Category Archives: Uncategorized

The Mizzou moment: Student activism beyond Missouri

When activists see a tactic that seems to be producing results, they’ll imitate it. Innovation spreads ideas that seem to work. The ousting of University of Missouri Timothy Wolfe signaled student activists across the country about new possibilities. We’ve seen … Continue reading

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How student activists win: Update on APUSH in Colorado

Remember when high school students walked out of the public schools in Jefferson County Colorado earlier this year? They were protesting a number of administrative and curricular changes underway that threatened their educations. (We discussed it here.) A newly elected … Continue reading

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Mizzou, part II: Lead-up and legacies

Most of us tuned into the story about the ouster of University of Missouri president Timothy Wolfe last weekend, when the football team weighed in to support a hunger striker, and saw a sudden and conclusive end when Wolfe stepped … Continue reading

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How movements work: Activists sack a president at Mizzou

University of Missouri president Timothy Wolfe, a one-time championship high school quarterback, took a knee to avoid being sacked.  Once the football team lined up against him, it was clear Wolfe’s time was running out, and he resigned today to … Continue reading

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The Tea Party falters

I took this Gallup poll result from the New York Times  “Taking Note” column, just because I wanted to take note.  Support for the Tea Party in surveys peaked at the end of 2010 at less than 30 percent, and … Continue reading

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Jailing Kim Davis and creating a cause

I’ll still stand by yesterday’s guess, that the rally round imprisoned county clerk Kim Davis will be relatively small and relatively brief.  But today, The Daily News reports that roughly 200 supporters rallied in Grayson, Kentucky to protest her imprisonment.  And … Continue reading

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Martyrs, heroes, and the government

Social conservatives opposed to gay marriage have to decide what to do with Kim Davis, now sitting in a jail cell because she refused to issue marriage licenses–to anyone.  She also refused to authorize anyone else in her office to … Continue reading

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After Obergefell: A Contexts Symposium

I’m one of a bunch of social scientists weighing in on the effects of the Supreme Court decision on same sex marriage.  The sponsor is Contexts, a sociology journal explicitly charged with addressing contemporary issues and addressing a broader audience–not … Continue reading

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The new politics of gay marriage, 2 (the losers).

The Obergefell decision was a resounding defeat for opponents of same sex marriage, and the groups at the core of the anti-equality (traditional marriage?) movement are casting about for new ways to continue their battle.  It’s going to be tough. … Continue reading

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The new politics of gay marriage, 1.

The battle over marriage equality was never only about marriage. The activists and organizations at the core of movements for and against state recognition of homogamy wanted more, much more. In the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision (Obergefell v. … Continue reading

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