rebellion — Bunk History

Illustrated person in prison garb running away from a burning prison.

Cold War Flames on US Soil: The Oakdale Prison Riot

In the 1980s, Cold War tensions led to thousands of Cubans languishing in American prisons, unable to be released or repatriated. Uprisings followed.

by Mark Atwood Lawrence, Antonio Matheus, Michael Welch, Ethan A. Klingsberg via JSTOR Daily on November 17, 2022

How a Series of Jail Rebellions Rocked New York—and Woke a City

It has been nearly 50 years since New York’s jails erupted in protest, but the lessons of that era feel more relevant than ever.

by Heather Ann Thompson via The Nation on March 21, 2019

Aerial view of Saint Helena Island.

“A Hot Dinner and a Bloody Supper”: St. Helena's Christmas Rebellions of 1783 and 1811

On this tiny British outpost, conditions of isolation and alcholism mixed with the era's revolutionary fervor to inspire a number of revolts.

by Felix Schürmann via Age of Revolutions on December 17, 2018

Yitzhak Rabin and Yassir Arafat shaking hands while Bill Clinton holds his arms around them at the Oslo Accords.

How the Oslo Accords Fragmented Palestine and Uprooted a People

Revisiting a turning point in the history of Israel’s occupation.

by Adam Hanieh, Robert Knox, Rafeef Ziadah via Literary Hub on August 27, 2025

Angel Oak is a Southern live oak tree located in Angel Oak Park, on Johns Island, one of South Carolina’s Sea Islands. It is estimated to be over 400 years old, and stands 65 feet tall, measuring 9 feet in diameter. Shade from its crown covers an area of 17,000 square feet. Its longest limb is 89 feet in length. he oak derives its name from the Angel estate, although local folklore told of stories of ghosts of former slaves would appear as angels around the tree. (slworking2, Flickr)

The Trees at the Center of Our History

From the Pequot War to the New Deal-era Civilian Conservation Corps, trees tell a living story.

by Paul Rosenbeg via Barn Raiser on August 25, 2025

An apartment building on fire.

Did Racial Capitalism Set the Bronx on Fire?

To some, the fires lit in New York in the late seventies signaled rampant crime; to others, rebellion. But maybe they were signs of something else entirely.

by Daniel Immerwahr via The New Yorker on August 18, 2025

A drawing of the Division Street uprising, depicting a barricade and Puerto Rican flags.

How Chicago's Division Street Rebellion Brought Latinos Together

In 1966, police shot a young Puerto Rican man. What followed created a blueprint for a new kind of solidarity.

by Felipe Hinojosa via Zócalo Public Square on August 13, 2025

A New Method of Macarony Making, as practised at Boston,” Carrington Bowles, London, October 12, 1774. (Museum of Fine Arts, Houston)

Ruling Rebels

How the Sons of Liberty became colonial power-brokers.

by Daniel Carrigy via Journal of the American Revolution on May 29, 2025

Attica after state police stormed the prison, 1971.

How Should We Remember Attica?

Orisanmi Burton’s "Tip of the Spear" uncovers the obscured and radical demands of the inmates who staged the 1971 prison uprising—a world without prisons.

by Charlotte Rosen via The Nation on May 26, 2025

Revolutionary War reenactors near Lexington, Massachusetts.

The King We Overthrew — and the King Some Now Want

Americans need to reconnect with their innate dislike of arbitrary rule.

by Philip Bump via Washington Post on April 17, 2025

Painting of Troops, an American Flag and Eagle.

Echoes of Lexington and Concord

The 250th anniversary of "the shot heard round the world" is a reminder of the rights the Patriots fought for.

by Richard Alan Ryerson via Law & Liberty on April 1, 2025

Painting of Casimir Pulaski on a horse in battle.

Discover the Short Life and Long Legacy of Casimir Pulaski

On the first Monday in March, Pulaski Day festivities at Chicago’s Polish Museum of America honored the “Father of American Cavalry,” 280 years after his birth.

by Eli Wizevich via Smithsonian on March 6, 2025

Meme of white Gen X voters in their ironic cynicism.

We Care a Lot: White Gen Xers and Political Nihilism

Since the 2024 election, liberals, progressives, and the left has been wringing our collective hands over why Trump won yet again.

by Mindy Clegg via 3 Quarks Daily on December 20, 2024

A painting of Congress Hall and the New Theater in colonial Philadelphia.

The Mutiny of 1783

America’s only successful insurrection.

by Andrew A. Zellers-Frederick via Journal of the American Revolution on November 19, 2024

The Fallen Angels on the Wing by Gustave Doré, a dark painting of angels falling from heaven.

