bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Questions
Authors: Blum Susan D.
Published: October 2024

This chapter considers the significance of questions in schooling and establishing authority and democracy. It explains that questions have many forms and many functions, but its most prototypical questions solicit new information. However, asking a question is a power move because it demands an answer and puts obligations on the conversation partner. Some questions that must be answered are initiated by teachers, and when permitted, students also ask questions. The chapter then highlights how many different kinds of generative questions lead to deep learning and engagement, but schools are rarely set up for these due to rarely having the time.
“Keisha Doesn’t Get the Call Before Kimberly”
Authors: Mahadeo Rahsaan
Published: October 2024

This chapter focuses on the challenges faced by Black youth in navigating maybe environments where educational and work opportunities are dwindling. While existing sociology literature often discusses the struggles of youth in such environments, there's less attention given to the unique burden Black youths face in having to work harder than their white counterparts for less reward. The chapter discusses how labor-time leads to a significant time deficit for Black youth compared to their white peers and impacts their life aspirations. It argues that racialization and racism transcend conventional understandings of life transitions and trajectories, serving as enduring challenges for Black youth. The notion of racialization and racism as “life course constants” suggests that the struggle to excel against systemic obstacles means that racialized youth are consistently tasked with achieving more with less time.
Conclusion
Authors: Wagner Steven
Published: October 2024

This chapter examines the critical evaluation of Dwight D. Eisenhower's presidency by New York Times bureau chief James Reston on his last full day in office. Reston's appraisal, focusing primarily on foreign affairs and national security, credited Eisenhower for avoiding war but criticized his leadership and focus. The chapter highlights the historians' favorable view of Eisenhower's presidency, particularly his decisions to avoid direct U.S. intervention in conflicts like the Vietnam War. It reviews how Eisenhower's commitment to balance, which was seen in his approach to social welfare, military spending, and civil rights, defined his presidency. Despite the criticisms, Eisenhower's Farewell Address and his philosophy of seeking balance offer valuable lessons for contemporary political discourse.
Patron-Client Networks and Professional Corruption Brokers
Authors: Jancsics David
Published: October 2024

This chapter focuses on patron–client networks and professional corruption brokers, two important elements of the system that help maintain state capture and social control in Hungary. One of the key features of the pervasive patron–client system in Hungary is that it provides public jobs for politically loyal clients and their families. Not surprisingly, these people are enthusiastic supporters of the Orbán system. The main outcome of rewarding adopted political family members with public positions is an ever-growing bureaucracy. Meanwhile, professional corruption brokers fall into three main categories: economic strómans, who represent the real but invisible owners of a shell company; supervisor brokers, who oversee corrupt agreements between parties; and gatekeepers, who stand between government officials and economic actors in corrupt schemes.
The City is Ours
Authors: Guvenç Muna
Published: October 2024

This book accounts how urban politics mediated the rise of Kurdish nationhood and mobilization in Diyarbakır, Turkey. The book elucidates how urban and architectural forms are not merely the backdrop of the cityscape where political struggles unfold; they constitute the very essence of these conflicts. It posits that urban spaces offer “wiggle room,” turning oppression into chances for dissent and resilience and offering opportunities for vulnerable minority groups to create sociopolitical blocs and mobilizations. The book takes readers from municipal halls to the streets and illustrates how, in the early 2000s, pro-Kurdish parties harnessed urban planning to resist coercion and foster Kurdish mobilization in Turkey. It challenges readers to rethink urban neoliberalism, new forms of nationalisms and mobilizations, and the ways they shape cities and politics. The book is an invitation to all architects and urban planners, urging them to rise above the confines of their blueprints and embrace the vast tapestry of the politics of space.
Dueling Orientalisms
Authors: Ford Taunalyn
Published: October 2024

This chapter examines the missionary journey of Hugh Findlay, a Scottish Latter-day Saint baptized by Parley P. Pratt in 1844, who lost his family to a diphtheria epidemic and dedicated himself to missionary work. In 1851, Findlay received a call from Elder Lorenzo Snow to serve in Bombay, India. The chapter details how Findlay joined other Scottish missionaries in Bombay, such as John Wilson and John Murray Mitchell, who were known for their contributions to knowledge of Indian religions and languages. The chapter highlights how Findlay distinguished himself by learning Marathi, writing tracts, and documenting religious practices, reflecting the influence of Scottish orientalist missionaries. It suggests that the impact of the Scottish Enlightenment on both Scottish and Mormon missionary work has been underestimated.
Earthquakes, Mudslides, and Hurricanes
Authors: Turek Lauren F.
Published: October 2024

