Caleb Smith
@smithcal.bsky.social
Historian, Professor at Hamilton College (all views and opinions expressed are mine alone), PhD, writing about the neoliberal shift of Black politics in Chicago from 1929 to 1994, race, class, and 20th century U.S. political history. he\him\his
Reposted by Caleb Smith
The results are finally in: Here are the winners (all tied for first place) in the contest for Best Halloween Costume of 2026!
November 2, 2026 at 10:45 PM
The results are finally in: Here are the winners (all tied for first place) in the contest for Best Halloween Costume of 2026!
Reposted by Caleb Smith
BREAKING: SCOTUS just DENIED DOJ's request to set aside 20,000 CA mail ballots, so the count goes on
A district court, the 9th Circuit & now the full Court have all said no
@democracydefendersfund.org & partners have stood w/LULAC & NAACP at every step, & we'll keep at it as the case continues -TN
A district court, the 9th Circuit & now the full Court have all said no
@democracydefendersfund.org & partners have stood w/LULAC & NAACP at every step, & we'll keep at it as the case continues -TN
November 2, 2026 at 11:01 PM
BREAKING: SCOTUS just DENIED DOJ's request to set aside 20,000 CA mail ballots, so the count goes on
A district court, the 9th Circuit & now the full Court have all said no
@democracydefendersfund.org & partners have stood w/LULAC & NAACP at every step, & we'll keep at it as the case continues -TN
A district court, the 9th Circuit & now the full Court have all said no
@democracydefendersfund.org & partners have stood w/LULAC & NAACP at every step, & we'll keep at it as the case continues -TN
Reposted by Caleb Smith
Reminded by a Chinese colleague on Friday that Jane Wu remains on the minds of many international researchers in the US. NIH investigated Wu for being Chinese, but no charges emerged. Her employer, Northwestern, barred Wu from working and forcibly hospitalized her. She died of suicide shortly after.
After Northwestern scientist questioned for China ties died by suicide, family sues and speaks out
Jane Wu was never charged with any wrongdoing, and her family is still outraged that her lab was shut down "without explanation," they say.
www.nbcnews.com
November 2, 2026 at 7:39 PM
Reminded by a Chinese colleague on Friday that Jane Wu remains on the minds of many international researchers in the US. NIH investigated Wu for being Chinese, but no charges emerged. Her employer, Northwestern, barred Wu from working and forcibly hospitalized her. She died of suicide shortly after.
Reposted by Caleb Smith
worth remembering that a large part of the black voting electorate is what you might call the first VRA generation — people who would have been the first in their families to turn 18 with the actual right to vote — and that their parents/grandparents lived through jim crow
yeah, so, i think Bluesky may be kind of structurally blind to exactly how mad the organs of Black politics in the South are right now
November 1, 2026 at 11:58 PM
worth remembering that a large part of the black voting electorate is what you might call the first VRA generation — people who would have been the first in their families to turn 18 with the actual right to vote — and that their parents/grandparents lived through jim crow
Purple Rain
Gun to your head, name a song that’s over 6 minutes long.
November 2, 2026 at 9:41 PM
Purple Rain
Reposted by Caleb Smith
Reposted by Caleb Smith
PAXTON: Tell your friends the difference between me and James Talarico
AUDIENCE MEMBER: Paxton, you take bribes!
AUDIENCE MEMBER: Paxton, you take bribes!
October 31, 2026 at 5:03 PM
PAXTON: Tell your friends the difference between me and James Talarico
AUDIENCE MEMBER: Paxton, you take bribes!
AUDIENCE MEMBER: Paxton, you take bribes!
Reposted by Caleb Smith
dude, a legion of Democratic consultants fail to see the thing that even Bill Kristol understands is happening
I hear Dem operatives going on about how kitchen table issues matter. They do. But why the huge and disproportionate surge in black and Latino turnout? Surely it has to do with assaults on civil rights and immigrants. Democracy may not matter much to Dem operatives; it matters to lots of Dem voters.
November 1, 2026 at 10:02 PM
dude, a legion of Democratic consultants fail to see the thing that even Bill Kristol understands is happening
Reposted by Caleb Smith
I love this message & think most of us understand that we’ve got to lean into the people, networks, & communities supportive of liberation.
Tbh this is why I support moving away from the restrictive & radicalized language of patriotism & towards one of solidarity.
Tbh this is why I support moving away from the restrictive & radicalized language of patriotism & towards one of solidarity.
DNC Black Caucus Chair: “MI Democrats are proud to stand behind Abdul El-Sayed as our nominee for U.S. Senate and in two days we will elect him to serve us in Washington.
