Eastman Johnson (American, 1824-1906). A Ride for Liberty — The Fugitive Slaves (recto), ca. 1862. The day before Juneteenth, 2020, Senator John Cornyn announced his intention to introduce legislation aimed at making it a federal holiday. He called it, on the Senate floor, “an opportunity to reflect on our history, the mistakes we have made,…
Union dead at Gettysburg, July 1863. National Archives, Timothy H. O’Sullivan photographer Gary W. Gallagher, University of Virginia It has become common to say that the United States in 2020 is more divided politically and culturally than at any other point in our national past. As a historian who has written and taught about the…
Warning: This article does contain some spoilers There may be few things in the world as libertarian as a strong, independent, pistol-packing black woman, but that is exactly what you will see in “Harriet,” the new biographical film about abolitionist Harriet Tubman. As usual, I was very skeptical about Hollywood’s ability to tell a historical…
As families and friends gather together throughout the US this week to celebrate liberty, we rightfully give a nod to Thomas Jefferson who authored the Declaration of Independence. Adopted by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, it proclaimed our independence from British rule, acknowledged that the thirteen colonies were sovereign, and provided an…
LISTEN TO TLR’S LATEST PODCAST: By Rob Shimshock A student group demanded reparations for slavery and the creation of an African american studies department in an article published in early June and first reported Monday. Reparations at UChicago Working Group, a student group at the University of Chicago, made these demands and others in a…
LISTEN TO TLR’S LATEST PODCAST: by Dries Van Thielen In his most recent episode of the Freedom Report entitled ‘Is it time for states to secede’, Austin Petersen addressed the issue of slavery and how it should have ended (not the youtube show). Instead of buying the individuals out of slavery – as Ron…
By Kitty Testa It’s the first business day of 2017, and it weighs on my mind that I will spend the next five months working for the government as opposed to working for myself. Sure, I will still get a paycheck as the government generously allows me to receive my pro-rata share of my income…
by Micah J. Fleck Say it isn’t so – a new draft of sorts has been proposed by 2016 presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, where a “national service system” will basically implement Peace Corps style activities here at home – involuntarily, of course. According to a new report: Hillary Clinton wants to enlist young Americans into…
Blake Neff In a concession to activists who claim the song is offensive, the marching band at the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) will no longer play the song “Dixie” as part of its routine at sporting events. “Dixie” was first published in 1860, just prior to the outbreak of the American Civil War. Although…
Venezuela Takes Extreme Measure to Solve Food Problems by Josh Guckert Recently, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro issued an executive order asserting that all workers, public and private, can be forced to work in farm fields for up to 60 days at a time, or “if circumstances merit,” even longer. The order is designed to address the problems recently afflicting…