As I’ve noted here before, opinions on gay rights generally have changed faster than those on almost any subject in the history of polling. While views on transgender rights took off later, and haven’t reached the same point yet, the trajectory of the changes in those attitudes is similar. CONT. […] Read more »
The End of the Polling Booth
We’ve been thinking about elections backward. “The ballot belongs to the voter, not the government,” said Phil Keisling, the former secretary of state of Oregon. “As long as it can be done with safety and integrity, it’s the obligation of the government to get it to me. It’s not my […] Read more »
A Fear of ‘White Extinction’ Is Provoking Racial Bias Among American Whites
Remember white people? Once upon a time, they dominated American life. But at some point in the 21st century, beset by low birth rates, they gradually died out. Yes, that’s an absurd notion. But new research suggests that, for some white Americans, it’s a real fear—one that stimulates racial bias […] Read more »
Today’s voter suppression in the South can trace a line back to the Jim Crow laws and lynchings of the 19th and 20th centuries
The question of who votes is central to democratic politics. For obvious reasons, political parties want their supporters to show up on Election Day, which is why many spend significant time and resources on get out the vote operations. Just as obviously, it helps a party if more of their […] Read more »
Prejudice in the United States
The University of Pennsylvania just released the results of a longitudinal study which examines racial prejudice in the United States during the age of Donald Trump. While conventional wisdom has claimed prejudice has increased, researchers out of the University of Pennsylvania maintain there is evidence that it may be on […] Read more »
Why the Fight Over Abortion Is Unrelenting
… Over the years, the abortion debate has become a linchpin in the political battle between Democrats and Republicans, mobilizing Christian evangelicals on the right and supporters of the women’s movement on the left. Why has the abortion issue had such staying power, compared, for example, with the steady liberalization […] Read more »