John O'Keefe
@johnokeefe.bsky.social
Historian of migration and citizenship at Ohio University Chillicothe - author of Stranger Citizens: Migrant Influence and National Power in the Early American Republic
I've been interviewed about our #unionization efforts at #ohiouniversity -- there's been LOTS of unionizing lately in Ohio! #OU discussion starts at 32:54 www.wosu.org/show/all-sid... #uaou #aaup #aft
Examining the rise in unionization among local organizations
The Columbus Dispatch is one of several local organizations whose employees are making an effort to unionize. We're talking about the factors pushing Columbus employees toward unionizing on this hour ...
www.wosu.org
January 14, 2026 at 9:43 PM
I've been interviewed about our #unionization efforts at #ohiouniversity -- there's been LOTS of unionizing lately in Ohio! #OU discussion starts at 32:54 www.wosu.org/show/all-sid... #uaou #aaup #aft
Reposted by John O'Keefe
Adding to the archaeology and history feeds 🏺🗃️!
Archaeologists, artists, and community historians are on the trail of Chinese American cowboys in Eastern Oregon!
www.instagram.com/reel/DTNyPwF...
www.instagram.com/reel/DTNyPwF...
OPB on Instagram: "How much do we know about Chinese cowboys?
A team of archaeologists led by @souashland Laboratory of Anthropology dug up workwear, spent ammo and food remains at the historic Stew...
476 likes, 15 comments - opbphoto on January 7, 2026: "How much do we know about Chinese cowboys?
A team of archaeologists led by @souashland Laboratory of Anthropology dug up workwear, spent ammo a...
www.instagram.com
January 12, 2026 at 8:25 PM
Adding to the archaeology and history feeds 🏺🗃️!
Reposted by John O'Keefe
Canton school district plans building closures and layoffs due to state, federal cuts
by Conor Morris
www.ideastream.org/education/20...
by Conor Morris
www.ideastream.org/education/20...
Canton school district plans building closures and layoffs due to state, federal cuts
The district says it's speeding up consolidation plans and cutting staff in response to state and federal government funding cuts.
www.ideastream.org
January 10, 2026 at 12:21 PM
Canton school district plans building closures and layoffs due to state, federal cuts
by Conor Morris
www.ideastream.org/education/20...
by Conor Morris
www.ideastream.org/education/20...
Also a story about a child flight from 1910 www.newspapers.com/article/chil... #ohiohistory #chillicothe #aviationhistory
Freddie Myers, flight in Dixon's airship, 1910.
Clipping found in Chillicothe Gazette published in Chillicothe, Ohio on 6/16/1910. Freddie Myers, flight in Dixon's airship, 1910.
www.newspapers.com
January 9, 2026 at 2:27 PM
Also a story about a child flight from 1910 www.newspapers.com/article/chil... #ohiohistory #chillicothe #aviationhistory
Also Katharine Wright, Wright sister was closely involved as well airandspace.si.edu/stories/edit...
Katharine Wright: The Wright Sister
Katharine Wright, younger sister of Wilbur and Orville Wright, played an important role in the early U.S. aviation industry.
airandspace.si.edu
January 9, 2026 at 2:18 PM
Also Katharine Wright, Wright sister was closely involved as well airandspace.si.edu/stories/edit...
And some #wrightbrothers materials, which are more broadly familiar compared to Tony Nassr
January 9, 2026 at 2:12 PM
And some #wrightbrothers materials, which are more broadly familiar compared to Tony Nassr
been working on my course syllabus for Ohio History and reviewing changes. Time for some early flight stuff
January 9, 2026 at 1:12 PM
been working on my course syllabus for Ohio History and reviewing changes. Time for some early flight stuff
Reposted by John O'Keefe
Excellent, clarifying piece on the (real) legal pathway that Minnesota has to prosecute the ICE agent who shot and killed a woman today.
No, federal agents do not have absolute immunity from start charges, no matter what the Trump administration claims.
No, federal agents do not have absolute immunity from start charges, no matter what the Trump administration claims.
Wrote a piece for @slate.com explaining that states have a long history of prosecuting federal officers when they allegedly use excessive force. Federal officers are only immune from such prosecutions when they act reasonably in carrying out lawful duties.
Minnesota Could Prosecute the ICE Shooter. Trump Can’t Pardon Him.
