Ways of seeing: New border control stance needed

A reporter called me this week to ask me about the history of the border. He wanted to know if I thought that there was any chance that President Biden would tear down any part of the border fence, since it seems that in his first week in office, Biden moved quickly to undo many of the previous administration’s policies. He also asked if there was ever a point in history where any U.S. government entity had removed any part of the border control apparatus. I could not think of any. I am a historian of the U … (read more)

It’s been a long couple of weeks to say the least. The election has been called for former Vice President Joe Biden and Senator Kamala Harris. Now comes the wait for individual states to certify their official counts, which will be followed by several bas … (read more)

On Aug. 18, Donald Trump posthumously pardoned Susan B. Anthony. who voted illegally in 1872, well before the 19th amendment granted some women that right in 1920. I wonder if he would have pardoned her if she were black. For decades, Anthony fought shoul … (read more)

“Wow, it’s been a rough couple of weeks!” So many people have said that to me in recent days and each time I hear it, rage swells in my body. A rough couple of weeks? Try a rough couple of centuries. I am a historian of race in America. I am also a person … (read more)

In 1924 a virus outbreak overtook the state of California in unprecedented ways. The virus, known in Latin as aphtae epizooticae is a hardy virus that can spread rapidly. Virus particles can survive for two weeks on wool and for three months on leather, r … (read more)

There is a lot going on in the world right now, but I confess that I have been frequently and somewhat blissfully unaware of most of it. At the moment, I am suffering from some health issues that prevent me from spending too much time on the computer and … (read more)

“We have to do with the past only as we can make it useful to the present and to the future.” Frederick Douglass said that in a speech he delivered on July 5, 1852, in Rochester, N.Y. As a historian, I think a lot about the past. I am trained to study it, … (read more)