Lloyd Kramer: Why the History of Nationalism Matters in a Global Age, Part 1

Lloyd Kramer discusses the omnipresence of nationalism and its manifestation in contemporary society, from political campaigns to national identity. Continue Reading Lloyd Kramer: Why the History of Nationalism Matters in a Global Age, Part 1

Rebecca de Schweinitz: More Than Martin Luther King Jr.’s Dream

Rebecca de Schweinitz looks at the many people who share Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s vision as we approach the 48th anniversary of the March on Washington. Continue Reading Rebecca de Schweinitz: More Than Martin Luther King Jr.’s Dream

Historians on ‘The Help’: Vanessa May and Rebecca Sharpless Respond

Historians Vanessa May and Rebecca Sharpless discuss what’s wrong and what’s right with ‘The Help.’ Continue Reading Historians on ‘The Help’: Vanessa May and Rebecca Sharpless Respond

Marvin McAllister: Margaret Bowland and Janasia Smith: Subject and Artist at Play

Like the estranging whiteface minstrels and stage Europeans throughout African American performance history, Bowland’s portraits invite us to view whiteness with fresh and open eyes. Continue Reading Marvin McAllister: Margaret Bowland and Janasia Smith: Subject and Artist at Play

“Why they sang about John Brown”–R. Blakeslee Gilpin for the Boston Globe

Yesterday’s Boston Globe features an article by R. Blakeslee Gilpin, author of the forthcoming John Brown Still Lives!: America’s Long Reckoning with Violence, Equality, and Change.  Gilpin explains how what we now know as the “Battle Hymn of the Republic” originated as “John Brown’s Body” among soldiers in Boston.  John Brown, the subject of Gilpin’s book, was a radical abolitionist–he… Continue Reading “Why they sang about John Brown”–R. Blakeslee Gilpin for the Boston Globe

Michael H. Hunt: Polanyi’s ‘Great Transformation’: A classic for our hard times

Polanyi’s classic suggests we should ignore the profoundly false choice between markets and the state. Continue Reading Michael H. Hunt: Polanyi’s ‘Great Transformation’: A classic for our hard times

A Book to Please Every Palate

For the month of July, we’re shining the spotlight on all of our great foodways and cookbook titles here at UNC Press. We’re very excited about our forthcoming fall lineup that’s peppered with delightful foodie treats. Here’s a little amuse-bouche: Editor Stephen A. McLeod, with the help of staff members at Mount Vernon, brings us Dining with the Washingtons: Historic… Continue Reading A Book to Please Every Palate

Michael H. Hunt: How to think about the end of the “American Century”

Revisiting Henry Luce’s essay on American ascendancy, Michael H. Hunt considers the current era of American decline. Continue Reading Michael H. Hunt: How to think about the end of the “American Century”