Weekend Wrap Up

When 60,000 Votes Don’t Count and Harriet Tubman Disappears

One moment, Harriet Tubman’s strong, determined face was right there at the top of the National Park Service’s webpage about the Underground Railroad. The next moment, it was gone. The disappearance was more than a minor change to a website. It was a symbol of a concerted and ongoing effort to lie about the truth of American history. And not longer after came an order to begin banning books. Also: Trump pauses tariffs and an election denier loses his license.

What Do 300 Students, Billions in Funding, and a Loyalty Pledge Have in Common?

Reports of masked lawmen apprehending students on college campuses swarmed the internet, their images captured on security cameras and the cellphones of bystanders. Nearly a dozen foreign students and faculty members have been detained by federal agents amid the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration. But being kicked out of the country for nebulous reasons is only one piece of the proverbial puzzle — a puzzle that is meant to frighten people into compliance. Another focus has been on getting universities to submit or, essentially, die.

The Press vs the President: a Win for the First Amendment?

You’re Not Imagining Things: Your Grandparents Had It Easier Than You

Here’s the thing no one is talking about: The manufacturing jobs of yore paid enough to sustain the average family on a single income, and that is no longer true. The jobs that many of our grandparents worked at often no longer provide a living wage for a single individual, let alone a family of four. Wages have not kept pace with what it costs to live a middle-class lifestyle.

The Growing Divide on Trump's Team

The purge was swift and merciless. Half a dozen National Security Council officials were fired last week after far-right activist Laura Loomer presented President Trump with a dossier of their alleged infractions against Trump's "America First" agenda.

What I’m reading…

The murder, the museum and the monument

By Kori Suzuki for High County News

How the discovery of a long-lost monument shattered the trust between a Japanese American community and the museum built to preserve their history.

The Many Ways Scientists Are Turning Birds Into Feathered Field Assistants

By Ashley Stimpson for Audubon Magazine

In the late 1990s, as an ecologist at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Martin Wikelski guesses he drove every mile of the Prairie State’s backroads in a two-toned Oldsmobile. Each spring and fall evening, having outfitted another Swainson’s Thrush with a tiny radio transmitter, Wikelski drove like a “tornado chaser,” staying close enough to record the bird’s heartbeat, wingbeats, and vocalizations. These days researchers no longer have to go to such extremes. Thanks to powerful new technology, an untold number of birds now wear some kind of sensor. The gadgets are smaller, cheaper, and capable of gathering more information than ever before—and they don’t require trailing a creature in real time.

The Practicalities and Pleasures of Homemade Train Food

by Nylah Iqbal Muhammad for Eater

Long-haul Amtrak rides are full of people who value a slower pace to life. Of course they eat the same way.

What I am listening to…

A Biography of George Washington

We have a tendency to regard many of our U.S. Presidents as heroes, illuminating the ways in which they shaped our nation for the good, that we often gloss over their missteps. Historians piece together facts and details to fill in the gaps of the bigger picture, but how often are our interpretations colored by our own lived experiences and perceptions? I spoke with presidential historian Alexis Coe, who talks about her goal as a historian to tell the whole story. Listen in to learn some fun–and maybe not so fun–facts about our first president, George Washington.

We the People: Succession of Power

Throughline

The 25th amendment. A few years before JFK was shot, an idealistic young lawyer set out on a mission to convince people something essential was missing from the Constitution: clear instructions for what should happen if a U.S. president was no longer able to serve. Here’s the story behind one of the last amendments to the Constitution, and the man who got it done.

What I’m watching…

Projecting Protest

Scripps News

Light projection as a form of protest has become a tool for activists across the political spectrum, pushing the boundaries of free speech.

Can Politics Be Healthy? Lessons From the Belly of the Beast.

TedX Talks

What if the key to fixing our broken politics isn't just electing the right leaders—but helping them thrive once they're in office? In this talk, Layla Zaidane shares inspiring stories of Gen Z and millennial elected officials breaking through gridlock to deliver actual results. With memes and real-life stories, including a lawmaker balancing floor votes with fatherhood and a trailblazer rewriting campaign finance laws for working parents, Layla explores the systemic barriers young leaders face and what is possible once those barriers are removed. Packed with optimism and actionable solutions, this talk will leave you with a renewed sense of hope and belief in the power of the rising generation to shape a better future for democracy.

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Thanks for being here. See you tomorrow!