For decades, native-born American Jews changed their names to improve their job prospects. Billion Photos/Shutterstock.com In 2008, Newsweek published an article on then-presidential candidate Barack Obama titled “From Barry to Barack.” The story explained how…
American grandmaster Fabiano Caruana, shown here at the 2017 Tradewise Gibraltar Masters tournament, could become the first American-born world chess champion since Bobby Fischer. David Llada/American Chess Magazine When Bobby Fischer became the first American-born…
Magnus Hirschfeld, on the right, sits with his partner, Tao Li, at the fourth conference of the World League for Sexual Reform in 1932. Wellcome Images, CC BY The Trump administration continues its assault on…
In 2016, nearly 10 percent of American kids were living in three-generation households, like this one in Detroit, Michigan. AP Photo/Paul Sancya In a recent study, I discovered that the number of kids living with…
If screens are kept at an arm’s length, measures of well-being tend to improve. SawBear/Shutterstock.com Many parents want to know how much time their kids should be spending in front of screens, whether it’s their…
Freddie Mercury, born Farrokh Bulsara, came from a family of Zoroastrians. atelier nerodimARTE/flickr, CC BY-NC-SA In the Freddie Mercury biopic, “Bohemian Rhapsody,” there’s a scene in which a family member scolds Mercury. “So now the…
Candles, lit by activists, protesting the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, are placed outside Saudi Arabia’s consulate, in Istanbul. AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis The gruesome and dramatic killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi…
The Supremes, with their polished performances and family-friendly lyrics, helped to bridge a cultural divide and temper racial tensions. AP Photo/Frings When Sly and the Family Stone released “Everyday People” at the end of 1968,…
That year, the pillars of 1960s pop music released unfocused, confused albums. Thitkorn Krireuk/Shutterstock.com While the first half of 1968 was a series of explosive moments – the Tet Offensive, Paris protests, the assassinations of…
When The Village Voice shut down in August, the city’s protest movements lost one of their biggest champions. Nick Lehr/The Conversation When The Village Voice, the nation’s first alternative weekly, closed in late August, social…