Mason B. Williams @masonbwilliams.bsky.social · 15hJust a reminder that the concept of "Western civilization" developed in the late 19th century in the context of imperialism, the White Man's Burden, etc. Thirty years earlier Americans conceived of their country as being fundamentally different from Europe. 010
Mason B. Williams @masonbwilliams.bsky.social · 28/09/2026This is a useful, interesting article, but it's worth asking why we focus so narrowly when talking about educational inputs. Like, there's another version of this article where the "solutions" for U.S. education are stuff like stable, decent housing www.nytimes.com/2026/09/28/u...nytimes.com30 Ideas for Fixing U.S. Schools, Ranked by ExpertsMath and reading scores are in a decade-long slump. We asked three dozen experts: What could turn things around? 100
Reposted by Mason B. WilliamsDan Barry @danbarry58.bsky.social · 11/09/2026We all have memories of that day. Here's mine, from the perspective of an overwhelmed journalist. Take care, everyone. www.nytimes.com/interactive/...nytimes.comSept. 11 and the Persistence of Memory (Gift Article)Twenty-five years later, fleeting memories and indelible images still haunt those who lived through the attacks and their aftermath. 2186
Reposted by Mason B. WilliamsJake Grumbach @jakemgrumbach.bsky.social · 09/09/2026Here's the podcast & video from me, @adambonica.bsky.social, and Osita Nwanevu for @bostonreview.bsky.social. Fun conversation. www.bostonreview.net/articles/whi...bostonreview.netWhich Way, Democratic Party?A conversation on the primaries, the establishment’s “moderation” obsession, and why the party needs social movements more than spreadsheets and scammy fundraising. 13313
Mason B. Williams @masonbwilliams.bsky.social · 03/09/2026😢 www.nytimes.com/2026/09/02/a...nytimes.comCassandra Wilson, Star Jazz Singer, Dies at 70With a low and smoky voice, she conjured the blues tradition of her native Mississippi in both her own songs and in covers. 032
Reposted by Mason B. WilliamsDr. Jim Downs @jimdowns.bsky.social · 13/08/2026Glad to see that Johanna’s remarkable life will be preserved for posterity in The New York Times. www.nytimes.com/2026/08/12/u...nytimes.comJohanna Fernández, Historian of the Young Lords, Dies at 55She wrote an award-winning book about the leftist collective, a Latino counterpart to the Black Panthers. 042
Reposted by Mason B. WilliamsJulian Zelizer @zelizer.bsky.social · 31/07/2026substack.com/note/m-807fe... @masonbwilliams.bsky.social #TheLongViewsubstack.comHow did New York Become So Unequal? A Conversation with Mason Williams, author of City of Fortune: Inequality and the Making of Contemporary New YorkA recording from Julian Zelizer's live video 021
Reposted by Mason B. WilliamsJonathan W. Gray @elmcitytree.blacksky.app · 03/08/2026To honor Johanna Fernandez @jeannetheoharis.bsky.social & colleagues at Brooklyn College are founding a student activism award in her name. Johanna was an exemplary scholar activist, as her work on the Young Lords shows. Please direct inquiries to Jeanne. Link to donate below tinyurl.com/5b3j7s89 0147
Reposted by Mason B. WilliamsBobby Rivera @bobbyrivera21.bsky.social · 02/08/2026Johanna Fernandez—Presente! 0107
Mason B. Williams @masonbwilliams.bsky.social · 02/08/2026Johanna was an amazing scholar, a wonderful, generous person, and a force for justice in the world 💔 010
Reposted by Mason B. WilliamsPrisonculture @prisonculture.bsky.social · 31/07/2026I am stunned to hear of the passing of the fierce, brilliant and principled scholar activist Johanna Fernandez. Johanna's scholarship will endure. She was a gem and the world is worse for her no longer being here. Rest in power, comrade. 1326977
Mason B. Williams @masonbwilliams.bsky.social · 31/07/2026I'm joining @zelizer.bsky.social 's great Substack The Long View this morning to talk City of Fortune. Starts at 10:30 -- julianzelizer.substack.comjulianzelizer.substack.comThe Long View | Julian Zelizer | SubstackHave we ever seen this before? Let's put the news in perspective and take the long view with political historian Professor Julian Zelizer. Click to read The Long View, by Julian Zelizer, a Substack pu... 001
Mason B. Williams @masonbwilliams.bsky.social · 24/07/2026City of Fortune is a month old today! Thank you to everyone who has read it, hosted me to talk about it, or just been in touch. If you'd be interested in discussing the political history of neoliberalism in NYC (in class, on a podcast, in an interview -- anything!) please be in touch! 031
Reposted by Mason B. Williamsmelanie newport @melanienewport.bsky.social · 24/07/2026This Is My Jail, my history of Cook County Jail in Chicago and the role of jails in mass incarceration, is in the @pennpress.bsky.social Fall 2026 catalog. It’s out in paperback this December. www.pennpress.org/978151282349... 0209
Mason B. Williams @masonbwilliams.bsky.social · 08/07/2026A beautiful tribute to the great Mike Wallace by Peter-Christian Aigner, director of the Gotham Center (which Mike founded and guided) -- "Saying Goodbye to a Giant" 100
Mason B. Williams @masonbwilliams.bsky.social · 07/07/2026Some book news: -- I'll be on @thebrianlehrershow.bsky.social on @wnyc.org starting around 11:10 a.m. to discuss it -- The @nytimes.com review is out: www.nytimes.com/2026/07/07/b... This generous review focuses on the role of conservatives; the book discusses liberals & the left at equal lengthnytimes.comConservatives Tried to Fix New York City. Here’s What Happened. 071
Mason B. Williams @masonbwilliams.bsky.social · 23/06/2026My book is out today! City of Fortune tells the story of how, as it rebuilt after the 1970s, New York turned mid-century forms of inequality into contemporary ones -- and how NYers fought those transformations & preserved visions of a democratic city against great odds. wwnorton.com/books/978039...wwnorton.comCity of FortuneA powerful history of New York’s transformation from a city of middle-class aspiration to one of entrenched inequality., City of Fortune, Inequality and the Making of Contemporary New York, Maso... 4619
Mason B. Williams @masonbwilliams.bsky.social · 27/02/2026Twelve years later, the NYPD is still not in compliance with the court orders from Floyd v. New York, the lawsuit that found the city's stop-and-frisk practices unconstitutional (by @reuvenblau.bsky.social, @thecity.nyc) www.thecity.nyc/2026/02/26/n...thecity.nycNYPD Still Illegally Stopping New Yorkers 12 Years After Court Ruling, Monitor FindsIllegal stops, missing paperwork and weak discipline remain widespread despite federal oversight. 22513
Mason B. Williams @masonbwilliams.bsky.social · 07/11/2025I took a shot at placing Mamdani's victory in the long scope of New York City's political history -- in the most recent issue of @vitalcitynyc.bsky.social , alongside a bunch more essays by some really sharp people. www.vitalcitynyc.org/articles/a-n...vitalcitynyc.orgVital City | A New Era in New York City Political History?Putting Mamdani’s huge win in perspective — from La Guardia to today 073