The Political Afterlife of Paradise Lost

From white supremacists to black activists, readers have sought moral legitimacy in Milton’s epic poem.

by Lucy Hughes-Hallett via New Statesman on November 7, 2024

George Floyd protest

Reflections of the 60th Anniversary of Urban Uprisings in America

The media narrative used to discredit urban rebellions as violent betrayals of the civil rights movement has been attached to protests ever since.

by Heather Ann Thompson via Black Perspectives on October 17, 2024

Drawing of a classic pirate figure, wtih an earring, a tricorn hat, and a satchel, yelling orders at a crew while a ship burns in the background

Were Pirates Foes of the Modern Order—or Its Secret Sharers?

We’ve long viewed them as liberty-loving rebels. But it’s time to take off the eye patch.

by Daniel Immerwahr via The New Yorker on July 15, 2024

John Gast's 1872 painting "American Progress," in which Miss Columbia, a personification of the enlightening United States, is depicted leading pioneers over the western plains.

Two Years That Made the West

In a momentous couple of years, the young United States added more than a million square miles of territory, including Texas and California.

by Elliott West via American Heritage on July 3, 2024

Exterior of Attica Correctional Facility.

The “Long Attica Revolt”

The resistance inside prisons is an integral part of the struggle against white supremacy and for Black liberation beyond the walls.

by Robert J. Boyle via Against the Current on June 30, 2024

National Guard members deploy near the White House as peaceful protests are scheduled against police brutality and the death of George Floyd, on June 6, 2020 in Washington, D.C.

The Most Dangerous Law in America

The Insurrection Act is a nuclear bomb hidden in the United States code, giving presidents unimaginable emergency power. No President has abused it. Yet.

by Joseph Nunn via Democracy Journal on June 10, 2024

Éamon de Valera, shown between 1918 and 1920, around the time he escaped from prison. He later became prime minister and president of Ireland.

The New York-Born Politician Who Was Convicted, then Became President

Éamon de Valera was accused of attempting an armed uprising against the government. Then he made a daring jailbreak, and later became president of Ireland.

by George Bass via Retropolis on June 9, 2024

The first Congress in prayer.

The Bible in Revolutionary America

While Enlightenment philosophy may have influenced the wealthy Revolutionary elites, it was the Biblical worldview that prompted widespread resistance.

by Guy Chet via Starting Points on June 3, 2024

Marlon Brando on the set of 'One-Eyed Jacks,' 1961.

Brando Unmatched

The legendary actor left a mark in both film history and an industry fraught with self-regard.

by Giancarlo Sopo via The Dispatch on April 27, 2024

A bedroom decorated with Bob Marley merchandise and the Jamaican flag.

Bob Marley’s ‘Legend’ Is One of the Bestselling Albums Ever. But Does It Tell His Full Story?

After 40 years and more than 25 million copies sold, what story does ‘Legend’ tell us about Bob Marley and the people listening to it?

by Eric Ducker via The Ringer on February 14, 2024

Why the Long Shadow of Bush v. Gore Looms Over the Supreme Court’s Colorado Case

In the fight over keeping Trump’s name on the ballot, the 2000 decision is a warning but not a precedent.

by E. Tammy Kim via The New Yorker on February 7, 2024

Painting of the Mexican railway

On the Shared Histories of Reconstruction in the Americas

In the 19th century, civil wars tore apart the US, Mexico and Argentina. Then came democracy’s fight against reaction.

by Evan C. Rothera via Aeon on January 16, 2024

When Constitutional-Law Professors Fight

On the folly of relying on history to settle the debate over whether the Fourteenth Amendment should bar Trump from office.

by William Hogeland via Hogeland's Bad History on January 10, 2024

Martin Howard, left, and Stephen Hopkins came to opposing conclusions about their colonial British identities.

Two Colonists Had Similar Identities, But Only One Felt Compelled to Remain Loyal

What might appear to be common values about shared identities can serve not as a bridge but a wedge.

by Abby Chandler via The Conversation on January 4, 2024

Colonists boarding the ships and dumping the tea chests.

How the Boston Tea Party's 'Destruction of the Tea' Changed American History

Attacks on private property enraged Colonial leaders and the British public, hardening positions and ruling out compromise.

by Eliga Gould via The Conversation on December 13, 2023

The Boston Tea Party.

Why Some Founding Fathers Disapproved of the Boston Tea Party

While many Americans gushed about the effectiveness of the ‘Destruction of the Tea,’ others thought it went too far.

by Dave Roos via HISTORY on December 11, 2023

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