Amiri Baraka - dramatist, novelist, poet, and activist—was one of the most respected and widely published African-American writers. He was born Everett LeRoi Jonesin Newark, NJ.

Remember the Alamo? According to Texas lore, it's the site in San Antonio where, in 1836, about 180 Texan rebels died defending the state during Texas' war for independence from Mexico.

The siege of the Alamo was memorably depicted in a Walt Disney series and in a 1960 movie starring John Wayne. But three writers, all Texans, say the common narrative of the Texas revolt overlooks the fact that it was waged in part to ensure slavery would be preserved.

"Slavery was the undeniable linchpin of all of this," author Bryan Burrough says. "It was the thing that the two sides had been arguing about and shooting about for going on 15 years. And yet it still surprises me that slavery went unexamined for so long."

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With special thanks to enhydra lutris, who actually did most of the thinking behind this morning's open thread

I know, let's start buyin' the place with beads ...

Children of Ash and Elm (2020) is a new book published by professor of archaeology at the University of Uppsala, Neil Price. The book is new in its approach to telling the story of the Viking Age in the sense that Price is actually narrating an experience for the reader, more so than simply describing the Viking Age. Price uses Nordic mythology as a narrative frame for explaining the complex societies in Scandinavia in the period 750–1050 AD. This is also what the title hints at: the names Ash and Elm are the English translations of Askr and Embla, the first human beings that the gods created according to Old Norse mythology. Whether Askr and Embla actually mean “Ash” and “Elm,” now that’s another story.

Full review by The Nordic Mythology Channel

Most of us have a home to shelter in place during COVID -19. But what about the homeless?