We are dismayed that Haley Stevens has revealed herself to be a sellout who used Black Michiganders for a political stunt.”
We are dismayed that Haley Stevens has revealed herself to be a sellout who used Black Michiganders for a political stunt.”
November 1, 2026 at 6:44 PM
I love this message & think most of us understand that we’ve got to lean into the people, networks, & communities supportive of liberation.
Tbh this is why I support moving away from the restrictive & radicalized language of patriotism & towards one of solidarity.
Tbh this is why I support moving away from the restrictive & radicalized language of patriotism & towards one of solidarity.
Reposted by Caleb Smith
it's fucking wild. if Abdul El-Sayed was a white dude named Adam Stevenson none of this would be happening.
November 1, 2026 at 7:03 PM
it's fucking wild. if Abdul El-Sayed was a white dude named Adam Stevenson none of this would be happening.
Reposted by Caleb Smith
Haley Stevens campaigning with Mike Rodgers shows once again that Clyburn has a bad picker.
And it shows that the young Black voters know what they're doing.
I'm old enough to still remember his positives.👴🏿
But there's an age chasm among Black voters, below which reverence for Clyburn evaporates.
And it shows that the young Black voters know what they're doing.
I'm old enough to still remember his positives.👴🏿
But there's an age chasm among Black voters, below which reverence for Clyburn evaporates.
🤯El-Sayed has 28.2% of the Black vote already?! After they flew in Clyburn, and spent the better part of $50M on attack ads?
28%?!
Stevens is cooked.
28%?!
Stevens is cooked.
A new Emerson College Polling/WLNS/WOODTV survey of the Michigan Democratic Primary for US Senate finds Abdul El-Sayed leading Rep. Haley Stevens, 54% to 39%.
emersoncollegepolling.com/michigan-202...
emersoncollegepolling.com/michigan-202...
November 1, 2026 at 5:33 PM
Haley Stevens campaigning with Mike Rodgers shows once again that Clyburn has a bad picker.
And it shows that the young Black voters know what they're doing.
I'm old enough to still remember his positives.👴🏿
But there's an age chasm among Black voters, below which reverence for Clyburn evaporates.
And it shows that the young Black voters know what they're doing.
I'm old enough to still remember his positives.👴🏿
But there's an age chasm among Black voters, below which reverence for Clyburn evaporates.
Reposted by Caleb Smith
It's Hard Women, Hard War's publication day! I'm so excited to restore southern women to their central role in the U.S. Civil War 1/3
November 1, 2026 at 5:14 PM
It's Hard Women, Hard War's publication day! I'm so excited to restore southern women to their central role in the U.S. Civil War 1/3
Reposted by Caleb Smith
Juan Atkins, a trailblazing Detroit producer who co-founded techno music, has died at 64
Juan Atkins, Co-Founder of Techno Music, Dies at 64
The Detroit producer and DJ pioneered the genre as a solo artist and member of the Belleville Three, Cybotron, and Borderland
pitchfork.com
November 1, 2026 at 4:19 PM
Juan Atkins, a trailblazing Detroit producer who co-founded techno music, has died at 64
Reposted by Caleb Smith
THIS is local reporting: factchecking voting precincts county by county, precinct by precinct. We’re still finding errors.
Stste says it’s up to counties, and counties point to the state. This lack of responsibility and passing the buck threatens local democracy.
👏👏👏 @ashtonpittman.bsky.social
Stste says it’s up to counties, and counties point to the state. This lack of responsibility and passing the buck threatens local democracy.
👏👏👏 @ashtonpittman.bsky.social
Amid a high-profile U.S. Senate race Tuesday, some Mississippi voters could still be sent to the wrong location on Election Day in 18 precincts due to erroneous addresses and outdated information that remained in the state's elections database on Saturday.
buff.ly/Hsa0A0y
buff.ly/Hsa0A0y
Mississippi Election System Errors Could Send Voters to the Wrong Place on Election Day
Some Mississippi voters could be sent to the wrong location on Election Day at multiple polling places due to errors in the state system.
buff.ly
November 1, 2026 at 11:50 AM
THIS is local reporting: factchecking voting precincts county by county, precinct by precinct. We’re still finding errors.
Stste says it’s up to counties, and counties point to the state. This lack of responsibility and passing the buck threatens local democracy.
👏👏👏 @ashtonpittman.bsky.social
Stste says it’s up to counties, and counties point to the state. This lack of responsibility and passing the buck threatens local democracy.
