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Articles on Abraham Lincoln

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A statue of Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States, sits in the Lincoln Memorial in Washington. Historians consistently have given Lincoln, the Great Emancipator, their highest rating because of his leadership during the Civil War. Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Presidential greatness is rarely fixed in stone – changing attitudes on racial injustice and leadership qualities lead to dramatic shifts

Historians change their views of presidents over time, often because of the country’s changing views on race and moral leadership.
Emancipation Day celebration, June 19, 1900, held in ‘East Woods’ on East 24th St. in Austin, Texas. Austin History Center

Juneteenth celebrates just one of the United States’ 20 emancipation days – and the history of how emancipated people were kept unfree needs to be remembered, too

Known as Juneteenth in Texas, Emancipation Days symbolized America’s attempt to free the enslaved across the nation. But those days were unable to prevent new forms of economic slavery.
Critics of President Joe Biden have accused him of lying. Most American presidents have been accused of deception. Win McNamee/Getty Images

All American presidents have lied – the question is why and when

A political philosopher argues that while all American presidents may lie, those who appear to lie for the public good are often celebrated.
The monument ‘Rumors of War’ depicts a young African American in urban streetwear sitting atop a horse. Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Old statues of Confederate generals are slowly disappearing – will monuments honoring people of color replace them?

With a few notable exceptions, public monuments across the United States are overwhelmingly white and male. A movement is slowly growing to tell a more inclusive history of the American experience.
The dining-out experience has changed as people wear masks and are separated by plexiglass in outdoor dining. Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

From haute cuisine to hot dogs: How dining out has evolved over 200 years – and is innovating further in the pandemic

The pandemic changed people’s dining-out experience, with takeout becoming more common. But since dining out became fashionable in the 18th century, how and where people go to eat has been evolving.
Abolitionist John Brown, left, and President Abraham Lincoln, right, were both moral crusaders. Hulton Archive/Getty Images & Stock Montage/Getty Images

John Brown was a violent crusader, but he blazed a moral path that the cautious Lincoln followed to end slavery

President Lincoln was a statesman. John Brown was a radical. That’s the traditional view of how each one fought slavery, but it fails to capture the full measure of their devotion.
Pro-Trump supporters, including Infowars host Alex Jones, hold a ‘Stop The Steal’ protest Wednesday in Atlanta as Georgia’s recount nears the end. Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images

Five reasons Trump’s challenge of the 2020 election will not lead to civil war

Much as the South rejected President Lincoln’s election with a massive armed uprising, could President Trump’s many supporters rise up and overthrow a Biden-led government?
This combination of Sept. 29, 2020, file photos show President Donald Trump, left, and former Vice President Joe Biden during the first presidential debate in Cleveland, Ohio. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

20/20 vision needed in 2020: How this U.S. election compares to other tumultuous votes

The U.S. presidential election is again serving as a symptom and a symbol of a troubled society. Whatever the outcome, history suggests anything but a quick resolution to deeply rooted problems.
Soldiers and African American workers standing near caskets and dead bodies covered with cloths during Grant’s Overland Campaign. Matthew Brady/Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division

1864 elections went on during the Civil War – even though Lincoln thought it would be a disaster for himself and the Republican Party

Lincoln’s chances of reelection in 1864 were dim. He was presiding over a bloody civil war, and the public was losing confidence in him. But he steadfastly rejected pleas to postpone the election.
Delegates after Donald Trump accepted the GOP presidential nomination at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio on Thursday, July 21, 2016. Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call/via Getty

Political conventions today are for partying and pageantry, not picking nominees

Political conventions used to pick presidential nominees in private. Now the public picks the nominee and then the party has a big party at the convention, writes a scholar of US elections.

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