Continue my series on I am continuing to work through the postmedieval forum about the public Middle Ages. Previous installments here, here and here. Today, Matt Gabriele on “There is no public Middle Ages.” In this piece, Gabriele argues provocatively that context matters less than we think. He writes: As academics, as specialists, we perhaps…
There has been a lot of movement in the Steven Salaita story in the past few weeks, timed perfectly for the anniversary of the un-hiring. I want to talk about Phyllis Wise’s parachute and the future of the UIUC boycott. The news: First – the emails that Phyllis Wise tried to hide on a private…
I am continuing to work through the postmedieval forum about the public Middle Ages. Previous installments here and here. Today, Kathleen Kennedy on “The Digital Middle Ages.” Kennedy (note: one of my closest friends) plays with notions of open and closed information in medieval information culture and today. To me, what’s interesting is not the lament…
Not long ago, I wrote down my Golden Rules to being an ally. Listen. Remember it’s not about you. Remember it’s sometimes about you. Mostly, though, it’s not about you, so center the conversation where it belongs. Don’t expect gratitude; instead, accept criticism graciously. Here’s another, similar, piece – from Jamia Wilson – How to…
As promised, I’m working through the fascinating postmedieval forum about the public Middle Ages, starting with Brantley Bryant’s Seven Theses for “A Social Media Strategy.” Bryant is a successful user of social media through, as he puts it, “playful experimentation with medieval personae on social media.” In this piece, he offers seven different strategies or principles…
I wrote a piece for CNN on the handcuffing of a third grader in Kentucky. The video is horrible. I watched it repeatedly in writing the piece, and I remain very upset by it, and I’m glad it went viral across the news media everywhere. The video, though, is not the problem. The problem is…
postmedieval is hosting an online forum, with essays and room for discussion, about the public Middle Ages. Here’s the blurb: The discussions in FORUM V activate at a time of increasing challenges for humanities scholars operating in the modern university. Funding is scarce and questions of value have begun to emanate from within institutions themselves. At…
In Kentucky, from the NYT: The A.C.L.U. released what it called a “disturbing video” showing the boy, who it said weighs about 52 pounds, crying as the resource officer handcuffed his arms at the biceps behind his back. In the video, the officer tells the boy, “You don’t get to swing at me like that.”The…
My wife and I bought a swank new couch, love-seat, and coffee-table set. It’s our first new-from-the-store piece of furniture, ever, and replaces a couch we got from freecycle. The old couch was big and cushy, but it was frankly falling apart when we got it and it needed to go. So we bought a…
Louis Hayes, police trainer and reformer, has a new blog up on the role the Cult of Compliance plays in keeping police silent in cases like Sandra Bland. 1) Remember – everything the police officer did was wrong. He pulled out behind Bland abruptly, she moved over to get out of his way, and he…