Historian of colonial America, the Caribbean, and slavery. Professor at UCSC. Lover of cooking, sporting, mountains, and indie bands. Mischievous uncle.
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The president is sending the military to control American cities and if you're a reporter who's framing that illegal power grab as "pushing the boundaries of constitutionality" or "acting boldly to fight crime" or whatever, please go find another line of work where you won't get us all killed.
#Seaweed farms are a dual solution for climate change & sustainable energy. - don't require freshwater, fertilizer, or arable land to grow, making it one of the most eco-friendly resources - naturally absorbs massive amounts of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere through photosynthesis helping 1/...
. THIS is one of the biggest problems of our time . . . ⬇️ ⬇️ ⬇️ .
youtu.be/8A4djDnTQWM?...
Dear Americans, welcome to the thrilling game of ‘Did this dictator die or just disappear for a day?’ We’ve been playing it with Putin and Lukashenko for decades. Enjoy the suspense.
Since we’re not really doing democracy anymore, I’m curious who succeeds to the Golden Throne if Trump died, especially since no one likes JD. Is it RFK Jr. as the next least qualified cabinet member? Is it a Kardashian as the next best reality TV star? Is it Hegseth’s belt buckle? A Jan. 6th felon?
Schrödinger’s President
Excellent question.
Oh wow. I had not seen this. Of course the problem with this conspiracy theory, as you know, is that we have the receipts, literally. Thousands upon thousands of port records, merchant letters, tax & insurance documents testifying to the historic trafficking of human beings: www.SlaveVoyages.org.
So he’s only going to sell Putin *some* of Alaska? Cool. Cool cool cool.
And for junior academics with piles of scripts to mark, it's unlikely that they would have spotted those quotations. There's also a ridiculously high standard of proof required in many universities. You and I may know it's AI, but, well... it could just be a random mistake.
Absolutely. It’s incredibly time consuming. And I’ll be negatively reviewed by my university administration for having too many students fail rather than praised for requiring students to do their own work and, you know, learn something. Good thing I have tenure.
AI spits out plausible sounding nonsense constantly. Use it for things you know well, and you realize it spits out b.s. all the time. After that it’s hard to take it seriously for anything. Even its name is half a lie. It’s artificial, but not intelligent. It’s a misinformation machine.
Bad as student cheating is, there’s too much emphasis on cheating when discussing AI’s problems. It’s bad for education (and my free time) that I caught 7 students for AI-generated papers last quarter. But I caught them because AI made up fake quotations. That disinformation is harmful by itself.
The Trump administration has destabilized a partnership with universities that has made the U.S. a scientific superpower. “What is happening right now is absolutely suicidal,” said Anastasia Khvorova, whose lab uses cutting-edge RNA biology.
My fake second book sounded pretty cool, though. I probably should have written it. 😂
Yes…and so much more. I once had ChatGPT generate a description of me as a test. The mix of fact & fiction was surreal. It identified my first book accurately, with a decent synopsis. But it made up a non-existant second book. And it credited me with a mix of real and fake fellowships & prizes.
AI spits out plausible sounding nonsense constantly. Use it for things you know well, and you realize it spits out b.s. all the time. After that it’s hard to take it seriously for anything. Even its name is half a lie. It’s artificial, but not intelligent. It’s a misinformation machine.
Bad as student cheating is, there’s too much emphasis on cheating when discussing AI’s problems. It’s bad for education (and my free time) that I caught 7 students for AI-generated papers last quarter. But I caught them because AI made up fake quotations. That disinformation is harmful by itself.
Tenure-track African American history job (19th c.) at Bates College in Maine, for those on the market. Go get it, and good luck! #bskystorians apply.interfolio.com/170148
Tenure-track African American history job (19th c.) at Bates College in Maine, for those on the market. Go get it, and good luck! #bskystorians apply.interfolio.com/170148
Epstein matters, but there's a much greater story of American moral depravity that ought to be leading the news America is building an archipelago of squalid concentration camps. No one knows where this will end. The time to scream 'Never again'? Now! My new column www.inquirer.com/opinion/us-c...
