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Amy J. Rutenberg

@amyjay401.bsky.social
5.2K followers 2.1K following 527 posts

Historian of War, Gender, and the Modern U.S. Author of Rough Draft: Cold War Military Manpower Policy and the Origins of Vietnam-Era Draft Resistance. Working on books on peace activism and the US military and on DADT. Former high school teacher.

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Reposted by Amy J. Rutenberg
Dr Paul Huddie @paulhuddie.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
My little babies also safely arrived. My sincerest thanks to my co-editors and to all our contributors #milwelfhist
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
Always nice to get a package with the culmination of a few years’ work. Military historians, come for the fun cover, stay for the opportunity to rethink who your work is in conversation with. 🗃️ @paulhuddie.bsky.social @emmahuddlestone.bsky.social @milwelfhist.bsky.social
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Ben Railton @americanstudier.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
The new school year is almost upon us, but summer isn’t quite done, & neither are the summer #ScholarSunday threads! Here’s my 290th of public scholarly writing & work, podcast episodes, new & forthcoming books from the past week. Add more below, share widely, & enjoy, all! 🗃️ +
blackwhiteandread.com
#ScholarSunday Thread 290 (8/23/26) – Black and White and Read All Over
The new school year is almost upon us, but summer isn’t quite done, & neither are the summer #ScholarSunday threads! Here’s my 290th of public scholarly writing & work, podcast episodes, new & forthco...
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
Thanks for sharing @herreramilhist.bsky.social! I’m proud to get this work out there, even if I need a better term than “military peace activism.” 😂🗃️ #milhist
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
For those not aware, social media feeds across the military are being shuttered or evaluated so that messaging can be more standardized. This message, from the official feed of the Department of War [sic], was approved. Let that sink in www.facebook.com/share/v/1LGf...
facebook.com
Facebook
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
Military history and adjacent folks, public access to DTIC has been discontinued. This is an incredible loss to anyone who studies the US military 🗃️ @modamhist.bsky.social @oah.org @afssage.bsky.social @warontherocks.bsky.social @taskandpurpose.com #milhist
Homepage of the Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC) showing how authorized personnel can gain access.
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Tressie McMillan Cottom @tressiemcphd.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
I will also say this. There is a real, authentic cohort of poor and working class people in higher education. They can speak to the complexities of being in and not of a class position without making broad, provocative generalizations. One day, someone should publish those people.
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Gregory A. Hargreaves @bordergroves.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
Numbers update: The history class I’m about to teach this semester has a 10% larger enrollment and university tuition is also 10% higher than two years ago. My class will generate about $160,000 of revenue for the university. My pay will be under $7K or approximately 4%. Humanities fund uni sport
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
“The Save Our Signs archive is this really valuable resource of a snapshot in time of what was happening in our country, and it can be used as a tool that people can use to try to understand the kind of censorship that was happening.” 🗃️ www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-i...
theguardian.com
The amateur archivists racing to save US history in national parks against Trump administration censorship
Save Our Signs aims to document every sign in the more than 400 national parks and historic sites across the country before the Trump administration removes them
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
This came across my FB feed for whatever reason, and in all seriousness, WTAF?
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Elizabeth N. Saunders @profsaunders.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
Can't get numb to this: The United States is stuck in a war it started, cannot end, and may further escalate to no avail, having dismantled its diplomatic apparatus, depleted its military stockpile, and destroyed its credibility. A historic strategic mistake harming millions in many different ways.
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
Four weeks away from home left an overwhelming pile of mail to sort upon homecoming. But this was a serious bright spot in the chaos. I struggled like hell to write my chapter, but I ended up with something I’m really proud of - and the company my chapter keeps cannot be beat. 🗃️
Cover of The Cambridge History of War and Society in America. List of chapters with mine on the history of conscription in the US in the middle of the page.
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
For the record, Army studies going all the way back to the 1950s(!) showed that LGB personnel neither undermined unit cohesion nor posed a security risk, not that lawmakers listened. Emotions are a powerful drug, especially, apparently, for male decision makers. taskandpurpose.com/news/ranger-...
taskandpurpose.com
Men at Ranger School face greater hormonal changes than women, study finds
Army researchers found that Ranger School had a greater impact on men's hormones and physiological responses than on women in the course.
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
This whole thing is pregnant with meaning (and yes, I said what I said). www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
theguardian.com
Pete Hegseth says soldiers over age 30 to be screened for testosterone deficiency
US defense secretary unveils plan that will work to ensure service members have the ‘right testosterone levels’
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Working Class History @workingclasshistory.com · 14/07/2026
#OtD 14 Jul 1966 3 US GIs refused an order to deploy to Vietnam and became the Fort Hood Three, the highest-profile US refuseniks to date. They were court-martialled and jailed but they helped spark an anti-war GI movement. More info in our podcast: workingclasshistory.com/podcast/e10-...
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 05/07/2026
Fireworks and storm clouds. Happy 250th, America.
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 01/07/2026
I'm honored to be a (small) part of this wonderful volume along with Emma, Anndal, and esp Paul. It connects often siloed fields & ideas. It’s pricey, but have your library get it & use of the idea of "Military Welfare History" in your work & join @milwelfhist.bsky.social 🗃️
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
I'm super biased, but this is a banger of a book (as academic edited collections go, anyway). Check out the amazing scholars who contributed to it and the nice thing reviewers have said here: kansaspress.ku.edu/9780700643530/. And while you're there, consider pre-ordering with the discount below. 🗃️
Flyer advertising a 30% discount for the book Conscription in the Twentieth Century: Coercion and Resistance in Global Perspective at the University Press of Kansas using the code 24rutenberg
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 20/06/2026
There is something visceral in the memories these evoke.
Picture of my feet in brown roller skates with orange wheels that are probably from 1985.
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
🗃️
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 13/06/2026
Bread is too expensive, so we’ve moved to the circus and circus stage of government.
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Joshua J. Friedman @joshuajfriedman.com · 12/05/2026
Instantly legendary thread
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
This semester I experimented with making my students print out their readings.I thought I’d get slammed in evals.In an anonymous survey, 24 of 25 students praised the policy. Reasons ranged from fewer headaches to easier to annotate to harder to forget to read to better retention.Long live paper. 🗃️🗺️
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
🗃️
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