This chapter discusses the eruption of the Nevado del Ruiz volcano in Colombia in 1985, which resulted in catastrophic mudslides and claimed thousands of lives. The response to the disaster, both locally and internationally, was substantial, with various aid organizations and religious groups providing assistance. The chapter focuses on evangelical Christian groups that saw the disaster as an opportunity for evangelism, viewing their relief efforts as a means to share their faith and establish new congregations. The chapter traces the broad trend among evangelical organizations to integrate humanitarian aid with evangelistic goals, viewing relief work as a way to fulfill the Great Commission. This strategy, which emerged in response to the perceived crisis of missions in the 1960s and 1970s, aimed to expand evangelism by leveraging moments of crisis and disaster as opportunities for spiritual outreach and growth.
Introduction
Authors: Crump Martha L.
Published: October 2024

This introductory chapter provides an overview of the experiences of field herpetologists and their biological fieldwork. Field biologists are a unique breed of scientists who study plants and animals in their natural environments. The chapter explains that the book indicates the value of studying animals in nature. Moreover, the book features the charm of amphibians and reptiles, which are animals underappreciated by the general public. The chapter notes that the book sheds light on the significance of amphibians and reptiles to the health of the planet alongside how field biologists study and conduct fieldwork.
Crying in the Rain, in the Middle of the World
Authors: Coloma Luis A. , Coloma Luis A.
Published: October 2024

This chapter considers the abundance, decline, and extinction of frogs. It discusses the studies on Jambatos and its thermal optimum and ability to resist low and high temperatures. Jambatos, which is a Quechua name that means to cry in the rain, were so abundant at some sites that it was difficult not to step on them. The end of the 1980s and the 1990s were a time of tragedy for frogs in Ecuador and in many parts of the planet as many species became so rare that it seemed the end of the world for amphibians. The chapter looks into the Arca de los Sapos program focusing on conservation biology.
Island Castaways and the Limits of Optimism
Authors: Catenazzi Alessandro , Catenazzi Alessandro
Published: October 2024

This chapter looks into the research on manipulating the amount of beach wrack at the Paracas National Reserve, Peru. Enormous amounts of algae on certain days attract hordes of Peruvian Lava Lizards (Microlophus peruvianus), including on experimental plots that were supposed to receive no wrack. Moreover, the ubiquity of Leaf-Toed Geckos (Phyllodactylus angustidigitus) opened opportunities to examine how their diet, demography, and distribution varied according to the type of coastal landscape and availability of marine resources. The chapter details the work of selecting and marking study plots in the coastal desert. It then refers to the struggle with paracas (sand rain) and huaqueros (graverobbers).
Special Protection
Authors: Kasper Eric T. , Kozma Troy A.
Published: October 2024

This chapter demonstrates how the Roberts Court has made use of the Millian language regarding free expression more than any previous Supreme Court. This has been particularly true in opinions written by Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Kennedy. A majority of justices now consistently uses Mill's harm principle to evaluate the constitutionality of restrictions on the freedom of expression. This is exemplified in the Supreme Court's defense of campaign finance related expression in Citizens United v. FEC (2010); depictions of animal cruelty in Stevens v. United States (2010); offensive speech in Snyder v. Phelps (2011) and Matal v. Tam (2017); false speech in United States v. Alvarez (2012); and expression on social media in Packingham v. North Carolina (2017). What is even more interesting is that the contemporary Supreme Court's views of expression outside of First Amendment protection arguably fit Mill's caveats with regard to the harm principle. Some of these exceptions are what might be best characterized as misinterpretations of Mill, a point expressed in dissent by justices who embrace Mill's philosophy. Nevertheless, even in these cases upholding restrictions on expression, the majority on the Supreme Court is, knowingly or not, making use of a jurisprudence similar to Mill's harm principle from On Liberty, based on following Millian precedents.
Algimantas Baranauskas
Authors: Reich Anna
Published: October 2024

This chapter discusses the story of Algimantas Baranauskas, who was twenty years old when he was conscripted into the Soviet army. His unit trained in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, for five months before his nineteen-month deployment to Jalalabad, Afghanistan. Because Baranauskas worked as a mechanic and driver, he quickly learned the risks of roadside bombs and landmines. After the war, Baranauskas's mother was very worried about him, even believing he had psychological problems. Her fears stemmed from the fact that a family friend who had also served in Afghanistan had taken his own life shortly after returning home from a deployment. Baranauskas describes life after the army as step-by-step, crediting his wife and children with keeping him on a steady path and easing the transition out of the army.
Gintaras Bernatavičius
Authors: Reich Anna
Published: October 2024

This chapter discusses the story of Gintaras Bernatavičius, who recalls life growing up in the Soviet Union with mixed emotions. He explains that “from our perspective there were always two teams: the Germans and the Soviets. The Soviet system started to form an individual as a Soviet person in school.” Soviet conscription for the war in Afghanistan was a product of this system. Bernatavičius received six months of rigorous altitude training in the mountains of Uzbekistan following his conscription. Once his training was complete, he spent the following six months in Uzbekistan as a trainer. On February 12, 1989, Bernatavičius returned to Lithuania following eighteen months in Afghanistan. His focus then shifted toward his family and his career in international law enforcement. He also became involved with veterans' groups, particularly the Vilnius Association of Afghan War Veterans. Bernatavičius speaks openly about PTSD and the psychological toll of combat.
Virginijus Skemundris
Authors: Reich Anna
Published: October 2024