Shortly after an ICE officer shot and killed a woman in Minneapolis, city leaders began looking into whether the officer had violated state criminal law.
slate.com
January 8, 2026 at 12:25 AM
Excellent, clarifying piece on the (real) legal pathway that Minnesota has to prosecute the ICE agent who shot and killed a woman today.
No, federal agents do not have absolute immunity from start charges, no matter what the Trump administration claims.
No, federal agents do not have absolute immunity from start charges, no matter what the Trump administration claims.
Reposted by John O'Keefe
"Putin envisions a world in which a small group of imperialists loot their portions of the globe as they see fit. Trump has been envious of this model for a long time. He’s implementing it himself in the Western hemisphere."
- @cjcmichel.bsky.social
Oligarchs get a cut of the spoils of plunder.
- @cjcmichel.bsky.social
Oligarchs get a cut of the spoils of plunder.
Now that Trump says Venezuela will hand over 30-50 million barrels of oil, with proceeds of sales to be controlled by him, I want to reiterate: He's inviting our oligarchs to reap great riches by buying into his scheme of imperial hemispheric domination.
newrepublic.com/article/2049...
newrepublic.com/article/2049...
January 7, 2026 at 2:10 PM
"Putin envisions a world in which a small group of imperialists loot their portions of the globe as they see fit. Trump has been envious of this model for a long time. He’s implementing it himself in the Western hemisphere."
- @cjcmichel.bsky.social
Oligarchs get a cut of the spoils of plunder.
- @cjcmichel.bsky.social
Oligarchs get a cut of the spoils of plunder.
benfranklinsworld.com/episode-424-...
Andew Lawler
A Perfect Frenzy: A Royal Governor, His Black Allies, and the Crisis That Spurred the American Revolution #dunmore #americanrevolution
Andew Lawler
A Perfect Frenzy: A Royal Governor, His Black Allies, and the Crisis That Spurred the American Revolution #dunmore #americanrevolution
Episode 424: Andrew Lawler, Dunmore's Proclamation & the American Revolution in Virginia
In honor of the 250th anniversary of Lord Dunmore’s Proclamation and the American Revolution in Virginia, which he helped fuel.
benfranklinsworld.com
January 7, 2026 at 1:54 PM
benfranklinsworld.com/episode-424-...
Andew Lawler
A Perfect Frenzy: A Royal Governor, His Black Allies, and the Crisis That Spurred the American Revolution #dunmore #americanrevolution
Andew Lawler
A Perfect Frenzy: A Royal Governor, His Black Allies, and the Crisis That Spurred the American Revolution #dunmore #americanrevolution
Reposted by John O'Keefe
The always insightful Andrew Lawler brings the goods.
"The perplexing question is why Virginia’s patriot leaders would want to burn the leading city in their own colony....A major reason has little to do with tea or taxes and a lot to do with immigrants and race." ICYMI Andrew Lawler: www.thebulwark.com/p/the-bigges...
The Biggest Coverup of the American Revolution
The Declaration of Independence condemns King George III for having “burnt our towns.” But the British were not to blame for one of the war’s most infamous conflagrations.
www.thebulwark.com
July 7, 2025 at 12:13 AM
The always insightful Andrew Lawler brings the goods.
Reposted by John O'Keefe
Feed: "The American Scholar"
By: Andrew Lawler on Monday, November 24, 2025
By: Andrew Lawler on Monday, November 24, 2025
Patriot Acts
What Ken Burns gets wrong about the war that made America
theamericanscholar.org
November 24, 2025 at 10:32 AM
Feed: "The American Scholar"
By: Andrew Lawler on Monday, November 24, 2025
By: Andrew Lawler on Monday, November 24, 2025
Reposted by John O'Keefe
🚨NEW EPISODE🚨
I talked to @erichalsey.bsky.social of The Bulgarian History podcast about the First Bulgarian Empire and his book "State Builders from the Steppe"
Listen below ⬇️ or wherever you get your podcasts:
I talked to @erichalsey.bsky.social of The Bulgarian History podcast about the First Bulgarian Empire and his book "State Builders from the Steppe"
Listen below ⬇️ or wherever you get your podcasts:
Eric Halsey, "State Builders from the Steppe: A History of The First Bulgarian Empire" (This is RETHINK, 2025) - New Books Network
newbooksnetwork.com
November 15, 2025 at 6:13 PM
🚨NEW EPISODE🚨
I talked to @erichalsey.bsky.social of The Bulgarian History podcast about the First Bulgarian Empire and his book "State Builders from the Steppe"
Listen below ⬇️ or wherever you get your podcasts:
I talked to @erichalsey.bsky.social of The Bulgarian History podcast about the First Bulgarian Empire and his book "State Builders from the Steppe"
Listen below ⬇️ or wherever you get your podcasts:
I Have Avenged America: Jean-Jacques Dessalines and Haiti’s Fight for Freedom
by @juliagaffield.bsky.social #haitianhistory #revolutions #decolonization
newbooksnetwork.com/i-have-aveng...
by @juliagaffield.bsky.social #haitianhistory #revolutions #decolonization
newbooksnetwork.com/i-have-aveng...
