history
September 1, 1939: In memory of poet W.H. Auden
August 30, 2019Homage to Clio, the title poem of W.H. Auden’s 1960 small book of light verse—the later, shorter poems—is where I found out about the ninth muse, the Muse of History.
Read moreCommunist Party USA: 100 years in struggle for peace, democracy, socialism
August 30, 2019Just as it was a century ago, the idea of socialism is again on the minds of millions. And just like then, the Communist Party is a part of the mix.
Read moreMy parents were Communists: The story of our 1934 eviction
August 30, 2019My mother had not enjoyed a formal education, but she possessed a highly developed sense of working-class “street smarts”: She knew who the enemy was and how to deal with him.
Read morePrison classroom reflects white supremacy in new memoir
August 30, 2019The New Plantation: Lessons from Rikers Island: The title comes from Trask’s first day on the job.
Read more‘Seducing and Killing Nazis’ challenges us to resist, not adapt to, fascism
August 28, 2019Hannie, Truus, and Freddie are seen as heroes now, but it took decades. They, like many of those they fought alongside, were victims of red-baiting and anti-communism.
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