This chapter highlights the story of Virginijus Skemundris, who had completed his education and was employed by a factory when he was conscripted into the Soviet army on October 30, 1983. After six months of training, Skemundris was assigned to an artillery unit. In 1984, he was transferred to a second unit where he operated armored personnel carriers. On March 18, 1985, he was sent into Afghanistan. He was selected for the Soviet Special Forces (Spetsnaz), specifically the 334th Detached Spetsnaz Battalion. Despite all Skemundris faced in Afghanistan, he is not sure he would bypass the experience if given the chance. That being said, he is aware of the psychological toll that the war has taken on him.
The American Collector and the Modern Antiquarian
Authors: Helstosky Carol
Published: October 2024

This chapter explores Icilio Joni's career within the context of significant developments in the Italian art market, particularly the rise of wealthy American collectors and the growing influence of connoisseurship in determining art value. Joni interacted with prominent figures like Bernard Berenson but remained relatively unknown compared to his peers. The chapter notes that the demand for Italian art at the turn of the century shifted towards large collections desired by museums and private collectors and influenced by changing standards of authenticity and aesthetic value. The chapter covers Italian antiquarians facing external pressures from consumers and critics and a domestic political climate pushing for stricter art export regulations. It narrates that the economic crash of 1929 severely impacted the art market and intensified the debate over Italy's cultural worth and the role of free trade.
Conclusion
Authors: Helstosky Carol
Published: October 2024

This chapter recounts the period before the Dossena affair, highlighting the commissioning of replicas of Roman murals from the Villa of Mysteries in Pompeii by American archaeologist Francis Kelsey. These replicas, crafted by Italian artist Maria Barosso between 1925 and 1927, were exhibited in Rome and received positive acclaim, underscoring the public's appreciation and pride in Italy's artistic heritage. The chapter explores the broader context of Italian forgery scandals and reveals the complex power dynamics in the international art market and Italy's struggle to assert cultural authority. Despite intense foreign demand and Italy's inability to protect its cultural patrimony, the Italian art market thrived and were driven by antiquarians who navigated ethical and legal challenges. The chapter discusses how post-World War II led to significant restitutions and increased public awareness of ethical art acquisition.
Introduction
Authors: Wiggers Raymond
Published: October 2024

This chapter promotes Milwaukee not just for its rich human history and diverse cultures, but also for its remarkable geological legacy. It emphasizes how Milwaukee serves as a gateway to a greater nonhuman world of immense physical and biological forces that have shaped the Earth over eons. Beneath Milwaukee's skyline lies a billion-year-old mass of crystalline rock, overlaid by ancient marine deposits from when the region lay south of the equator, and further topped by remnants from the Pleistocene Ice Age. The chapter describes materials that make up the city's buildings and monuments that tell stories of glaciers, meltwater lakes, and ancient landmasses like Laurentia and Avalonia. It explores the links between geology and architecture to see beyond the surface and appreciate the profound connections between the natural and built environments.
Listening to Olympiodorus
Authors: Cribiore Raffaella
Published: October 2024

This chapter looks at the commentaries of philosophers from the late Alexandrian school, which were recorded by students during lectures. These commentaries are aimed not only at scholarly interpretation but also at uncovering the truth within ancient philosophies. It covers the Neoplatonic commentaries, particularly those by Olympiodorus, one of the last pagan teachers in sixth-century Alexandria that taught elite Christian students aspiring for careers in the clergy or Byzantine court. The chapter highlights the manuscript of Olympiodorus's lectures, Marcianus graecus 196, which reveals the collaborative nature of ancient philosophical education. It analyzes marginal notes that provide insights into the dynamic intellectual environment of late antique philosophical instruction.
Mother and Daughter
Authors: Fulton R. E.
Published: October 2024

This chapter discusses Josephine McCarty's childhood. It begins by looking at the woman whose name she took when she began her medical practice: Mrs. Phebe Burleigh Fagan, her mother. By 1841, Phebe Burleigh Fagan Williams was a single mother, and her daughter an only child. One obvious explanation for the fact that Josephine Fagan was an only child is that Phebe might have used some form of birth control to limit the size of her family and the timing of her pregnancies. The chapter considers the wide variety of approaches nineteenth-century Americans used to control their reproduction: coitus interruptus (pulling out), prolonged breastfeeding, rhythm method, and the use of emmenagogues. It also examines the concept of abortion and abortion law. Finally, the chapter details Josephine's education at the Oneida Conference Seminary, which placed her in the very small percentage of women pursuing secondary education in the United States in the years between the American Revolution and the Civil War. In New York, as Robert McCarty's wife, Josephine would begin her second career: not as a teacher, but as a mother.
“I Went There to Perfect Myself”
Authors: Fulton R. E.
Published: October 2024