I Have Avenged America: Jean-Jacques Dessalines and Haiti’s Fight for Freedom - New Books Network
newbooksnetwork.com
January 7, 2026 at 1:50 PM
I Have Avenged America: Jean-Jacques Dessalines and Haiti’s Fight for Freedom
by @juliagaffield.bsky.social #haitianhistory #revolutions #decolonization
newbooksnetwork.com/i-have-aveng...
by @juliagaffield.bsky.social #haitianhistory #revolutions #decolonization
newbooksnetwork.com/i-have-aveng...
Domination and Mobilization: The Rise and Fall of Political Parties in China's Republican Era #chinesehistory #ccp #kmt
Xiaobo Lü
newbooksnetwork.com/domination-a...
Xiaobo Lü
newbooksnetwork.com/domination-a...
Xiaobo Lü, "Domination and Mobilization: The Rise and Fall of Political Parties in China's Republican Era" (Cambridge UP, 2025) - New Books Network
newbooksnetwork.com
January 7, 2026 at 1:49 PM
Domination and Mobilization: The Rise and Fall of Political Parties in China's Republican Era #chinesehistory #ccp #kmt
Xiaobo Lü
newbooksnetwork.com/domination-a...
Xiaobo Lü
newbooksnetwork.com/domination-a...
The Bonds of Kinship in Dahomey: Portraits of West African Girlhood, 1720–1940
Jessica Catherine Reuther
newbooksnetwork.com/the-bonds-of... #africanhistory #womenshistory #historiesofchildhood #dahomey -- great analysis complicating understandings of bondage vs placement from an African context
Jessica Catherine Reuther
newbooksnetwork.com/the-bonds-of... #africanhistory #womenshistory #historiesofchildhood #dahomey -- great analysis complicating understandings of bondage vs placement from an African context
Jessica Catherine Reuther, "The Bonds of Kinship in Dahomey: Portraits of West African Girlhood, 1720–1940" (Indiana UP, 2025) - New Books Network
newbooksnetwork.com
January 7, 2026 at 1:48 PM
The Bonds of Kinship in Dahomey: Portraits of West African Girlhood, 1720–1940
Jessica Catherine Reuther
newbooksnetwork.com/the-bonds-of... #africanhistory #womenshistory #historiesofchildhood #dahomey -- great analysis complicating understandings of bondage vs placement from an African context
Jessica Catherine Reuther
newbooksnetwork.com/the-bonds-of... #africanhistory #womenshistory #historiesofchildhood #dahomey -- great analysis complicating understandings of bondage vs placement from an African context
time for a few podcast episodes
January 7, 2026 at 1:46 PM
time for a few podcast episodes
Reposted by John O'Keefe
Questions about how ICE hires + vets agents are under renewed scrutiny in Ohio after arrest of [Samuel Saxon,] a Cincinnati-based ICE supervisor, a case advocates said exposes gaps in background checks + internal oversight as agency rapidly expands workforce. www.msn.com/en-us/news/c... #AbolishICE
January 6, 2026 at 10:22 PM
Questions about how ICE hires + vets agents are under renewed scrutiny in Ohio after arrest of [Samuel Saxon,] a Cincinnati-based ICE supervisor, a case advocates said exposes gaps in background checks + internal oversight as agency rapidly expands workforce. www.msn.com/en-us/news/c... #AbolishICE
Reposted by John O'Keefe
New: I spoke with a Colombian asylum seeker who was the victim of a ‘Kavanaugh stop’ about what it was like to be racially profiled, abducted in front his family and held in ICE detention hours from home for more than a month—despite doing everything “the right way.”
This is Nick’s story.
This is Nick’s story.