This document about le bâtiment le Calmar Castel has me thinking that if I ever get a boat (which I won’t) I’m going to call it, “The Calamari Castle.”
A reminder that the Fox News Cinematic Universe only focuses on black officials when they can tear them down. They used to mock Baltimore's Brandon Scott as a "DEI mayor" but now that homicide rates have plummeted they're just pretending he doesn't exist.
The thing about the Epstein disgustingness that strikes me hardest is that hundreds of rich old men raped underage girls and the only person currently in jail for that vile behavior is a woman.
The document is silent on whether he was a ladies man, but Capitaine Jean Juan definitely captured my heart today. 😂 #bskystorians #history
I gotta say I find a lot of AI discourse around higher ed very confusing. "if ChatGPT can write your essays is college even worth it?" did people think math teachers were assigning problem sets because *they* couldn't figure out the answers?
Anyone still quibbling that this isn't fascism?
“An Iranian woman who has lived in the United States for 47 years, has no criminal record, and is married to a US citizen was detained by ICE as she gardened outside her New Orleans home.” ht: @timmiller.bsky.social www.nola.com/news/politic...
Absolutely incredible turnout for Budapest Pride! So proud of all the organizers, including some old friends, who estimate hundreds of thousands— major embarrassment to Orban
Page proofs! bookshop.org/p/books/the-...
Page proofs! bookshop.org/p/books/the-...
“You do not have the authority to arrest U.S. citizens,” Lander repeated, as the officers tightened handcuffs to his wrists.
ICE just arrested Brad Lander, the NYC Comptroller and one of the leading candidates for Mayor, without grounds. He was conducting routine immigration court work, escorting individuals from hearings. He asked ICE for their warrant - well within his legal rights. This is political intimidation.
Hi, this is Meg Barnette, Brad's wife. While escorting a defendant out of immigration court at 26 Federal Plaza, Brad was taken by masked agents and detained by ICE. This is still developing, and our team is monitoring the situation closely.
The @cagovernornewsom.bsky.social presents himself as anti-Trump, but he's proposing to cut the University of California budget, just like Trump attacks universities and research funding. Write to @gavinnewsom.bsky.social and tell him to #FundUC! universityofcalifornia.quorum.us/campaign/gov...
Petition against lecturer layoffs at @ucsantacruz.bsky.social. At UCSC, faculty, lecturers, and student support staff have all grown slower than tuition and student enrollments. Meanwhile, administrative jobs have proliferated. Cut admin bloat, not education! actionnetwork.org/petitions/de...
Public service announcement (especially, but not only, for academics): Microphones are directional. Don’t just hold it vaguely near your head. YOU HAVE TO POINT IT AT YOUR MOUTH! And don’t gesture with it. Keep it pointed at the talkie hole.
Breaking News: SpaceX’s Starship spun out of control in space before breaking apart during its ninth test flight.
📕 #BookReview 🏺 #HistoryBluesky Jane Webster's 'Materializing the Middle Passage' combines material culture and historical sources to "marry words and things" in the examination of the trafficking of enslaved Africans on British ships between AD 1680 and 1807. 1/2 🆓 doi.org/10.15184/aqy...
"As a historian of the slave trade, I found most of Webster’s textual sources familiar, but I had encountered only a fraction of the art, shipwrecks and material remains upon which she draws. Even familiar sources were interpreted from a fresh perspective." 2/2 ✍️ @gogogomalley.bsky.social
Available for pre-order! (Due out in February) bookshop.org/p/books/the-...
Available for pre-order! (Due out in February) bookshop.org/p/books/the-...
Your daily reminder that if you don’t oppose MAGA because it’s cruel, immoral, and often unconstitutional, you can just oppose it because it’s #MAGAstupid. The incompetence is staggering. apple.news/AGGUquBKHTXq...