This chapter describes how the newly divorced Josephine Fagan McCarty returned to Philadelphia in the summer of 1858. Like most female medical school graduates, she faced the overwhelming challenge of finding hands-on clinical experience. However, she had not technically graduated; to get experience in hands-on patient care, she would need to find an institution as desperate for her services as she was for training. Josephine went to Philadelphia's public almshouse: a sprawling institution that was at once workhouse, hospital, jail, and asylum. The people of Philadelphia called it Blockley Hospital. In the spring and into the autumn of 1859, as Josephine dealt with scandal and unemployment, Horatio Robinson Storer ramped up his efforts to convince fellow physicians that the issue of abortion deserved their attention and outrage. In January of 1859, the same month that Josephine was arrested in Philadelphia, Storer published the first of a series of nine articles that ran in the North American Medico-Chirurgical Review on the topic of “Criminal Abortion.” In this series, Storer laid out the most thorough medical argument to date for the criminalization of abortion. Within a year of the American Medical Association committee's first meeting on abortion, Josephine began giving consultations under the assumed name Emma Burleigh, M.D.
Mrs. Burleigh, M.D.
Authors: Fulton R. E.
Published: October 2024

This chapter explores how, in Albany, Josephine McCarty became Virginia Seymour: a widowed mother of three, trying to support her family on the outskirts of the state capital. For the past few years, the combined income derived from sewing machine sales, her alleged espionage for the Union army, and her relationship with Milton Thomson had been enough to keep Josephine and her children housed and clothed. But making money as a sales agent or a spy meant moving around frequently, and the money was not steady. With two young children, a newborn, and a waning faith in Tom's willingness to provide, Josephine needed a more stable income—and a place to live. Undaunted by the fact that she had never technically graduated from medical school, she began advertising her services as a women's doctor: Mrs. Emma Burleigh, M.D. Josephine's abortion practice in Albany allowed her to settle down with her children for the first time. Unfortunately, the years immediately following the Civil War saw a remobilization of physicians' efforts to outlaw abortion—and this time, they had increasing support from both lawmakers and the press.
Introduction
Authors: Minnema Anthony H.
Published: October 2024

This introductory chapter provides an overview of the Banū Hūd, who ruled in Zaragoza for most of the eleventh century, only to be forced into exile in 1110. They served a series of Christian kings until 1145, when Sayf al-Dawla (Sword of the Dynasty) Ibn Hūd began a year-long campaign to reestablish the dynasty, as the previous Maghribi empire, the Almoravids, lost its grip on al-Andalus. The prince found support in several cities before he declared an emirate at Murcia, but he was killed in battle by his former Christian allies. The chapter then looks at the term ṭāʾifa. In addition to depicting a principality, the term denotes three periods from the eleventh to the thirteenth century in which a unified government collapsed and gave way to a constellation of city-states. The chapter explains that the book explores the political culture crafted and deployed by generations of Hūdid leaders in order to illustrate the coherent nature of their statecraft before, during, and after Maghribi rule.
The Once and Future King
Authors: Minnema Anthony H.
Published: October 2024

This chapter focuses on Sayf al-Dawla (r. 1130–1146) and traces his bid to regain power across Christian and Islamic Iberia. As a claimant to the memory of the Banū Hūd and the ṭāʾifa of Zaragoza, Sayf al-Dawla attached himself to a long history of resistance. The ill-fated emir preserved the dynasty's prestige by serving Christian kings and leading a rebellion across al-Andalus during the collapse of the Almoravids. He deftly applied existing customs like pledging bayʿa and used a network of Zaragozan exiles to support his fledgling state. His unique coins highlight his promotion of the dynasty as a political touchpoint. Most importantly, his display of adventurism in establishing his emirate set a precedent for later Murcian emirs to follow.
The Affinitive Labor of Freedom
Authors: Pollock Tiffany Rae
Published: October 2024

This chapter explores the dynamics at a newly relocated fire art center, concentrating on the collaboration and camaraderie between Thai and Burmese dancers. The center, designed by Nah, aimed to foster community-building and showcase the utopian potential of fire dance. The chapter points out how instances of mutual support and shared labor, such as Naing, Jes, and Song working together to fix the roof of the fire center, were common at the facility but rare in the broader industry. The chapter highlights the experiences of young Burmese team members who trained at the center, examining how they navigate gender entanglements and the politics of belonging. Despite the creation of new hierarchies, these fire dancers carve out their own communities and moralities and challenge discourses that marginalize them and the spaces they inhabit.
The Journey to Arabia
Authors: Gardner Andrew M.
Published: October 2024