The hell of being a target of a ‘Kavanaugh stop’
A Maryland man from Colombia describes his journey from detainment to incarceration—and miraculous freedom.
www.thehandbasket.co
January 7, 2026 at 1:05 PM
New: I spoke with a Colombian asylum seeker who was the victim of a ‘Kavanaugh stop’ about what it was like to be racially profiled, abducted in front his family and held in ICE detention hours from home for more than a month—despite doing everything “the right way.”
This is Nick’s story.
This is Nick’s story.
Reposted by John O'Keefe
"To start with, we should firmly reject the framing that there is some ‘right’ level of immigration. 'How many is too many?' is a favorite challenge of the nativists. It’s the wrong question."
“I want a progressive movement that is aggressively pro raising wages at the bottom and aggressively pro immigration. These are completely coherent goals.” Great piece by @polphilpod.bsky.social
www.liberalcurrents.com/we-need-to-g...
www.liberalcurrents.com/we-need-to-g...
We Need to Get Off The Defensive About Immigration
Free movement is a fantastic thing, and we should say it.
www.liberalcurrents.com
January 7, 2026 at 10:43 AM
"To start with, we should firmly reject the framing that there is some ‘right’ level of immigration. 'How many is too many?' is a favorite challenge of the nativists. It’s the wrong question."
Reposted by John O'Keefe
"I’m going to pause here just to review: an institution that purports to be a university has told a philosophy professor he is forbidden from teaching Plato."
surreal times
dailynous.com/2026/01/06/t...
surreal times
dailynous.com/2026/01/06/t...
Texas A&M Bans Plato - Daily Nous
Drop the race and gender material from your course and the Plato readings, or teach a different course. You have a day to decide. That's a paraphrase of what Martin Peterson, professor of philosophy a...
dailynous.com
January 7, 2026 at 10:36 AM
"I’m going to pause here just to review: an institution that purports to be a university has told a philosophy professor he is forbidden from teaching Plato."
surreal times
dailynous.com/2026/01/06/t...
surreal times
dailynous.com/2026/01/06/t...
Op-ed by legal scholar Steven Lubet
thehill.com/opinion/judi... #14thamendment #birthrightcitizenship #supremecourt 🗃️
thehill.com/opinion/judi... #14thamendment #birthrightcitizenship #supremecourt 🗃️
thehill.com
January 6, 2026 at 1:59 PM
Op-ed by legal scholar Steven Lubet
thehill.com/opinion/judi... #14thamendment #birthrightcitizenship #supremecourt 🗃️
thehill.com/opinion/judi... #14thamendment #birthrightcitizenship #supremecourt 🗃️
Reposted by John O'Keefe
QUERY FOR HISTORIANS (Not directly on preoccupying current events): I’m making tweaks to syllabi. I want to show students in a Craft of History class how to analyze academic articles (& talk about what AI summaries miss or mangle). What’s your favorite article, esp. in terms of compelling writing?
January 4, 2026 at 3:56 PM
QUERY FOR HISTORIANS (Not directly on preoccupying current events): I’m making tweaks to syllabi. I want to show students in a Craft of History class how to analyze academic articles (& talk about what AI summaries miss or mangle). What’s your favorite article, esp. in terms of compelling writing?
Reposted by John O'Keefe
Looking to understand the long history behind the US attack on Venezuela? Here are a few introductory-level reading recommendations from a professor and historian of US-Latin American Relations: (1/5)
🗃️ #history
1. Kyle Longley's "In the Eagle's Shadow: The United States and Latin America"
🗃️ #history
1. Kyle Longley's "In the Eagle's Shadow: The United States and Latin America"
January 4, 2026 at 5:20 PM
Looking to understand the long history behind the US attack on Venezuela? Here are a few introductory-level reading recommendations from a professor and historian of US-Latin American Relations: (1/5)
🗃️ #history
1. Kyle Longley's "In the Eagle's Shadow: The United States and Latin America"
🗃️ #history
1. Kyle Longley's "In the Eagle's Shadow: The United States and Latin America"
Reposted by John O'Keefe
🗃️ The US attracted more foreign-born people from more places than any other nation in history. We need language to acknowledge that central fact of American history. But we also need language that goes beyond the idea that the United States is, or ever was, simply a “nation of immigrants.” 🧵1/10
January 2, 2026 at 4:12 PM
🗃️ The US attracted more foreign-born people from more places than any other nation in history. We need language to acknowledge that central fact of American history. But we also need language that goes beyond the idea that the United States is, or ever was, simply a “nation of immigrants.” 🧵1/10