This is the central line when I teach the History of Human Rights: rights rhetoric and discussions move forward meaningfully when new groups pry their way in to make the case that they should always have belonged.

"MAKING SPACE [by @profmkbyrnes.bsky.social] remains a highly readable and valuable contribution. Ongoing research projects on the segregated urban histories of Paris and Lyon can productively build on its insights," writes Frederik Doktor for Connections. bit.ly/4vgjAtV

its too bad Texas universities have banned the study of gender.

Behind the Blogging 2026 www.lawyersgunsmoneyblog.com/2026/06/behi...

Between the new encyclical and the Salesian Spurs Sisters, the Church has had quite the 24 hours.

Ya'll. I am shook. In a good way. Pope Leo XIV makes historic apology for Holy See's own role in legitimizing Slavery

Excellent thread 👇🏻

The fact that Nyong’o’s beauty is causing a war between two rival cultures in America right now is proof enough that she is the perfect Helen of Troy.

Texas parents deserve to know who is really in the driver seat when it comes to decisions that impact our kids who attend public schools. Spoiler alert: it’s increasingly NOT the elected leaders you would assume have the most say in curriculum and instruction. www.statesman.com/news/educati...

Wrote about the college kids booing AI, and how, in a moment rife with economic precarity, affordability crises, and collapsing job prospects, AI has become a new avatar of American capitalism

This is so crucial!

News & Reviews featuring @alicerudge.bsky.social @profmkbyrnes.bsky.social @michaelclair.bsky.social and more!

New piece in Science: Sudden elimination of USAID grants triggered waves of violence in affected regions in Africa, undermining civic governance and fueling civic unrest. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Historian of abolition here, history tells us how we got here, to put it succinctly “John Brown was hanged for treason and Robert E. Lee was not.”

Gonna die on this hill but efficiency is the opposite of education. Learning is not efficient.

The Canvas hack that brought campuses globally to a standstill got me thinking about a piece that I wrote in @techpolicypress.bsky.social, about how “technology is the spinal cord of government.” I wrote a few thoughts on what this looks like in schools. www.thehomescreen.org/p/technology...

"@profmkbyrnes.bsky.social’s book is a masterful example of local history, drawing the reader into specific examples and individual stories that, taken together, give a sweeping view of North African migration," writes Danielle Beaujon for the Journal of Modern History. bit.ly/4d0tZm8

This was actually my dissertation!

Slightly diminish a book: -Precarious Liasons

King Charles: "The U.S. Supreme Court Historical Society has calculated that Magna Carta is cited in at least 160 Supreme Court cases since 1789, not least as the foundation of the principle that executive power is subject to checks and balances."

people *mocked* Anna Komnene for being convinced every western crusade was really about sacking Constantinople but she just keeps winning

Where is the lie? But also, people like to think they are special, and what they are going through is special, and if there is anything historians can establish with tedious frequency it is that no, none of us are special and historical precedent echoes and coughs its way through the decades.

Last bit of initial commentary from our house.

"I didn't want to be right about this" is the perfect theme (and rallying cry) for the moment. I often tell students that Cassandra feels like the real muse of history.

More lessons from Hungary:

This is reassuring. I've been quite surprised at how negatively most of my students view AI these days.

The massive Orban defeat should prompt Dems to align themselves more firmly with anti-fascist and pro-democracy forces abroad. There's a powerful link to be drawn between the celebrations in Budapest and the confrontations with ICE in Minneapolis. 1/ (new piece) newrepublic.com/article/2090...

Some good first thoughts from my favorite Hungarian scholar (I am absolutely biased): open.substack.com/pub/democrac...

Concession! Regimes do fall. www.theguardian.com/world/live/2...

As today's Hungarian election results continue to come in, it's worth remembering that one of the major moments in building this resistance was standing up for Pride. www.hrw.org/news/2025/06...

The humanities are absolutely vital to a functioning democratic society.

🧵It’s crucial that Americans closely watch the next two weeks in Hungarian politics. Trump is really, really invested in making sure Orban wins the April 12 election. So are Bibi, Milei, Wilders, and AfD head Alice Weidel. They’ve all shown up to campaign. Vance likely going next week. 🧵🧵🧵

Alma mater pride!

When a federal judge (finally) put ICE officers under oath, they admitted that they are given daily detention quotas and rely heavily on a Palantir-supplied AI tool to select targets, without warrants and without enough evidence to obtain one. They simply go into neighborhoods and round people up.

Lindsey’s diplomacy working wonders in UAE.

Right back at you! It was a good weekend for connecting with good people.

"If your vision of liberation comes only through the destruction of innocent lives, then it's not freedom you're after."

“To initiate a war of aggression, therefore, is not only an international crime; it is the supreme international crime differing only from other war crimes in that it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole.” Judgment of the international Military Tribunal at Nuremberg, Germany.

Aren’t we lucky that universities haven’t gotten carried away with the hype and taken a careful approach to AI? Imagine if they had decided to push AI into our teaching and work life! All praise to our leaders in higher ed for not falling for hype, hallelujah and praise the goddess

“The regents of Texas’s largest university system unanimously passed a policy Thursday setting “expectations of academic integrity and standards for teaching controversial topics” amid aggressive conservative pressure... The policy does not define “controversial.” Well, this policy is controversial.

Today we are launching a new intitative of Stand With Minnesota—KeepMNHoused.com, a rent-relief campaign backed with a $1.5 matching fund from the Wilson Foundation. Thousands of MN families are at risk of eviction because of the ICE occupation’s lasting impacts. We can keep them housed.

Colbert posted the interview online. I do wonder if CBS and the FCC are aware of the Streisand effect? The interview has been up for 8 hours and has just over half a million views.

Yep.

NEW: The @wired.com Security desk put together a comprehensive guide to filming ICE—with tips for reducing risk at the forefront. No paywall, but please consider subscribing to help find these kinds of resources. And stay safe out there. www.wired.com/story/how-to... www.wired.com/v2/offers/wi...

Child is supposed to dress up as someone who exhibits kindness tomorrow. He's wearing his Wemby jersey.

News & Reviews featuring @saddiqdzukogi.bsky.social @alicerudge.bsky.social @amykohout.bsky.social @kelloggfireman.bsky.social @sherrieflick.bsky.social @profmkbyrnes.bsky.social and more!

Certainly appears moms with whistles won the Battle of Minneapolis.

Our country was founded on resistance to a tyrant.

Solidarity with all the folks in MN putting themselves out there for the good of us all.

Some thoughts: 1. The deadline for nominating a person or group for the Nobel Peace Prize is Feb. 1. 2. History professors are qualified nominators. 3. The people of Minnesota have been awe-inspiringly peaceful in the face of state violence. 4. He would be so mad.