Opinion writer at The Week and co-host of the history podcast Past Present

Labor

The Past and Future of the Office

Past Present Podcast, Episode 278

May 4, 2021 • by Nicole Hemmer, Natalia Mehlman Petrzela and Neil J. Young

Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show: New York magazine published a sprawling collection of essays about experiences of office life. Natalia referred to this Atlantic article about the persistence of deep cleaning protocols despite evidence that the coronavirus does not spread on surfaces. Niki cited historian ...

Past Present

RuPaul and the History of Drag

Past Present Podcast, Episode 277

April 28, 2021 • by Nicole Hemmer, Natalia Mehlman Petrzela and Neil J. Young

Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show: Reality show RuPaul’s Drag Race has just wrapped its thirteenth season. Niki and Natalia drew on Simon Doonan’s book Drag: The Complete Story. Natalia also referred to this Vulture article on the history of drag and this New Yorker profile ...

History

A Roaring Twenties Redux?

Past Present Podcast, Episode 276

April 20, 2021 • by Nicole Hemmer, Natalia Mehlman Petrzela and Neil J. Young

Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show: As “post-pandemic life” becomes imaginable, predictions of a second “Roaring Twenties” are ubiquitous. Niki referred to her article about the promise and limits of such comparisons for CNN. Natalia drew on historian Helen Lefkowitz Horowitz’ Campus Life: Undergraduate Cultures from ...

Education

The Debate over School Reopening

Past Present Podcast, Episode 275

April 13, 2021 • by Nicole Hemmer, Natalia Mehlman Petrzela and Neil J. Young

Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show: When – and how – public schools should reopen has become a topic of intense controversy. Neil cited this Los Angeles Times piece about the “intractable learning loss” suffered by English Language Learners this year. Natalia referred to this New ...

Literature

Beverly Cleary

Past Present Podcast, Episode 272

April 6, 2021 • by Nicole Hemmer, Natalia Mehlman Petrzela and Neil J. Young

Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show: At the age of 104, children’s author Beverly Cleary has died. Natalia drew on this Bulwark article about Cleary’s apolitical appeal, and Niki referred to this Atlantic essay and this Vulture piece about her grasp of children’s emotional landscape. Neil ...

Issues of our Times

The Atlanta and Boulder Mass Shootings

Past Present Podcast, Episode 273

March 30, 2021 • by Nicole Hemmer, Natalia Mehlman Petrzela and Neil J. Young

Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show: As public spaces reopen, so too have mass shootings returned. Neil referred to this Slate piece about the coverage of the Atlanta shootings, and Natalia cited Melissa Jeltsen’s article in The Cut, her own essay about massage in Nursing Clio, ...

Past Present

Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s Controversies

Past Present Podcast, Episode 272

March 23, 2021 • by Nicole Hemmer, Natalia Mehlman Petrzela and Neil J. Young

Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show: Amid charges that he covered up Covid-related deaths among nursing home residents and sexually harassed multiple women, New York’s Governor Andrew Cuomo is being asked to resign. Natalia referred to Rebecca Traister’s article at The Cut and Zephyr Teachout’s essay ...

Past Present

The Interview: Oprah, Meghan, and Harry

Past Present Podcast, Episode 271

March 18, 2021 • by Nicole Hemmer, Natalia Mehlman Petrzela and Neil J. Young

Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show: Perhaps the official beginning of Meghan and Harry’s life in America was their interview with Oprah Winfrey. Niki referenced her CNN piece on Piers Morgan’s reaction to the interview, and Natalia mentioned Trysh Travis and Timothy Aubry’s book on therapeutic ...

Past Present

The Controversy over Dr. Seuss

Past Present Podcast, Episode 270

March 9, 2021 • by Nicole Hemmer, Natalia Mehlman Petrzela and Neil J. Young

Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show: Theodore Geisel’s estate has removed six of his Dr. Seuss books from circulation, causing ire among conservatives citing it as an example of “cancel culture.” Natalia referred to writer Michael Harriot’s Twitter thread, this 1945 Frank Sinatra short film, “The ...

Past Present

Minimum Wage and the Fight for $15

Past Present Podcast, Episode 269

March 2, 2021 • by Nicole Hemmer, Natalia Mehlman Petrzela and Neil J. Young

Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show: House Democrats have proposed a federally guaranteed fifteen-dollar an hour minimum wage as part of their coronavirus relief bill. Niki drew on this New York Times piece about the effective minimum wage, and Neil referenced this New Yorker article about ...

Past Present

Britney Spears and the #FreeBritney Movement

Past Present Podcast, Episode 268

February 23, 2021 • by Nicole Hemmer, Natalia Mehlman Petrzela and Neil J. Young

Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show: A New York Times documentary about pop star Britney Spears and the conservatorship under which she has lived since 2008 has sparked renewed concern about her wellbeing. Natalia recommended this New Republic article about disability and conservatorships and Anne-Helen Petersen’s ...

History

Larry Flynt

Past Present Podcast, Episode 267

February 16, 2021 • by Nicole Hemmer, Natalia Mehlman Petrzela and Neil J. Young

Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show: Larry Flynt, founder of the Hustler empire, died this month. Niki recommended historian Carolyn Bronstein’s book Battling Pornography: The American Feminist Anti-Pornography Movement, 1976-1986 and referred to this Politico article about the GOP abandoning the war on pornography. Natalia mentioned ...