Another crisis of unity: Old divisions resurface to show historic fragility of American democracy
By Alasdair S. Roberts, Director, School of Public Policy, University of Massachusetts Amherst For many people, the lesson from the assault on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021 – and more broadly from the experience of the last four years – is that American...
Weaponizing Unity: Decent Americans don’t need to unify with domestic terrorists to heal the nation
During his Inaugural address, just as he had done many times on the campaign trail, President Biden once again delivered a heartfelt plea for national unity, saying: Today, on this January day, my whole soul is in this: Bringing America together. Uniting our people....
Congress could use a Reconstruction-era Amendment to hold Trump accountable for Capitol attack
By Gerard Magliocca, Professor of Law, Indiana University Until recently, Section 3 of the 14th Amendment was an obscure part of the U.S. Constitution. The amendment is better known for its first section, which guaranteed individual rights and equality following the...
Reopening Schools in Wisconsin: The dilemma of returning to normal during abnormal times
This is an opinion piece. No more and no less. Just an opinion shared in an online publication, not much different than someone’s post on Facebook, a pundit’s commentary, or a politician before the cameras. Some of us stay in our lane, while others venture far outside...
The Stories that matter: How the COVID generation will look back at their memories of 2020
By Katie Holmes, Professor of History, La Trobe University The speed with which the COVID-19 virus infected the world and the dramatic nature of its fallout is without parallel. Individually and collectively we have struggled to understand and process it. Early on in...
Lessons from Chinese social media for countering America’s COVID-19 infodemic of conspiracy theories
By Kaiping Chen, Assistant Professor of Science Communication, University of Wisconsin-Madison Conspiracy theories about COVID-19 have accompanied the pandemic from the beginning. Crucial to managing the pandemic is mitigating the effects of misinformation, which the...
No Secret Police Force: New law requires Federal Agents to be clearly identified during a protest
When people took to the streets this year to protest racial injustice and police brutality against Black people, they faced a repressive, violent response from local police and federal agents. Some of these agents arrived with militarized uniforms, riot gear, and...
An autocratic legacy: How the radicalization of the right gave rise to death threats of public officials
By Shelley Inglis, Executive Director, University of Dayton Human Rights Center, University of Dayton As the impeachment trial of former President Donald Trump approaches, federal officials are investigating threats to attack or kill members of Congress. This comes in...
The tech crack down has pushed extremist groups off social media platforms and onto messaging apps
By Kevin Grisham, Professor of Global Studies, California State University San Bernardino Right-wing extremists called for open revolt against the U.S. government for months on social media following the election in November. Behind the scenes on private messaging...
Michael Snowden: Storytellers have a responsibility to facilitate spaces for sharing the authentic truth
Three C’s define Michael Snowden’s work: curiosity, compassion and conversation. Snowden is a Milwaukee-based creative, and the founder of Evelyn’s Angel – a nonprofit that advocates, trains, and provides individually curated care for loved ones living with...
A Black Woman of Faith: Federal plan revived to put Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill
By Robert Gudmestad, Professor and Chair of History Department, Colorado State University The Biden administration has revived a plan to put Harriet Tubman on the US$20 bill after Donald Trump’s Treasury secretary delayed the move. That was encouraging news to the...
Governor Tony Evers issues new mask mandate following GOP repeal of previous health safety order
Governor Tony Evers issued a new statewide mask order on February 4, an hour after the Republican-controlled Legislature voted to repeal his previous mandate. In October, a Marquette University Law Poll found 72% of Wisconsinites agreed that masks should be required...