If they don't have rights, you don't have rights. You have privileges that King Donald can revoke at any moment. www.washingtonpost.com/immigration/...
Whether it's Hillary Clinton sharing risotto tips on a private server or Pete Hegseth using the nuclear codes as his password on Pornhub, both parties have ignored our nation's security.
This moment when the penny drops that trying to implement bathroom bans is an impossibility for the former Tory Chief Secretary Simon Clarke is delicious.
Seriously, why is RFK Jr worried about dyes in food when his department is cutting safety standards for milk and chicken?
Another reminder that if you don't oppose the Trump and MAGA because their policies are heartless, immoral, and often unconstitutional, you can just oppose them because they are #MAGAstupid: www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/...
www.historians.org/perspectives...
Our cover this week.
“Pro-life”
Sent my review of the copy-edited manuscript back to the publisher late last night! This is starting to feel real. Due out in February! #slavery #bskystorians
AI is intellectual piracy. But somehow it steals everyone's work and makes it TERRIBLE.
When I left the Washington Post in 2023, my colleagues and I were worried AI would hoover up our work and enable "zombies" to churn out stories based on our reporting and writing styles. Today WaPo announced a partnership with OpenAI. And here it is: Zombie Gillian Brockell. I DID NOT WRITE THIS.
Help us preserve quality public education in California & stave off budget cuts & layoffs! SIGN this petition. Thanks! www.votervoice.net/CALFAC/Petit...
Had to make one last quick edit first, though... #HandsOffHistory
Sent my review of the copy-edited manuscript back to the publisher late last night! This is starting to feel real. Due out in February! #slavery #bskystorians
this is such good news. i think it is also an opportunity for democrats to state forthrightly that when they win power again everyone responsible for this crime will be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law and will face the american people to answer for their lawlessness
Speak up, academia!
“Mein Kampf” (TWO copies no less) remains on the shelves, but “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” is gone. www.nytimes.com/2025/04/11/u...
Just a friendly reminder that even if you don’t oppose the Trump Administration and MAGA’s policies because they are heartless, immoral, and often unconstitutional, you can also just oppose them because they are stupid AF. www.propublica.org/article/whoo...
#MAGAstupid
CFP is open for the 2026 installment of the @oieahc.bsky.social conference series for the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution. Propose a paper! Organize a panel! #bskystorians #history oieahc.wm.edu/events-overv...
What he says!
URGENT: Save the NEH! 🗃️ As the NYTimes reported, DOGE is targeting the NEH *today* - trying to claw back grant funds and lay off up to 90% of staff. Call your Congressperson today and/or fill out the form below from the National Humanities Alliance! And let's get #SaveTheNEH trending p2a.co/DdtlGIT
So, conservatives freak out about how much Soros spends on elections, and liberals freak out about how much Elon spends on elections. Bipartisan idea: Stop both of them! Reform election law to disallow billionaires spending infinite amounts trying to buy elections through super PACs.
"I don't want a Disney vacation of our history! I don't a whitewashed history, I don't want a homogenized history. Tell me the wretched truth about America, because that speaks to our greatness" -- 20 hours into his speech, Cory Booker is spitting absolute 🔥
I just took action to oppose the elimination of the National Endowment for the Humanities! Join me and take action here: p2a.co/Hvhdqo5 #bskystorians #History
Countries that have issued a travel advisory this year warning their citizens about visiting the United States: Canada Denmark Finland France Germany Ireland Netherlands New Zealand United Kingdom
Pilot to Hegseth: "You’re going to kill somebody.” For the safety of our troops, Hegseth has got to go.
This is how it's done. A strong and principled response by WilmerHale to the illegal Executive Order attack - a form of attempted government intimidation declared unconstitutional by a federal judge. This is how to guard the rule of law.
RFK is a eugenics freak first and foremost and everything falls downstream from that. he *wants* excess deaths. he thinks that only the "fit" should survive.