This chapter explores the journey that transnational labor migrants take to Qatar and the neighboring states of the Arabian Peninsula, which is both complicated and variable. As ethnographers often claim, no single example can stand for the diversity of experiences that migrants encounter. At the same time, these stories about migrants' journeys, their tribulations, and their reasonings—aspects of migration narratives—are the foundational form of evidence that ethnographers often rely upon in crafting the portraits of the world that they seek to provide. The chapter presents four Gulf migration synopses. In these four narratives—from South Asian men in the lower echelons of the migrant workforce toiling in Qatar—one can glimpse some of the recurring threads that connect these experiences and inform the anatomy of the Gulf migration system.
Conclusion
Authors: Peers Glenn
Published: October 2024

This chapter recounts the late Byzantine moment of discovering the human form reflected in the moon, highlighting the interconnected geographies of earth, moon, mirror, and man. A modest mirror facilitated this revelation, emphasizing how media reifies perception and humanity. The chapter explores the long history of lunar speculation and the human position vis-à-vis the moon, showcasing how media technologies have historically shaped and contested the concept of “Man.” The chapter underscores how Byzantine self-explanatory fantasies differed from those of the Italian Renaissance, illustrating the enduring influence of media on human cognition and identity. By charting the means by which media decenter the human, it aims to integrate human experiences more deeply into the past, fostering a richer experiential domain through mindful engagement with media and material worlds.
Drift
Authors: Van Noy Rick
Published: October 2024

This chapter recount's a Saturday morning in August that was marked by persistent flies biting the author. Despite the warmth, the author opted for long pants and sleeves to shield himself from the insects, though they still managed to find exposed skin. The chapter mentions the author's dog, Sully, which sought refuge back in the tent as he dismantled camp, clearly bothered by the buzzing pests amidst the bushes. Once the author set off in the canoe, paddling steadily to escape the flies, he observed the fine morning fog on the water and cliffs to the right, gradually dispersing as the sun emerged. The chapter highlights how the author found himself torn between avoiding the bothersome flies and appreciating the serene natural beauty around him, reminiscent of Henry David Thoreau's contemplative journeys blending external landscapes with introspective musings.
Channel
Authors: Van Noy Rick
Published: October 2024

This chapter chronicles the author's journey down the Delaware River, where he navigates through serene landscapes and historical sites. It begins with observations of a kingfisher, a vibrant symbol of the morning, darting along the river. As the author progresses through various river towns and natural landmarks, encounters with locals like Jake Aaron Book, who cleans the riverbanks, underscore a shared commitment to environmental stewardship. The chapter explores the journey becomes a metaphor for resilience and renewal amid personal musings on health, recovery from a stroke, and the broader societal challenges of mental health. Each of Van Noy's paddle strokes becomes not just a physical effort but a meditative connection with nature and a testament to the enduring spirit of exploration.
The British Model
Authors: Denning Andrew
Published: October 2024

This chapter illustrates how the spectacle of automotive empire, exemplified by the Croisière Noire, transitioned into the more mundane but impactful use of motor vehicles for business and administration in Africa during the interwar period. While thrill-seeking European entrepreneurial imperialists initially garnered attention, figures like Italian tobacco planter Inaco Conforzi exemplified how colonial entrepreneurs leveraged motor vehicles to advance their businesses. The chapter highlights Conforzi's use of Fiat trucks to transport sun-cured tobacco across Nyasaland, which clashed with the British administration's preference for rail development. The chapter discusses how the conflict between Conforzi and the British administration emphasized the broader British skepticism towards automotive empire, as they viewed motor vehicles as competitors to state-owned railways. It underscores how the British debate over automotive versus railway empire divided colonial constituencies and complicated efforts to integrate modular transport solutions into a coherent system.
Acceleration and Crash in Italian East Africa
Authors: Denning Andrew
Published: October 2024

This chapter explores Italy's ambitious yet unprepared rush towards empire-building in Ethiopia following the Italo-Ethiopian War. It details how Italy formed Africa Orientale Italiana (AOI) after declaring victory in May 1936 and embarked on extensive infrastructure projects to entrench its rule and integrate the economy with Italy. Governor Alfredo Guzzoni's road plans in Eritrea highlighted Italy's dramatic shift from a beggar's empire to one of extravagant colonial spending, with road projects costing more than all public works over the previous twenty-five years. The chapter highlights Fascist Italy's view of modern roads as crucial to its colonial ambitions, aiming to transform AOI into a self-sufficient empire. Italy's automotive empire in AOI represented both the peak and downfall of their colonial ambitions, reflecting a uniquely Fascist approach to colonialism.
HWCUs and Restorative Justice
Authors: Barton Nimisha
Published: October 2024

