Feds End Use of Private Prisons, but Questions Remain

Juleyka Lantigua-Williams The Atlantic
Consistent review of and changes to federal and state sentencing guidelines, more humane pre-trial bargaining by prosecutors of low-level offenders, increased used of probation instead of jail time, and a more judicious application of bail practices would do far more to reduce the incarcerated population.

Trump Casinos' Tax Debt Was $30 Million. Then Christie Took Office.

Russ Buettner The New York Times
But the year after Governor Christie, a Republican, took office, the tone of the litigation shifted. The state entertained settlement offers. And in December 2011, after six years in court, the state agreed to accept just $5 million, roughly 17 cents on the dollar of what auditors said the casinos owed.

Haecceity

Joshua Clover Red Epic
Haecceity is derived from a medieval philosophical word meaning the "property" of something that makes it unique to itself--in the case of Joshua Clover's poem, the meaning of the word and principle of "Revolution."

Did Slavery End in 1865?

Bryan Stevenson, founder of the Equal Justice Institute, talks about how slavery didn't just end in 1865, but how it evolved through Jim Crow, segregation and mass incarceration.

The First National Monument to Victims of Lynching

A dynamic new memorial to lynching victims seeks to inspire local efforts to make the history of racial terror in America more visible and tangible, challenging each county where a racial terror lynching took place to permanently install a memorial to the victim.

We Finally Know Who Forged Piltdown Man, One of Science’s Most Notorious Hoaxes

Sarah Kaplan The Washington Post
In 1953 scientists investigating Piltdown Man, an alleged "missing link" between modern humans and apes, concluded that it was a fake. But their investigation couldn't answer the question: Who had done it, and why? Many suspects have been proposed, but we now finally know the culprit in this long-standing mystery.

Why the Guns-on-Campus Debate Matters for American Higher Education

Steven J. Friesen The Conversation
Until this year, Texas law allowed anyone with a Concealed Handgun License to carry a loaded hidden gun on campus, but not inside buildings. As of Aug. 1, 2016, a new law allows concealed handguns in college and university buildings. We're about to find out what difference guns in the classroom make in the relationships of students, faculty and staff – and in the character of higher education.