richardabailey
@richardabailey
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Historian. Professor. Author, “Race and Redemption in Puritan New England” (OUP, 2011). northern AL in western NY Fly fisher •|||||||• RT ≠ endorsements
iPhone: 42.922688,-78.876846
Joined March 2008
You can find my words at the link. Whether or not you read them, please let me encourage you to make time soon to read some of Gurney’s many words. You’ll be better for doing so.
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I am grateful to the folks at @FrontPorchRepub (and especially @jeff_bilbro) for inviting me to share some thoughts on the passing of Gurney Norman—writer, documentarian, activist, advocate, Kentucky poet laureate, teacher, mentor, and friend. https://t.co/mT5DpQ5hAK
frontporchrepublic.com
As Gurney’s family and friends wrestle with the loss of their friend, I hope they—or more accurately we—will lean into being lonely inside a web of love.
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The best way to prove universities’ value is to get countercultural again.…That means defending inefficient, human-centered learning: strange and premodern practices such as reading an old book, then writing a long essay about it.”
newrepublic.com
Educators can fight back against Trump’s attacks by re-embracing “old-fashioned” disciplines and ideas.
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“[P]art of being a historian during Trump 2.0 is to witness a renewal of debunked mythologies and outdated ideas made fresh by a state apparatus deeply invested in protecting the historical reputation of whiteness.” https://t.co/6NBUTqmh0B
newrepublic.com
The administration is using the tools of the state to influence—even poison—how America’s racial history will be taught in our public forums and schools.
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What an amazing conversation between Silas House and Crystal Wilkinson about the writing of creative nonfiction. Once again, I’m reminded how much these folks rock. Y’all find it wherever you go for podcasts and listen.
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“Leaving the next generation ignorant of this historical knowledge, of the institutions, cultural practices, and processes that have either created or nourished division, will only perpetuate and deepen division.”
newrepublic.com
It’s not “divisive” to teach about division. It’s divisive to bury it.
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“As we enjoy ceremonies in 2026, we might also recall that celebration without commemoration is vanity, that flattering memory without truthful history is self-delusion.”
newrepublic.com
The attempts by his administration to control the ways Americans engage with our nation’s history threaten to weaken patriotism, not strengthen it.
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A taste of Blight’s usual incisive prose: “official triumphal narratives rooted in a brand of pickled patriotism designed to force the past to serve the present.” Pickled patriotism.
newrepublic.com
We must mobilize now to defend our profession, not only with research and teaching but in the realm of politics and public persuasion.
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Progressively getting situated in a new space. This gift from some students seemed appropriate to bring over on Wendell’s ninety-first birthday.
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I love (read: laugh/hate/some such verb) seeing folks (both in & out of classroom spaces) passing off AI-generated ideas as their own believing no one can tell. I don’t begrudge them (this piece shares some of the reasons why) but I “love” it nonetheless.
apple.news
The demise of the English paper will end a long intellectual tradition, but it’s also an opportunity to reëxamine the purpose of higher education.
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A good morning to return (once again) to •The Long-Legged House•
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Sigh. Not surprising. But frustrating. And, well, disgusting.
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Follow the link near the end of this post to let your representatives know that you also think such work matters. https://t.co/ibeGdfS0uD
richardabailey.com
Have you ever heard of the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH)? Do you know the sorts of things it funds? I’m asking because every American citizen needs to know and be aware of the good work...
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