Articles tagged as Politics | Smithsonian Magazine

The slogan “unbought and unbossed” appeared on Chisholm’s campaign posters, one of which resides in the collections of the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

‘Unbought and Unbossed’: When a Black Woman Ran for the White House

The congresswoman tried to win the White House by consolidating the Black vote and the women’s vote, but she ran into trouble

April 25, 2016

Two state officials and a city employee are the first to be charged in connection with the Flint water crisis

April 21, 2016

In 1781, Arnold ordered British troops to burn New London, Connecticut.

Why Benedict Arnold Turned Traitor Against the American Revolution

The story behind the most famous betrayal in U.S. history shows the complicated politics of the nation’s earliest days

May 2016

The split in the Whig party over slavery spelled its doom.

History of Now

What Can the Collapse of the Whig Party Tell Us About Today’s Politics?

Is the Republican party on the verge of catastrophe? Probably not, if history is any indicator

April 12, 2016

Jackson was the first candidate who successfully ran an anti-establishment presidential campaign

History of Now

Andrew Jackson, America’s Original Anti-Establishment Candidate

The seventh president raged against many of the same machines that are now engulfing this year’s election

March 31, 2016

Verona, the home of Romeo and Juliet, is preventing new eateries from opening that primarily serve kebabs, gyros and fried food

March 4, 2016

The country could drop the Union Jack in favor of a design with a more distinctive national symbol

March 3, 2016

Upton Sinclair, noted author and Democratic nominee for Governor, pictured speaking to a group in his campaign headquarters shortly after his arrival in Los Angeles.

Upton Sinclair Was a Socialist Candidate Who Succeeded Through Failure

The author’s 1934 bid to govern California came up short, but left a lasting mark on politics

March 1, 2016

Campaign collections include boxes of Macaroni and Cheese for both parties.

What Ten Artifacts from the Smithsonian Collections Can Tell Us About the Crazy History of American Politics

A massive collection of campaign materials dating from 1789 reveals that little has changed in how America shows its affection for their candidate

February 22, 2016

Little accent, big debate

February 18, 2016

Dissident artist Pyotr Pavlensky appears at Moscow's Tagansky District Court on suspicion of vandalism.

Judges walk out in support of the provocative performance artist

February 18, 2016

Former Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Thomas Peter Lantos (D-Calif.) and his poodle, Gigi.

The government will stop using taxpayer dollars to immortalize lawmakers in the traditional fashion

February 11, 2016

Cool Finds

44 Years Ago, Shirley Chisholm Became the First Black Woman to Run For President

Chisholm saw her campaign as a necessary “catalyst for change”

January 29, 2016

Cool Finds

The First Person of Native American Descent Was Elected to the U.S. Senate 109 Years Ago Today

Charles Curtis, who would go on to become Herbert Hoover’s vice president, left behind a problematic legacy

January 29, 2016

Iranian men play a soccer video game at a CD shop in Tehran June 10, 2006.

Cool Finds

Inside Iran’s Budding Video Game Industry

The Iranian video game industry, shaped around piracy and economic sanctions, is slowly growing

January 21, 2016

Could Pop-Up Social Spaces at Polls Increase Voter Turnout?

Placemaking the Vote, one of the finalists in the Knight Cities Challenge, wants people to hang out at their polling places

January 13, 2016

The official seal of the village of Whitesboro, New York.

It’s a story that might as well have been ripped from a plotline on “Parks and Recreation”

January 12, 2016

The first hydrogen bomb was detonated by the United States in a test over the Marshall Islands in 1952.

Why North Korea’s alleged nuclear test is drawing skepticism and fear alike

January 6, 2016

The archway of the Temple of Bel in Palmyra will be recreated in New York City and London.

A surviving archway from Palmyra will be recreated as a symbol of defiance

December 30, 2015

Excerpt from the "Executive Coloring Book" by Brenda Jackson, Dennis Altman, Marcie Hans, Martin A. Cohen, and Ronald L. McDonald, published in 1961.

Cool Finds

Adult Coloring Books Were Popular (and Subversive) in the 1960s

Coloring books made fun of corporate culture, conspiracy theorists and Communist fears

December 29, 2015