Politics

Archaeology Is Flipping the Script on What We Know About Ancient Mesoamerica

Gary M. Feinman, David M. Carballo / Resilience Aug 11, 2023 The evidence tells us that cooperative and pluralistic government was at least as common as and more resilient than despotic states. Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

The Second Sight of W.E.B. Du Bois

Chris Hedges and Mr. Fish / Truthdig Jun 3, 2018 The famed sociologist saw what most white intellectuals could not: the savage nature of an American empire intent on suppressing and exploiting people of color in the U.S. and across the world. Dig deeper ( 8 Min. Read )

How Can a Scientist Make Sense of the Religious Impulse?

Steven Gimbel Apr 6, 2018 Physicist Alan Lightman ponders this and other questions in his new book, "Searching for Stars on an Island in Maine." Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

Chris Hedges and Charles Derber on the Left’s Failures (Video)

Staff and Chris Hedges / Truthdig Jan 11, 2018 The two discuss capitalism's inextricable links to race, gender and class, and how the U.S. left doesn't get the connections. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Rethinking Higher Education in a Time of Tyranny

Henry Giroux / Moyers & Co. Oct 14, 2017 What kind of democracy is possible when the institutions crucial to a vibrant civil society are vanishing? Dig deeper ( 10 Min. Read )

Malcolm X Identified ‘Psychological Warfare’ Tactics Used Against African-Americans and Muslims

Eric Ortiz / Truthdig Oct 11, 2016 Muslims were a polarizing subject in the United States long before the 2016 presidential race. In this 1963 interview, the civil rights leader discussed the nature of Islam and power of propaganda. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

‘Modern Life Is Not Good for Mental Health’

Alexander Reed Kelly / Truthdig Mar 16, 2016 Our forebears were less depressed and anxious than we are today, sociologist Jean Twenge concludes after studying the frequency of symptoms associated with these conditions. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Exile as a Space of Disruption in the Ivory Tower

By Henry A. Giroux / Disrupt(ED) Feb 8, 2016 The spaces of retreat from public life occupy too many institutions of higher education, which have been transformed into dead zones of the imagination mixed with a kind of brutalizing defense of their own decaying postures and search for status and profits. Dig deeper ( 9 Min. Read )

Truthdigger of the Week: Fatema Mernissi, a Founder of Islamic Feminism

BLANK Jan 10, 2016 The original research of the erudite sociologist, who died Nov. 30, showed that the subjugation of women in Muslim societies has no basis in the Quran and other Islamic scriptures. "Islam was not sent from heaven to foster egotism and mediocrity," she wrote. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Study Finds Religious Children to Be Meaner Than Secular Children

Alexander Reed Kelly / Truthdig Nov 6, 2015 And their parents think they're more empathetic. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Your Boss Wants You to Be Happy. This Might Not Be a Good Thing.

Alexander Reed Kelly / Truthdig Jun 12, 2015 In “The Happiness Industry,” English sociologist and economist William Davies examines the nefarious effects of the “science and measurement" practices that some bosses are using to influence their employees’ sense of happiness. Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )

Chinese Sympathetic to Sex Guru’s Personal Revelation

Alexander Reed Kelly / Truthdig Mar 7, 2015 China’s leading advocate of one-night stands, sadomasochist sex, the decriminalization of pornography and the legalization of same-sex marriage has announced that her partner of 17 years is a transgender man. The reaction has been overwhelmingly supportive. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )