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Jurretta Heckscher

@jurretta.bsky.social

540 followers 1.1K following 200 posts

Cultural historian & writer; ret. Early American Specialist, Main Reading Rm., Lib. of Congress. Orthodox Christian; politics follow Matt. 25:31-46. Lover of arts & natural world (N. America & Brit. Isles). Stop climate change, or little else will matter.

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Jurretta Heckscher @jurretta.bsky.social · Jun 27

Watching the Supreme Court since 2020 is like watching an iceberg under climate change: a process of slow, inexorable melting that inevitably ends in a succession of catastrophic collapses as great chunks fall away into the sea: until the edifice itself is unrecognizably diminished, or disappears.

Jurretta Heckscher @jurretta.bsky.social · 21h

When I celebrated those terrific Atlantic articles yesterday, I neglected to give the Bluesky names for the authors who have them. They are: Clint Smith, @clintsmithiii.bsky.social; and Annette Gordon-Reed,
@agordonreed.bsky.social
Follow them!

Jurretta Heckscher @jurretta.bsky.social · 1d

(4) best of all, Annette Gordon-Reed’s brilliantly expansive analysis of what Black Americans have made of the American Revolution, which deserves to be a reference text for all our commemorations in the year to come: www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...

Whose Independence?

The question of what Jefferson meant by “all men” has defined American law and politics for too long.

www.theatlantic.com

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Jurretta Heckscher @jurretta.bsky.social · 1d

www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...

The Many Lives of Eliza Schuyler

She lived for 97 years. Only 24 of them were with Alexander Hamilton.

www.theatlantic.com

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Jurretta Heckscher @jurretta.bsky.social · 1d

(3) Clint Smith’s probing, painful, utterly necessary illumination of the Black presence in Colonial Williamsburg, past and present, www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...

What Is Colonial Williamsburg For?

Telling the full story of the town’s past is an easy way to make a lot of people mad.

www.theatlantic.com

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Jurretta Heckscher @jurretta.bsky.social · 1d

(2) Jane Kamensky’s review of Amanda Vaill’s new biography of the Schuyler sisters (yes, those Schuyler sisters), which moves out from the book to a searching appraisal of women’s history;

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Jurretta Heckscher @jurretta.bsky.social · 1d

(1) Brilliant, wide-angled insights into Revolutionary-era American history and its meanings just out in the November issue of The Atlantic @theatlantic.com. Three pieces in particular stand out:

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Jurretta Heckscher @jurretta.bsky.social · 3d

I’m a lifelong Phillies fan.
There is only one piece of writing I want to read tonight, and it is this:
mason.gmu.edu/~rmatz/giama...

Giamatti: The Green Fields of the Mind

Joan Daugherty's personal home page.

mason.gmu.edu

Jurretta Heckscher @jurretta.bsky.social · 3d

This: “Why This Essay Could Cause the University of Virginia to Shut Down” newrepublic.com/article/2013... via @newrepublic.com

Why This Essay Could Cause the University of Virginia to Shut Down

How Linda McMahon’s latest “compact” would do deep and permanent harm to American higher education

newrepublic.com

Reposted by Jurretta Heckscher

Scientific American @sciam.bsky.social · 10d

Earth has breached a critical boundary for ocean acidification, with potentially grim effects for ocean ecosystems and human livelihoods

Humans Just Pushed Earth across Another 'Planetary Boundary'

Earth has breached a critical boundary for ocean acidification, with potentially grim effects for ocean ecosystems and human livelihoods

www.scientificamerican.com

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Reposted by Jurretta Heckscher

This Day (A History Podcast) @thisdaypod.com · 16d

Announcing a good ol’ fashioned Teach-In in Washington, DC on Sunday, October 26th.

We’ll convene for a series of lectures, stories, and conversations to celebrate and stand up for the work of history and museums.

Shoutout to @natedimeo.bsky.social for bringing this idea to us.

See you in DC!

A poster announcing a teach-in in washington DC.

Sunday, October 26th - Sunup to Sundown
Washington, DC - The National Mall
“AMERICA’S FRONT YARD”

FEATURING KELLIE CARTER JACKSON, NICOLE HEMMER, DEREK MUSGROVE, NATE DIMEO, TRESSIE MCMILLAN COTTOM, AMANDA SEALES, JODY AVIRGAN, JAMES FALLOWS, MARTHA JONES, MARCIA CHATELAIN, PAUL BUTLER, NATHAN CONNOLLY, AND MORE

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Reposted by Jurretta Heckscher

Holly Brewer @earlymodjustice.bsky.social · 22d

Strongly recommend the “Two Georges” exhibition at the Library of Congress.
It includes original material on loan from the Royal Archives. Here
George III writing in response to the act of association from Congress, September 11, 1774: “The dye is now cast.”

