Why the March for Our Lives Might Be a March for the Ages
Last Saturday, hundreds of thousands of people participated in the March for Our Lives, calling for gun restrictions. Where will this lead?
What Gun Background Checks Can’t Detect: Stupidity
Raised age requirements and background checks for gun purchases won’t fix absent-mindedness. Or stupidity.
What Can a Gun-Toting Church Tell Us About Conservatives?
When Barack Obama said segments of Pennsylvania were clinging to guns and religion, he identified the dynamic that would lead to Donald Trump’s election. That sentiment was on display once more at a gun-blessing ceremony that most of the media covered — and got totally wrong.
Here’s Who Takes Big Money from the Gun Lobby
Single-issue voters could make the difference in the 2018 midterms. Will that issue be guns?
Judicial Activism: Liberal Overreach or Republican Dog Whistle?
For decades, conservatives have panned left-leaning judges for disregarding constitutional protocol to enact a “liberal agenda.” But history shows these critics should take a good look at their own side before rushing to judgement.
Why the Accused 9/11 Mastermind Can’t Get a Fair Trial
The government’s post-9/11 legacy of torture continues to hamper Guantánamo Bay legal proceedings. President Donald Trump is not helping.
John Perry Barlow’s Last Words
John Perry Barlow’s last book, scheduled for June publication, was released for review the day he died. It shines a light on the life of America’s most far-out deadhead.
The Nunes Memo: Six Degrees of Separation from Reality
The memo controversy is a symptom of major problems plaguing US democracy. And neither side looks good.
Will Democrats Give GOP the Votes to Pass Controversial Spying Bill?
In relative obscurity, Congress is about to hand President Donald Trump permanent surveillance powers over US citizens. Most Americans don’t even seem to know how this controversial legislation would affect them. Here is what’s at stake.
Clinton, Trump Elections Sent Chilling Message to Sexually Abused Women
It goes without saying that putting two alleged serial sexual abusers in the Oval Office has sent the wrong signal to women who have been sexually assaulted or harassed. So why is nobody saying it?
Russ Baker on Trump’s Troubling Call to Renew Surveillance Tool
Russ Baker recently spoke to RT news about the Trump administration’s efforts to renew a controversial section of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), a law that has resulted in excessive privacy violations against American citizens.
Labor Day: Paintings From the Great Depression, and the WPA
Paintings, drawings, and prints from a dynamic time when President Roosevelt saved America by putting people — including artists — back to work.
Watching Big Brother
As the nightmare of George Orwell’s 1984 becomes reality in slow motion, there may be a silver lining. It turns out that the people have some powerful surveillance tools of their own.
Drug Testing Welfare: Giving Those in Need the Finger, Not a Helping Hand
Congress rolled back Obama era protections against suspicionless drug testing. The targets of these programs are always those less fortunate and not the people making millions off the government.
Classic Who: The Ferguson Report, Part 2: African-Americans, Cash Cow for the City
Part 1 revealed the daily abuses African-Americans suffered at the hands of the Ferguson police. Part 2 is about money. The more tickets the police wrote, the more money they made for the city. And the more brownie points they earned for themselves.
Classic Who: The Ferguson Report, Part 1: Breathing While Black
Stories from the DOJ report on the Ferguson Police’s grinding daily abuse of African-Americans — the kind of abuse that probably happens all over America.
Celebrating Freedom — FOIA’s 50th Anniversary
Public control of our government depends on accountability and transparency. For July 4th, here are tips on how to obtain official documents. Just in time for the 50th anniversary of the Freedom of Information Act.
Selma at 51: MLK Warned That Apathy Was the Real Killer
Selma, Alabama, was perhaps the climax of the Civil Rights movement. On the 51st anniversary of that famed march, we take a moment to reflect on some of Dr. Martin Luther King’s most extraordinary oratory, which is so very relevant today.
China and the US: Big Brothers-In-Law?
“Big Brother” is getting even bigger in China. In a development that the author of “1984” would surely have appreciated, China recently passed an “anti-terrorism law” that seems an excuse for a clampdown. It also eerily mirrors calls by US officials for access to encrypted communications.
Martin Luther King Also Had a Nightmare
In honor of Martin Luther King Day, WhoWhatWhy presents — through a fascinating collection of pictures — a brief history of American racism, a look at the kind of hatred, atrocities, and soul-searing humiliation that spurred King into action. Rather than the stuff of dreams, much of it was a living nightmare. We first published this piece in 2015, but it remains more relevant than ever — because we seem to be going backwards. We want you to see, with your own eyes, just how ugly it can get.