They are breaking Social Security, because they do not like Social Security.
CFP is open for the 2026 installment of the @oieahc.bsky.social conference series for the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution. Propose a paper! Organize a panel! #bskystorians #history oieahc.wm.edu/events-overv...
If the White House is insisting that there was no classified or secret information in the Signal chat, does that mean Jeffrey Goldberg can publish it all?
So. It has officially happened. I have been officially let go from my position at CDC. I wasn’t a probationary employee. I had stellar performance reviews every year. I’ll be ok. But please understand that many worked HARD to get into these positions and were doing great public health work.
There have never been kings in America. The monarchy doesn't start now.
Less populous states are over represented in ballot voting because of the senate and the electoral college. But people in large states have lots more dollars, collectively. Use that power. One of the best things you do about the current disaster is to be strategic with your spending.
"Tyranny requires your fear and your silence and your compliance. Democracy requires your courage." -- @govpritzker.illinois.gov
For decades, the US government has painstakingly kept American science #1 globally—and every facet of American life has improved because of it. The internet? Flu shot? Ozempic? All grew out of federally-funded research. Now all that's being dismantled. 1/ www.technologyreview.com/2025/02/21/1...
In our consumer economy, your votes with your dollars may be more powerful than your votes with your ballots, and you don’t have to wait until an election to use them. You vote for the kind of world you want every time you spend. Vote wisely!
Kamala was right. And it only took him less than 30 days to roll over for Putin.
BREAKING: USAID contractors/aid recipients say Secretary Rubio and USAID leader Peter Marocco should be held in civil contempt for violating a court order to lift spending freeze.
the “make america healthy again” agenda appears to be an elaborate op conjured up by sentient strains of listeria and salmonella www.nytimes.com/2025/02/18/u...
It's not a distraction if he's not only calling himself King, but acting like one, too.
the single most un-american and anti-constitutional statement ever uttered by an american president
Elect a clown; expect a circus.
Incompetence in Washington puts every American at risk, no matter how you voted. No one should be happy that the DOGE team - the same folks who randomly published classified U.S. security information online today - wants access to your bank account & Social Security numbers.
Trump May Wish to Abolish the Past. We Historians Will Not. newrepublic.com/article/1912... via @newrepublic.com
Putin is full out celebrating our idiocy.
Senator Andy Kim just went to the USAID building, talked to the security guard there to confirm employees are being barred entry, and then did a press gaggle right there in front to call it out. This is doing something. This is making an effort on messaging. Other Democratic lawmakers: take notes.
Great article on contemporary drawings of the rebels aboard the Amistad, by Kate McMahon. I had the pleasure of seeing the "In Slavery's Wake" exhibition currently on at the NMAAHC, which features these drawings. Great exhibit! Amazing drawings! theconversation.com/rare-portrai...
Submitted my revised book manuscript to my editor yesterday!! The Escapes of David George: An Odyssey of Slavery, Freedom, and the American Revolution coming in early 2026 from @stmartinspress.bsky.social
Has congress passed a law superseding or eliminating the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961? Has the Supreme Court declared it unconstitutional? Then why are journalists reporting that Trump and Musk are "shutting down" USAID. They are not authorized to do so.
Rev250 event of the day — #OTD February 2, 1775, Parliament formally declared the colony of Massachusetts Bay to be in rebellion, encouraged by illegal combinations in other (unspecified) colonies. This authorized royal officials to use the military against opponents. #c18
Bewildering horror in 18th century America. A dual biography of a Native and colonial family as they wind their way to tragedy along the Ohio River on the eve of the American Revolution. Yes, the Conradian title has a purpose… wwnorton.com/books/978132...
No they don’t. Canada and Mexico want none of this. They want the president of the United States to respect and abide by the trade treaty he negotiated with them - and not make up bogus pretexts for plunging us all into a gratuitous no win economic debacle.
