Pulitzer-winning author Viet Thanh Nguyen speaks on migration and ‘multitudes’ From left: Josephine Park, Viet Thanh Nguyen, and Dagmawi Woubshet, pictured in conversation on March 16, 2022. Pulitzer-winning author Viet Thanh Nguyen speaks on migration and ‘multitudes’ In a wide-ranging conversation sponsored by the Wolf Humanities Center, author and professor Viet Thanh Nguyen visited Penn to discuss his work, representation, and more.
Asian American Studies’ 25th anniversary In Asian American studies classrooms, “you get students from every single major, you get them from every single field, you get every class background, and you get every political background,” says David Eng. “What’s happened in the field of ethnic studies in general, is that you’ve had to create these horizontal communities among these generations of students.” Asian American Studies’ 25th anniversary The Asian American Studies program is celebrating its 25th anniversary with a podcast miniseries, weekly alumni events, and a March 19 conference.
Histories of travel segregation and Chinese migration win Bancroft Prize Penn In the News The New York Times Histories of travel segregation and Chinese migration win Bancroft Prize Mia Bay of the School of Arts & Sciences has been awarded the Bancroft Prize for her book “Traveling Black: A Story of Race and Resistance.” Possessed: The Salem witch trials In many ways, the witch hunt fit in with New England folk beliefs and theology, says Kathleen M. Brown. The idea that the devil had a hand in human affairs and “could seduce you away from God” was a very normative belief, she says. Possessed: The Salem witch trials This spring marks the 330th anniversary of the Salem witch trials, during which a total of 20 “afflicted girls” accused around 150 people, 19 of whom were executed. Historian Kathleen M. Brown discusses why this episode is still fascinating today. From tracing art thieves to tracing Early American history Emma Hart is the new Richard S. Dunn Director of the McNeil Center for Early American Studies. From tracing art thieves to tracing Early American history Emma Hart, the new director of the McNeil Center for Early American Studies, discusses her former career, her new role, and her goals for the future. What Russia is stirring up at Chernobyl Penn In the News The Atlantic What Russia is stirring up at Chernobyl Adriana Petryna of the School of Arts & Sciences wrote about how Russia’s invasion of Ukraine could impact Chernobyl, the site of a 1986 explosion at a nuclear facility. “By seizing the plant as part of a brutal invasion, Russia is stirring up radioactive particles and also Chernobyl’s painful legacy: Ukrainians’ memory of the Soviet Union’s disregard for their lives,” she wrote. One graceless tweet doesn’t warrant cancellation Penn In the News The New York Times One graceless tweet doesn’t warrant cancellation Elle Lett, a postdoc in the Perelman School of Medicine, wrote about how the word “freak” has been used to dehumanize Black women. “There is a history that dates back to the antebellum South” of “fetishizing, hypersexualizing and otherizing Black women in freak shows and displays to media and even medical textbooks,” Lett wrote. “Black women are consistently dehumanized in America. By using ‘freak of nature,’ you separate Black women from the rest of human existence.” Kimberly St. Julian-Varnon on the war in Ukraine Kimberly St. Julian-Varnon, Ph.D. student in history. (Image: OMNIA) Kimberly St. Julian-Varnon on the war in Ukraine The Ph.D. student in history, and former resident of Ukraine discusses the nation, how things got to this point, and what’s being overlooked in the discussion about the war. Putin’s war aims to undo the traumas of the 1990s for Russians Penn In the News The Washington Post Putin’s war aims to undo the traumas of the 1990s for Russians Sasha Zborovsky of the School of Arts & Sciences writes that territorial expansion is part of Putin’s attempt to rebuild a national identity with no regard for Ukrainians. Russia’s attack on Ukraine, through the lens of history People walk through the National Museum of the History of Ukraine in the Second World War in Kyiv in 2022. (Image: STR/NurPhoto via AP Images) Q&A Russia’s attack on Ukraine, through the lens of history Historian Benjamin Nathans offers background on Putin’s use of history in justifying his war in Ukraine Load More
Possessed: The Salem witch trials In many ways, the witch hunt fit in with New England folk beliefs and theology, says Kathleen M. Brown. The idea that the devil had a hand in human affairs and “could seduce you away from God” was a very normative belief, she says. Possessed: The Salem witch trials This spring marks the 330th anniversary of the Salem witch trials, during which a total of 20 “afflicted girls” accused around 150 people, 19 of whom were executed. Historian Kathleen M. Brown discusses why this episode is still fascinating today.
From tracing art thieves to tracing Early American history Emma Hart is the new Richard S. Dunn Director of the McNeil Center for Early American Studies. From tracing art thieves to tracing Early American history Emma Hart, the new director of the McNeil Center for Early American Studies, discusses her former career, her new role, and her goals for the future.
What Russia is stirring up at Chernobyl Penn In the News The Atlantic What Russia is stirring up at Chernobyl Adriana Petryna of the School of Arts & Sciences wrote about how Russia’s invasion of Ukraine could impact Chernobyl, the site of a 1986 explosion at a nuclear facility. “By seizing the plant as part of a brutal invasion, Russia is stirring up radioactive particles and also Chernobyl’s painful legacy: Ukrainians’ memory of the Soviet Union’s disregard for their lives,” she wrote. One graceless tweet doesn’t warrant cancellation Penn In the News The New York Times One graceless tweet doesn’t warrant cancellation Elle Lett, a postdoc in the Perelman School of Medicine, wrote about how the word “freak” has been used to dehumanize Black women. “There is a history that dates back to the antebellum South” of “fetishizing, hypersexualizing and otherizing Black women in freak shows and displays to media and even medical textbooks,” Lett wrote. “Black women are consistently dehumanized in America. By using ‘freak of nature,’ you separate Black women from the rest of human existence.” Kimberly St. Julian-Varnon on the war in Ukraine Kimberly St. Julian-Varnon, Ph.D. student in history. (Image: OMNIA) Kimberly St. Julian-Varnon on the war in Ukraine The Ph.D. student in history, and former resident of Ukraine discusses the nation, how things got to this point, and what’s being overlooked in the discussion about the war. Putin’s war aims to undo the traumas of the 1990s for Russians Penn In the News The Washington Post Putin’s war aims to undo the traumas of the 1990s for Russians Sasha Zborovsky of the School of Arts & Sciences writes that territorial expansion is part of Putin’s attempt to rebuild a national identity with no regard for Ukrainians. Russia’s attack on Ukraine, through the lens of history People walk through the National Museum of the History of Ukraine in the Second World War in Kyiv in 2022. (Image: STR/NurPhoto via AP Images) Q&A Russia’s attack on Ukraine, through the lens of history Historian Benjamin Nathans offers background on Putin’s use of history in justifying his war in Ukraine Load More
One graceless tweet doesn’t warrant cancellation Penn In the News The New York Times One graceless tweet doesn’t warrant cancellation Elle Lett, a postdoc in the Perelman School of Medicine, wrote about how the word “freak” has been used to dehumanize Black women. “There is a history that dates back to the antebellum South” of “fetishizing, hypersexualizing and otherizing Black women in freak shows and displays to media and even medical textbooks,” Lett wrote. “Black women are consistently dehumanized in America. By using ‘freak of nature,’ you separate Black women from the rest of human existence.” Kimberly St. Julian-Varnon on the war in Ukraine Kimberly St. Julian-Varnon, Ph.D. student in history. (Image: OMNIA) Kimberly St. Julian-Varnon on the war in Ukraine The Ph.D. student in history, and former resident of Ukraine discusses the nation, how things got to this point, and what’s being overlooked in the discussion about the war. Putin’s war aims to undo the traumas of the 1990s for Russians Penn In the News The Washington Post Putin’s war aims to undo the traumas of the 1990s for Russians Sasha Zborovsky of the School of Arts & Sciences writes that territorial expansion is part of Putin’s attempt to rebuild a national identity with no regard for Ukrainians. Russia’s attack on Ukraine, through the lens of history People walk through the National Museum of the History of Ukraine in the Second World War in Kyiv in 2022. (Image: STR/NurPhoto via AP Images) Q&A Russia’s attack on Ukraine, through the lens of history Historian Benjamin Nathans offers background on Putin’s use of history in justifying his war in Ukraine Load More
Kimberly St. Julian-Varnon on the war in Ukraine Kimberly St. Julian-Varnon, Ph.D. student in history. (Image: OMNIA) Kimberly St. Julian-Varnon on the war in Ukraine The Ph.D. student in history, and former resident of Ukraine discusses the nation, how things got to this point, and what’s being overlooked in the discussion about the war.
Putin’s war aims to undo the traumas of the 1990s for Russians Penn In the News The Washington Post Putin’s war aims to undo the traumas of the 1990s for Russians Sasha Zborovsky of the School of Arts & Sciences writes that territorial expansion is part of Putin’s attempt to rebuild a national identity with no regard for Ukrainians. Russia’s attack on Ukraine, through the lens of history People walk through the National Museum of the History of Ukraine in the Second World War in Kyiv in 2022. (Image: STR/NurPhoto via AP Images) Q&A Russia’s attack on Ukraine, through the lens of history Historian Benjamin Nathans offers background on Putin’s use of history in justifying his war in Ukraine
Russia’s attack on Ukraine, through the lens of history People walk through the National Museum of the History of Ukraine in the Second World War in Kyiv in 2022. (Image: STR/NurPhoto via AP Images) Q&A Russia’s attack on Ukraine, through the lens of history Historian Benjamin Nathans offers background on Putin’s use of history in justifying his war in Ukraine