This chapter examines the interplay between restorative justice and historically white colleges and universities (HWCUs). It cites that the restorative justice framework has the potential to revolutionize how HWCUs do business. The framework of restorative justice, developed by people of color in the United States, focuses on the relationship and community building alongside reducing harm. Reparations projects are rich and varied as they include a wide variety of initiatives aiming to address and repair harm, primarily through the redistribution of resources. The chapter explains that reparative actions have become a core institutional expectation as HWCUs aim to make amends with communities of color harmed by the universities' founding, maintenance, and expansion.
The Double Reversal
Authors: Weiner Daniela R. P.
Published: October 2024

This chapter studies how the 1980s saw a surprising increased attention to Jewish victims in East German textbooks. Remarkably, the two new editions of the East German middle school contemporary history textbook produced during this decade featured much-expanded coverage of Jewish victims. While the Holocaust miniseries did set off grassroots efforts, the television program was clearly never endorsed by the East German state, which was responsible for creating school textbooks. Thus, the textbooks increased their focus on the persecuted Jewish minority for different reasons. The new historical focus on Jewish racial victims indicated a broader East German interest in history prior to and independent of the KPD (German Communist Party), as part of the “heritage and tradition” policy. Moreover, Erich Honecker's attempts to cultivate the United States as a trading partner and the West German–East German rivalry likely contributed to a revised reading of the national past.
Conclusion
Authors: Weiner Daniela R. P.
Published: October 2024

This concluding chapter discusses how the end of the Cold War did not mean an end to public discussions about how to teach about the Holocaust. Rather, these debates shifted into a new and higher gear. Undeniably, this postcommunist transition was a fourth flashpoint, catalyzing a frenzy of educational reforms and the production of new textbook series to meet the needs of a drastically reconfigured world. Communist-era narratives fell away, and the Holocaust assumed a new prominent position in national and transnational memory in many countries throughout the world. The post-Cold War transition brought with it new anxieties. Some scholars theorized about the “Europeanization,” “universalization,” or “cosmopolitization” of the Holocaust. Especially in reunified Germany, there were fears that memories of Communism would supplant memories of the Holocaust. Reunification also brought with it a new wave of xenophobic violence that raised questions regarding whether the lessons of the past had really been learned.
Multiple Meanings of Work in the United States
Authors: Strauss Claudia
Published: October 2024

This chapter examines the deeply ingrained belief in the United States that Americans possess an exceptional devotion to work, often attributed to the Puritan work ethic. It challenges the view that Americans' work ethic originates from the Protestant and Puritan values of the nation's early settlers. It also argues that equating a “work ethic” solely with the Puritan work ethic overlooks the diverse motivations and meanings of work in the United States and ignores the elements of joy and pleasure many find in their jobs. The chapter presents insights from people across various occupations who, during the high unemployment following the Great Recession, shared their experiences and perceptions of work. It looks at the contemporary meanings of work and unemployment that reveals the complexity of Americans' relationship with work, challenging time-worn cultural descriptions.
Personal Reflections on Stalinism and Social History
Authors: Siegelbaum Lewis H.
Published: October 2024

This chapter examines what social history has to offer to the study of Stalinism. It presents a historiographic overview of Anglophone literature, considering the impulses for such works and the impact they had in the 1970s and 1980s. By the mid-1980s, one could discern three distinct approaches in published work by and informal discussions among historians that, to a greater or lesser degree, revised the old state-centered, from above perspective on Stalinism. One, represented in work on criminal justice and the prosecution of collectivization, stressed the tenuousness of central party control over local organs and the latter's improvisation and radical initiatives. A second pointed to the ways that social pressures of both a critical and supportive nature “must to some degree shape, constrain and modify the actions of the party leadership.” The third and most radically revisionist approach had yet to be fleshed out but seemed to emanate from the hypothesis of “revolution from below.” The chapter then considers how the social-historical approach faded toward the end of the millennium only to make a strong comeback in the last two decades.
From Here I Saw What Happened and I Cried
Authors: Murray Yxta Maya
Published: October 2024

This chapter illustrates Carrie Mae Weems's life, art, engagement with the Descendant/Lanier daguerreotypes, and the legal implications of her direct action. It focuses on her 1995–96 photo series From Here I Saw What Happened and I Cried. The artist's insubordination in the 1990s evolved into a unique collaboration that cast artivism and its practice in a new light. Indeed, Weems's breach of her contract and unflappable reaction to Harvard's litigation threats grew into a magnetic chapter in the history of woman of color artivism, since it employed rule-breaking, civil disobedience, litigation courtship, and protest. It also raised radical insights about the Copyright Act and initiated a dialogue about US property law in the wake of slavery that reached the highest court in Massachusetts and continues to be felt to this day.
“How Did We Get Here?”
Authors: Murray Yxta Maya
Published: October 2024