I will make sure my student (who is in my class on the Vietnam War) who just got word he’s deploying knows we’re in a cease fire. Good thing he’s missing the last class where we’re discussing the War Powers Resolution. (Seriously. I couldn’t make this up)
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 28/04/2026
Cover reveal! I am beyond excited for this book. Contributions from an amazing array of scholars have come together into a banger of a book. Even if it feels far away, we should all be paying attention to the assumptions that underlie systems of conscription as well as the consequences. #milhist 🗃️
Cover for the book “Conscription in the Twentieth Century: Coercion and Resistance in Global Perspective,” edited by Amy J.Rutenberg, showing a line of early twentieth century Nicaraguan soldiers in semi profile from foreground to background.
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honor sachs @drhonor.bsky.social · 24/04/2026
This is obviously batshit on so many levels, but something particularly dystopian about the “you must skip that chapter of history” part.
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 13/04/2026
@warontherocks.bsky.social is a fantastic place to get cogent commentary. But also, I’m really appreciating the cogent nature of this headline - “Regime Change in Iran, Underpants Gnomes, and the Phase II Problem” warontherocks.com/regime-chang...
warontherocks.com
Regime Change in Iran, Underpants Gnomes, and the Phase II Problem
U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu started the Iran war off with a bang — not just the bang of bombs and rockets,
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Joshua J. Friedman @joshuajfriedman.com · 11/04/2026
Hello, I made you a feed of your cats watching the Artemis II splashdown bsky.app/profile/did:...
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Dr Paul Huddie @paulhuddie.bsky.social · 10/04/2026
Coming soon! My (and friends') new book: link.springer.com/book/9783032.... Enjoy #milwelfhist #military #welfare
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 10/04/2026
Teaching a course on the Vietnam War this semester has been crazy. Gulf of Tonkin Resolution the day after the bombing started; My Lai and the laws of war as the Commander in Chief threatens war crimes; and now this on the morning I’m teaching the GI Movement. 🗃️🗺️ www.npr.org/2026/04/10/n...
npr.org
There's growing disquiet in the military. The Iran war made it worse
Since Trump began his second term, his administration's use of the armed forces has left a growing number in the military unsettled, according to NPR interviews with service members and advocates.
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 09/04/2026
Beth Bailey, America’s Army Jennifer Mittelstadt, The Military Welfare State Brian Linn, Real Soldiering All top notch
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 09/04/2026
Cover reveal! Due out in September 🗃️
Cover for the book Military welfare History since the 18th century. Black and white etching of a nurse helping wounded soldiers on top and photo of a WWI canteen girl helping sailors below.
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 08/04/2026
Help #skystorians: a wonderful book came out a few years ago that connected the country music industry to the Vietnam war. I need to recommend it to a student, but for the life of me I can’t remember either the title or the author, and it’s not coming up in my scholar searches. What was it? 🗃️
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 04/04/2026
Biff and Buford wish everyone a happy #lego #caturday. But who is who?
A photo of two orange cats sitting upright on top of a refrigerator. The neon the left is a real cat and the one in the right is a Lego build.
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 03/04/2026
Excited for this wonderful collection to see the light of day. Fantastic work from all involved, especially @paulhuddie.bsky.social and @emmahuddlestone.bsky.social 🗃️
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 01/04/2026
Happy Passover to all who celebrate. This year, may we all find ways, large and small, to bring peace and freedom to those who most need it.
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Peter Johnston @peterajohnston.bsky.social · 28/03/2026
Yesterday I got to enjoy @meganahamilton.bsky.social's excellent paper on learning and innovation in the SWW. Today I'm listening to @milhistcurator.bsky.social , @mhptpodcast.bsky.social and @amyjay401.bsky.social on making military history accessible and connecting people with the past #SMH2026
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Paul Hansen @paulhans.bsky.social · 22/03/2026
As always, seriously great writing from Phil Klay. www.nytimes.com/2026/03/22/o...
nytimes.com
Opinion | Trump Has Made a Fundamental Miscalculation about Iran
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 22/03/2026
I read the ENTIRE Flowers in the Attic series. Child imprisonment, death, and incest. Somehow I managed to turn out okay. Let the readers read.
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 20/03/2026
I’ve only been affiliated with the National Women’s History Museum for a bit, but I believe in its mission of telling (in the words of Meryl Streep) “a history that is both truthful and complete.” Also, I’m now only one degree of separation from Ms. Streep 😁) www.womenshistory.org/news/meryl-s...
womenshistory.org
Meryl Streep Makes Seven-Figure Gift to Advance the Future of Women’s History
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 06/03/2026
Friday evening news drop: Iowa State department of history is hiring an Assistant Teaching Professor in Modern European History. 3/3 load, 3-year contract, possibility of renewal. Come be my colleague! 🗃️ isu.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/IowaStateJob...
isu.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com
Assistant Teaching Professor of History
Position Title: Assistant Teaching Professor of History Appointment Type: Faculty Job Description: The Department of History in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Iowa State University invite...
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 05/03/2026
Tonight’s pinprick of hope: This is only a fraction of the standing-room crowd at a protest-song fundraiser for the Iowa Migrant Movent for Justice in central Iowa. A cross-generational crowd on a Wednesday night, no less.
A large crowd of people looking toward a stage.
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Allison Gill @muellershewrote.com · 15/02/2026
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Eileen Clancy 🧿 @clancyny.bsky.social · 11/02/2026
Immigration attorney lets us know what's going on in Minnesota. Grim, indeed. Thread!
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 12/02/2026
Post-doc in civic education at Iowa State University. Come work with me. I have nothing to do with hiring for thisnposition, but I’d love to see someone with social studies teaching experience in it 🗺️🗃️ isu.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/IowaSt...
isu.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com
Postdoc Research Associate - Center for Cyclone Civics
Position Title: Postdoc Research Associate - Center for Cyclone Civics Appointment Type: Post Doc/Trainee Job Description: Summary of Duties and Responsibilities: Assist the leadership of the Center f...
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 08/02/2026
Another awesome research and teaching resource just gone 🗃️🗺️ www.npr.org/2026/02/07/n...
npr.org
The CIA World Factbook is dead. Here's how I came to love it
The Factbook survived the Cold War and became a hit online. It mixed quirky cultural notes and trivia with maps, data, and photos taken by CIA officers. But it was discontinued this week.
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 07/02/2026
This seems not great 🗃️ www.npr.org/2026/02/07/n...
npr.org
State Department will delete X posts from before Trump returned to office
The policy change orders the removal of any post made by official State Department accounts on X before President Trump returned to office in 2025.
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Dr. Natalie Mendoza @drmendozan.bsky.social · 01/02/2026
🗃️ CfP: Journal of American History Textbooks and Teaching section, 2027 (of which I am the new co-editor!). See image below as well as thread: We invite submissions for the March 2027 Textbooks and Teaching section of the Journal of American History. We are particularly interested in essays
Call for Papers: Journal of American History Textbooks and Teaching section, 2027 

