America’s current state of political polarization can be traced back to the 1970s and 1980s when these cultural differences were just getting formed. Historians tend to avoid taking lessons from history, but if one considers the larger patterns of cultural divisions in the United States, looking back at this earlier era may offer some clues. One fact is certain: historians and political scientists can no longer rely on the standard party line model to explain the country’s split.
Read moreRebel Girl: The Riot Grrrl Movement and Generation X Feminism
The Riot Grrrl movement developed in the 1980s and 1990s as a reaction to male-dominated subcultures and the second-wave feminism of the Boomer era. Drawing upon empowered female leaders from the punk and hip hop scenes, the women of Riot Grrrl sought to create their own forms of female empowerment and sexual freedom.
Read more“All the Hippies Are Executives Now, and Everybody’s Sold Out”: Late Boomer and Early Gen X Cinema in the 1970s and 1980s
The small window of films from the late 1970s and early 1980s gives a glimpse into the social and cultural milieu of changing times: a short moment when the cinema reflected the generation gap between the Boomers and Gen Xers.
Read moreFor the Love of Books or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Melvil Dewey
Everyone should be surrounded by books, although, for some of us, our love of books may border on obsession. Regardless, here is an overview of my personal library classification system.
Read moreEnvisioning a New World: The Art and Poetry of Francis and Evelyn Van Tine
Francis “Van” Van Tine was an artist for NASA during the Space Race and later for the Defense Race Relations Institute. His wife Evelyn Haynes Van Tine was an admired writer and poet. A collection of their art and poetry is currently being compiled into a book by their family.
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