This chapter examines how Tanya Aguiñiga's art in recent years has tackled US policies that maintain the border and its constant violence and worked to heal its harms through gentle and poignant actions. Her work participates in the artivist lineage: it embraces community connection, craft-work, protest, and mutual aid. In addition, her art performs powerful critiques of US law. The chapter focuses on three of Aguiñiga's AMBOS (Art Made Between Opposite Sides) era events: Border Quipu, Metabolizing the Border, and Línea Pak. It begins by analyzing their themes and methods and their connections to the artivist and arts-activist lineage. The chapter then considers their legal meanings. Ultimately, Aguiñiga shows that disability rights are effectively meaningless at the border and that significant legal reform must arrive to bring the law's promise of equality to the people.
A Worthy Cause
Authors: Tounsel Christopher
Published: October 2024

This chapter follows Barack Obama's journey from his childhood in Hawaii to becoming the first African American president of the United States, tracing how Sudan and South Sudan figured prominently in his political career. Despite growing up mostly unaware of his Kenyan heritage, Obama's presidency marked significant engagements with Sudan and addressed issues such as the Darfur genocide and South Sudan's independence. The chapter mentions key figures like Susan Rice and Susan Page, both African American diplomats in his administration, who played pivotal roles in shaping US relations with these nations. The chapter notes how Obama's approach to Sudan lacked explicit racial solidarity and focused instead on diplomatic and humanitarian concerns. Obama's stance contrasts with historical African American efforts in Sudan, emphasizing broader tensions between ethnic solidarity and national foreign policy goals.
Introduction
Authors: Dawson Brent
Published: October 2024

This introductory chapter presents the concept of “low equality,” which is based in common matter and shared bodily conditions. The theories of low equality complemented, challenged, and eventually were sidelined by modern ideas of “high equality,” which established political rights in attributes like reason and free will. The chapter explains that the book argues that these theories arise in response to the swiftly changing social conditions of early modern England, both in terms of its class struggles and its increasing involvement in colonization and enslavement. These contexts will lead it to imagine new senses of group identity that are also embodied, articulated in terms of blood, stock, rank, and skin color, in ways that challenge emerging ideas of low equality. While both define humanity in sharply physical terms, one imagines a common embodiment, the other categorical difference. The book focuses on a group of early modern English authors who play a role in the articulations of low equality. It traces how these early modern theories of low equality are largely replaced in the Restoration and early Enlightenment by two seemingly opposed ideas: a liberal idea of equality from which the body has been removed and a pseudoscientific justification for racism anchored in the body.
“Fellow Creatures”
Authors: Dawson Brent
Published: October 2024

This chapter evaluates the ideas of equality in John Milton's Paradise Lost. Before the emergence of liberal ideas of equality, Milton formulated theories of equality that were wider in scope: his works explore equality as a property of ants, angels, and even the Son of God. In the context of the English Revolution and its aftermath, Milton and radicals like Gerrard Winstanley explicitly imagined material equality as the basis for republicanism as a political system. Whereas earlier authors imagine that common matter undermines an expressly hierarchical political system, these authors formulate matter as the basis of a politics in which all members are at least theoretically equal. Like the versions of low equality in the previous chapters, they drew on early modern philosophical discourses of materialism and vitalism, and in doing so, they made common matter and common creation into paradigms for thinking about political equality.
“Infinite Several Kinds of Creatures”
Authors: Dawson Brent
Published: October 2024

This chapter addresses the implications of extraterrestrial life for ideas of low equality in Margaret Cavendish's New World, Called the Blazing World (1666). To contextualize her ideas, the chapter first looks at a text that influenced her extraterrestrial voyage narrative, Cyrano de Bergerac's Comical History of the States and Empires of the Moon and Sun (1657). Reading the two together reveals important continuities—as well as a key discontinuity—in how material equality is conceived. Both authors critique an emerging definition of the human as a biological species. This definition is predicated on a fundamental division: in terms of mind, humanity is granted an immaterial soul that all other living things lack, while in terms of body, humans are seen as one species among others, categorized by phenotypical shape and appearance. The species-based definition of the human these authors critique is crucial to both pseudoscientific racism—which conflates racial variation with species difference—and “high equality”—which makes people equal in terms of species-specific properties like reason and soul.
Pricing the Land
Authors: Anderson Scott W.
Published: October 2024

This book reconstructs the complicated history of buying and selling land along the New York frontier after the American Revolution. The book focuses on the prices bid for lots in central New York that had been set aside for veterans of the war (the New Military Tract) and within the Cayuga Reservation created by treaty in 1789, comprising a hundred square miles of land on both shores of the northern end of Cayuga Lake. It considers several factors that affected the value of this land: the scarcity of money in early America; the role that Alexander Hamilton's assumption policy played in encouraging debt speculation; the sale of huge tracts by New York and Massachusetts to investment syndicates; and the struggles of settlers across the New York frontier to escape debt, bondage, and poverty. The book uses new methodological tools for determining a better estimate of the value of this land. It concludes that the only accurate measure of worth lay in the settlers' ability to pay their rents or debts, which was only possible once the Market Revolution reached central New York. As a result of the book's historical recovery, we find that the Cayuga Nation might have been entitled to twice the amount they were awarded in their lawsuit.
Epilogue
Authors: Anderson Scott W.
Published: October 2024