We invite submissions for the March 2027 Textbooks and Teaching section of the Journal of American History.  We are particularly interested in essays that explore the way that graduate students are involved in teaching, especially at the college and university level.  

Possible questions to consider:

How do departments prepare students for the teaching they will do in graduate school—and beyond?  (And what might be ideal ways for preparing grad students for teaching?)

What are the most salient issues that graduate students experience as they perform the labor of teaching in an age of austerity and political intimidation?

Does teaching become more, or less, important to students’ professional hopes and commitments as they proceed through graduate school?  

We invite both graduate students themselves, as well as established scholars, to contribute essays.  Examples from American history would be best, but we understand that essays may well move beyond that boundary.

Essays should not exceed 4,000 words.  As usual, we are interested in analytical and evidence-based essays.  We will also consider personal narrative reflections on teaching. 

Deadline for an initial draft is June 1, 2026, with editorial work happening between then and October 15, 2026. Please send questions and contributions to Natalie Mendoza at natalie.mendozagutierrez@colorado.edu and Robert Johnston at johnsto1@uic.edu. We strongly encourage prospective authors to consult with the section editors on possible topics before submitting proposals.
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Amy J. Rutenberg @amyjay401.bsky.social · 29/01/2026
“In theater” - Minneapolis, I guess, is the Northern Front. We’re at war with ourselves.
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