#colonial history

Arts & Humanities

26 Years a Slave: Juan Miranda’s Fight for Freedom in Colonial New York

The 1735 trial of printer John Peter Zenger is remembered as a foundational moment in the history of press freedom in colonial New York. Far less known is the case of Juan Miranda, the first enslaved man to take his enslaver to the colony’s Supreme Court to fight for his own freedom.

Beatriz Carolina Peña | 27.02.2026

Arts & Humanities

Systemic Inequalities: Is Change Possible?

The concept of systemic inequality is polarizing and complex. In the latest discussion in the “Humanities for Humans” series, historian Robin D. G. Kelley and literary scholar Bruce Robbins delve into its roots, social manifestations, and potential solutions.

The Editors | 18.04.2023

Arts & Humanities

Public History in Russia and Its Failed Struggle Against Putin’s Historical Politics

Public history emerged in Russia in the 2010s as an attempt to resist the increasing monopolization of the past and its interpretations by Vladimir Putin’s regime. Despite public historians’ solid effort, the struggle was lost. What are the field’s pasts, presents – and potential futures?

Andrei Zavadski | 02.02.2023

Politics & Society

Iconoclasm: From Post-Socialist Yugoslavia to Black Lives Matter

Against the backdrop of the ongoing protests across the United States and Europe to denounce structural racism, take down its monuments, and call for a critical postcolonial confrontation with history, Gal Kirn draws connections between the present moment and the memory culture of the new states of former Yugoslavia during the 1990s.

Gal Kirn | 13.10.2020

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