This epilogue identifies several major areas where opinions may differ and where additional research might have better informed land claim negotiations. The Cayuga Land Claim case makes it clear that the number that really matters is 204—the number of years that passed between the purchase of the reservation and the conclusion of the land claim case. Clearly, compounding interest over centuries can lead to awards involving sums of money so large that there will be (and has been) substantial political pressure to suppress them. Although it provides evidence supporting very large awards for cases like the Cayuga Land Claim, the chapter explains that the book reinforces the need for negotiated settlements should new rounds of land claim cases be adjudicated. Governments at risk, like New York State, need to be generous and flexible in negotiations because of the size of potential losses if cases go to trial. At the same time, plaintiffs like the Cayuga need to recognize that the size of the awards they seek may put them at a significant disadvantage politically.
Transformations
Authors: Wagner William G.
Published: October 2024

This chapter examines how the long nineteenth century proved to be a period of remarkable transformation for the Convent of the Exaltation of the Cross. Facilitated by fundamental changes in its organization and economy, the convent grew rapidly, and its membership became first more diverse and then plebeian. Partly as a consequence, the convent's social and cultural roles changed substantially. These transformations occurred in two phases, with the Alexandrine reform era of the 1860s providing the boundary between them. The chapter focuses on the first phase, which was directed by two deeply pious and able abbesses, Dorofeia and Vera, whose transformative leadership demonstrates the possibilities for female agency within Russian Orthodox monasticism during the prerevolutionary period. By the time of Vera's death in 1857, the convent had become a substantial community of women and an important center of Orthodox identity and spirituality within the city of Nizhnii Novgorod and the middle Volga region more generally.
Post-emancipation Transformation and Growth
Authors: Wagner William G.
Published: October 2024

This chapter focuses on the second stage in the transformation of the Convent of the Exaltation of the Cross, which occurred in the wake of the Great Reforms carried out under Emperor Alexander II in the 1860s and early 1870s. In the decades between the abolition of serfdom in 1861 and the outbreak of war in 1914, the membership and wealth of the convent grew substantially, while its social composition changed fundamentally. Though these trends had emerged prior to 1861, they were intensified and shaped during the post-emancipation era by the combined effects of the Alexandrine reforms and an acceleration of the economic growth and social change that had begun earlier in the century. By altering the accessibility and relative appeal of a monastic life for different groups of women, these developments contributed to a “social revolution” in Russian Orthodox female monasticism. The chapter then looks at the “plebeianization” and rising literacy of the membership of the Convent of the Exaltation of the Cross and of other female religious communities in Nizhnii Novgorod diocese and in the Russian empire generally.
The Librarian, the Library, and the Russian Collections
Authors: Van Oudenaren John
Published: October 2024

This chapter discusses three factors, specific to the Library of Congress, which are important in explaining why and how the Library interacted so intensively with Russia after 1987. The first was James H. Billington's appointment as Librarian of Congress and his personal commitment to using his post to promote positive change in Russia. As a Russian speaker and scholar of Russian culture respected in both the United States and the Soviet Union for his expertise, Billington was uniquely placed to lead the Library as the executive branch of the US government, the Congress, and US society as a whole engaged with a changing Russia. The second factor was the character of the Library of Congress as a government agency, an arm of the US Congress that was called on to assist in implementing official policy toward Russia, and the extraordinary capabilities, especially Russian-language skills, that the Library developed during the Cold War era and that it could bring to bear to engage with the former adversary. The third was the Russian collections that the Library had built up over nearly a century and that provided the main (although not the only) basis for the Library's extensive engagement with Russia.
Meeting of Frontiers and Open World, 1998–2002
Authors: Van Oudenaren John
Published: October 2024

This chapter focuses on the launching by the Library of Congress in the late Yeltsin period of two large projects that continued throughout the Putin years and that persist in modified form to the present. The first is the Meeting of Frontiers digital library, a pioneering, congressionally funded effort to link Alaska and Siberia that gave rise to other, more ambitious Library of Congress international digital initiatives. The second is the Russian Leadership Program, which is a large-scale program of exchanges between young leaders in Russia and in the United States. It was also funded and mandated by Congress, and subsequently renamed Open World and extended to other countries around the world. That Open World should have survived while Frontiers should have failed is something of a paradox, but one that can be explained in the context of James H. Billington's own priorities and the difficulty the Library experienced from the early 2000s onward in successfully transitioning to the digital age.