George III to Lord North, his prime minister. September 11, 1774.
In response to the petition from Congress.
“The dye is now cast. The colonists must either submit or triumph.
I do not wish to come to severer measures but we must not retreat…”
Lent by His majesty Charles III to the Library of Congress for the “Two Georges” exhibit. Photo by Holly Brewer 9/19/2025

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Jurretta Heckscher @jurretta.bsky.social · 27d

Do you have cancer, or know someone who does? Then please read this free article— and call your Congressional reps., particularly if they’re Republicans. They’re the only ones who can stop the needless suffering and death that otherwise lie ahead for so many of us.

www.nytimes.com/2025/09/14/m...

Trump Is Shutting Down the War On Cancer

www.nytimes.com

Jurretta Heckscher @jurretta.bsky.social · Sep 7

An awful idea. Why can’t conservatives handle historical truth?
www.npr.org/2025/09/03/n...

'Founders Museum' from White House and PragerU blurs history, AI-generated fiction

Historians say it's good to highlight America's founders, but the project takes too narrow a view of history.

www.npr.org

Jurretta Heckscher @jurretta.bsky.social · Aug 25

One of the most beautiful buildings on Earth. So gratifying to learn about the dedication and ingenuity with which it’s being repaired by a group of skilled workers, some of them from the local community. (Free article.)
wapo.st/4oRuxjd

Inside the $7M project to save Frank Lloyd Wright’s iconic masterpiece

Inside the three-year, $7 million project to keep water out of the 1930s home designed by the legendary architect and built atop a waterfall.

wapo.st

Reposted by Jurretta Heckscher

Alexander S. Vindman @avindman.bsky.social · Aug 24

Today, marks Ukraine’s 34 Independence Day. It’s the third since the start of the full-scale war and 12th since the Russia-Ukraine War started in 2014.

It’s both a somber and joyful day because for centuries the Ukrainian people have struggled for independence.

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Reposted by Jurretta Heckscher

Lev Parikian @levparikian.bsky.social · Aug 22

Please enjoy the absolute perfection of the egg of the Common Ringed Plover

It’s light brown/fawn in colour, with apparently randomly placed black speckling. Gently curved at the bottom, rising to a more pointed tip.

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Jurretta Heckscher @jurretta.bsky.social · Aug 24

“Look what the cat dragged in” (by the great Michael de Adder, North America’s finest cartoonist):
open.substack.com/pub/deadder/...

Look what the cat dragged in

The Globe and Mail

open.substack.com

Jurretta Heckscher @jurretta.bsky.social · Aug 23

Heh. Not much a fan of the genre myself, but the Censorious Ones clearly have *no idea* what they’re messing with here!

Reposted by Jurretta Heckscher

Thor Benson @thorbenson.bsky.social · Aug 15

[writing the constitution]

Benjamin Franklin: Write down "no dumb fucks as president"

Alexander Hamilton: Stop saying that

Benjamin Franklin: I'm tellin' you. You're gonna regret not writing that down

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Jurretta Heckscher @jurretta.bsky.social · Aug 23

(Link above does not require a Times subscription.)

Jurretta Heckscher @jurretta.bsky.social · Aug 23

Stunning review of what’s clearly a stunning new James Baldwin biography. Can’t wait to read it, though I expect it will break my heart:

www.nytimes.com/2025/08/19/b...

A Tender New Biography Emphasizes James Baldwin’s Romantic Side

www.nytimes.com

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Reposted by Jurretta Heckscher

FoodLab Detroit @foodlabdetroit.bsky.social · Jul 11

Originally, we were going to watch Peggy walk a narrow path. Dr. Erica Dunbar & I were able to be like: “We have an opportunity to show something that’s never been onscreen. We have to widen this lens.” Now we have a robust Black cast on this show. We have Black writers; we have so much richness!

‘The Gilded Age’ Enriches Its Portrait of Black High Society

www.nytimes.com

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Jurretta Heckscher @jurretta.bsky.social · Aug 12

Sorry to hear that! I’ll be sure to track it down otherwise.

Jurretta Heckscher @jurretta.bsky.social · Aug 12

Annette, is this part of the Sept.-Oct. issue of historians’ essays that David Blight put together? If so, it’s not on store shelves yet, but I know I’m among many who are eagerly awaiting its appearance. Thanks for letting us know your work is included!

Jurretta Heckscher @jurretta.bsky.social · Aug 8

A must-read!

David Blight @dblight.bsky.social · Aug 7

See new essays in New Republic. I have gathered and edited eleven essays by historians on teaching and writing history in the time of Trump. We are fighting back! I'll be on MSNBC's Lawrence O'Donnell tonight at 10 to talk about the special issue of TNR.
newrepublic.com/series/67/tr...

Trump Against History

How is Trump changing our sense of who we are? We asked eminent Yale historian David W. Blight to round up some colleagues to consider the question. Here’s what they had to say.

newrepublic.com