGA movement. A taste: Our research...
Deborah Yaffe just published a great feature on American historian Allen Guelzo, Director of the Initiative on Politics and Statesmanship at Princeton’s James Madison Program. The piece, published at the Princeton University alumni magazine, covers Guelzo’s role in the rollout...
The 1776 Commission. The 1619 Project. The renaming of San Francisco schools. I have weighed-in on all three of these cases and in every case I wondered why more historians were not involved. Here is James Grossman, director of the...
Many of you are familiar with Georgetown University historian (and recently retired editor of Dissent) Michael Kazin‘s negative 2004 review of Howard Zinn’s A People’s History of the United States. Kazin brings a similar historical sensibility to his review of...
Yesterday the Senate voted 55-45 to move forward with Donald Trump’s second impeachment trial. The vote put an end to Kentucky senator Rand Paul’s constitutional objection to the trial. Most GOP senators supported Rand’s motion to kill the trial, but...
Read previous installments in this series here. Part Four of the 1776 Commission Report covers what it calls’ “Challenges to America’s Principles.” Slavery is identified as one of these “challenges.” At this point in our series it is important to remember...
Read previous installments in this series here. It is now difficult to find the 1776 Commission Report, but I managed to locate a copy in the Internet Archive. The authors begin with the Articles of Confederation. The report teaches a...
Read the entire series here. As I type, I am learning that Joe Biden will rescind the 1776 commission today. But I will go ahead with my analysis since I imagine that states with conservative governors or legislators may try...
Yesterday, in his final days in the White House, Donald Trump released the results of his 1776 Commission. He describes the report as a “historic and scholarly step to restore understanding of the greatness of the American founding.” The report...
