Bylines

Timothy Messer-Kruse

Three students standing in front of an exhibit titled "Problems of Democracy."
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A Republic, if They Can Force It

In public schools around the country, conservatives are succeeding in their long effort to replace the word “democracy” with “constitutional republic.”
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“In the White Interest”

Many founders expressed their hope that slavery would be abolished, while simultaneously exerting themselves to defend it.
Washington crossing the Delaware painting by Emmanuel Leutze.

What Freedom Meant to the Black Soldier Who Rowed Across the Delaware

The enslaved Prince Whipple acutely felt the contradiction between American ideals and his condition.
1825 painting of a white man kissing a Black woman, and a white man whipping a Black man.

Jefferson’s Secret Plan to Whiten Virginia

Jefferson’s system depended on shoring up the bulwarks of race and basing the law on a theory of government that withdrew protection from unfavored groups.
Illustration of Ken Burns

The Unbearable Whiteness of Ken Burns

The filmmaker’s new documentary on Benjamin Franklin tells an old and misleading story.
An American Flag with opening one of the stripes like a door

The Slippery Matter of ‘Truth’ in Patriotic Education

Laws against teaching critical race theory might backfire on Republicans.