👏👏👏 @ashtonpittman.bsky.social
Reposted by Caleb Smith
Goodnight Blue Sky. Happy Halloween
October 31, 2026 at 9:32 PM
Goodnight Blue Sky. Happy Halloween
Reposted by Caleb Smith
Democrats have filed a lawsuit in Alaska accusing election officials of failing to properly operate at least 18 rural polling locations. The complaint warns that several thousand voters across predominantly Alaska Native communities face disenfranchisement. trib.al/w62mYIa
October 31, 2026 at 9:06 PM
Democrats have filed a lawsuit in Alaska accusing election officials of failing to properly operate at least 18 rural polling locations. The complaint warns that several thousand voters across predominantly Alaska Native communities face disenfranchisement. trib.al/w62mYIa
Reposted by Caleb Smith
HOLY SHIT
MALCOLM MCDOWELL SAID "TRANS RIGHTS"
AND SO MUCH MORE
AHHHHH I AM CRYING
MALCOLM MCDOWELL SAID "TRANS RIGHTS"
AND SO MUCH MORE
AHHHHH I AM CRYING
October 31, 2026 at 7:16 PM
HOLY SHIT
MALCOLM MCDOWELL SAID "TRANS RIGHTS"
AND SO MUCH MORE
AHHHHH I AM CRYING
MALCOLM MCDOWELL SAID "TRANS RIGHTS"
AND SO MUCH MORE
AHHHHH I AM CRYING
I still love the Twilight Zone short, I of Newton. Both Ron Glass and Sherman Hemsley are tremendous in it. And the constantly changing shirt on Glass' demon is a nice touch. Halloween tradition for me. www.youtube.com/watch?v=BoQ6...
Twiligtht Zone ,I of Newton
YouTube video by Ray McDonough
www.youtube.com
October 31, 2026 at 9:09 PM
I still love the Twilight Zone short, I of Newton. Both Ron Glass and Sherman Hemsley are tremendous in it. And the constantly changing shirt on Glass' demon is a nice touch. Halloween tradition for me. www.youtube.com/watch?v=BoQ6...
Reposted by Caleb Smith
Marcia Ann Gillespie, the visionary magazine editor who led ESSENCE and Ms. magazines, has died. She was 82 years old
Marcia Ann Gillespie, trailblazing ESSENCE magazine editor and activist, has died
Under her leadership, ESSENCE grew into one of the most well-read women’s magazines in the country.
www.whatimreading.net
October 31, 2026 at 3:53 PM
Marcia Ann Gillespie, the visionary magazine editor who led ESSENCE and Ms. magazines, has died. She was 82 years old
Reposted by Caleb Smith
The US Dept. of Education abruptly cut off funding for a Wisconsin program that funds campus childcare centers and covers 75-95% of care costs for student parents at state schools. This will almost certainly force parents (and especially mothers) out of college.
civicmedia.us/news/2026/10...
civicmedia.us/news/2026/10...
Federal child care funding loss leaves Wisconsin student parents scrambling to stay in school
The federal government declined to award grants that have long helped Wisconsin technical college students pay for child care while they complete their degrees. Now, student parents are enrolling in f...
civicmedia.us
October 31, 2026 at 4:05 PM
The US Dept. of Education abruptly cut off funding for a Wisconsin program that funds campus childcare centers and covers 75-95% of care costs for student parents at state schools. This will almost certainly force parents (and especially mothers) out of college.
civicmedia.us/news/2026/10...
civicmedia.us/news/2026/10...
Reposted by Caleb Smith
If you're a reporter pretending that the Dan Sullivan thing in Alaska is somehow (1) unprecedented, (2) illegal and/or (3) scandalous in any way, I'm never going to waste a moment reading a fucking word you write again.
You're revealing that you're a stenographer at best and a con artist at worst.
You're revealing that you're a stenographer at best and a con artist at worst.
October 31, 2026 at 4:28 PM
If you're a reporter pretending that the Dan Sullivan thing in Alaska is somehow (1) unprecedented, (2) illegal and/or (3) scandalous in any way, I'm never going to waste a moment reading a fucking word you write again.
You're revealing that you're a stenographer at best and a con artist at worst.
You're revealing that you're a stenographer at best and a con artist at worst.
Reposted by Caleb Smith
Joan Rivers TALKS Vincent Price into performing the “Thriller Rap” on the “The Late Show Starring Joan Rivers” in 1987! AWESOME. 😍❤️❤️👏🎬
#Halloween
#Halloween
October 31, 2026 at 3:05 PM
Joan Rivers TALKS Vincent Price into performing the “Thriller Rap” on the “The Late Show Starring Joan Rivers” in 1987! AWESOME. 😍❤️❤️👏🎬
#Halloween
#Halloween
Reposted by Caleb Smith
I love this letter.
October 31, 2026 at 2:10 PM
I love this letter.
