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Ahead of the July Fourth holiday and the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, we speak with the acclaimed scholar Robin D. G. Kelley, who examines how Black radicals have interpreted the document throughout U.S. history in a new essay for Hammer & Hope. Although the declaration famously asserts that “all men are created equal,” Kelley says that clearly did not extend to Indigenous or enslaved Black people. “When the drafters developed this declaration, they assumed that human beings were basically white men,” he says. But despite the “hypocrisy” of the declaration, many Black radicals still found value in its words, including a “justification for rebellion,” says Kelley.

Despite growing evidence of alcohol’s harms, it remains deeply embedded in social norms and cultural rituals, both in the US and abroad.

The medical tools of the Revolutionary period help flesh out the picture of what physical well-being felt like for people living in the American colonies 250 years ago.

Montesquieu shaped how Americans understood liberty, and his warning about a ‘tyranny of opinion’ speaks to today’s polarization.

New legislation in Denver created a program to build, repair and maintain sidewalks throughout the city.

‘The Folk Box’ sought to trace the roots and branches of American music, and document the forging – and constant reinvention – of the national identity.

Britain controlled vast tracts in North America beyond the original 13 Colonies. And the American invasion of Canada played a role in the final political settlement.

Donald Trump flew west on his new Air Force One, a $400 million gift from Qatar, dogged by questions about obscene profiteering in office, and his own enduring rage over a bestselling book.