A young man struggles with homework and studying for exams

What Happens to Kids’ Learning if Dad Is Incarcerated?

Nearly two million minor children in the United States have an incarcerated father at any given time.
Amazing Baby Beach and coast on Aruba, Caribbean, white beach with blue ocean tropical beach during summer

Aruba: Black Gold and Boas

What happens when an oil-rich island paradise interrupts its production of petroleum? You may have to visit the Caribbean island of Aruba to find out.
Coronation of a Black Queen on the Day of Kings by Carlos Julião, c. 1770

The Roots of Catholic Samba

Since the early days of African enslavement in Brazil, Black Brazilians have cultivated rituals that mix Catholic and African elements in the form of holy Samba.
A parent and child near windmills at sunset

Black Midwestern Studies: A Reading List

This primer on Black Midwestern Studies examines the factors shaping communities of color in America’s “flyover country,” long mistaken as a place of normative whiteness.
A collage of JSTOR Primary Sources

Lies, Damn Lies, and…Primary Sources?

An instructor shares her approach for teaching students how to evaluate historical materials and claims of veracity made by their originators.
Cross Reference image

Get Out of Dodge with Cross Reference

This month’s puzzle features a nod to the Second City.
From Missione in prattica. Padri cappuccini ne Regni di Congo, Angola et adiacenti

Kongo, Interpreted

In the sixteenth century, Kongo’s government trained young nobles to provide interpretation and cultural mediation between Europeans and Kongolese.
A still from the film Sumpah Pontianak, 1958.

The Indonesian Frontier Town Named for a Jungle Vampire

The city of Pontianak is notable for sharing its name with a vengeful folkloric revenant known by various monikers across the Malay Archipelago.
Men ride their bikes, down a cobblestone road in Copenhagen, Denmark in July 3, 1946.

Copenhagen: Bike City from Back in the Day

How did Copenhagen become a “city of cyclists,” where a third of all journeys are by bicycle?
A satirical print depicting the height of John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich, 1788

Of Heights and Men

Given its strong gendered associations, it may be surprising that height hasn’t been well studied by historians.