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Lawrence Wu
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Lawrence Wu

Thursday

Reframing History: Bananas

A United Fruit Company official looks over looks over the harvested bananas to see which are fit for market in Honduras on Sept. 3, 1954. Anonymous/AP hide caption

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Anonymous/AP

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Reframing History: Bananas

The banana is a staple of the American diet and has been for generations. But how did this exotic tropical fruit become so commonplace? How one Brooklyn-born entrepreneur ruthlessly created the modern banana industry and the infamous banana republics.

Reframing History: Bananas

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Thursday

Reframing History: The Commentator

Raphael's 'The School of Athens'. On the far left is Ibn Rushd, commonly known as Averroes, in a green robe and yellow turban. Universal History Archive/Getty Images hide caption

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Universal History Archive/Getty Images

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Reframing History: The Commentator

Today the foundations of philosophy are seen as a straight line from Western antiquity, built on thinkers such as Plato and Aristotle. But, between the 8th century and 14th century, the West was greatly overshadowed by the Islamic world and philosophy was in very different hands. This week, how one Medieval Islamic philosopher put his pen to paper and shaped the modern world.

Reframing History: The Commentator

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Thursday

Reframing History: The Litter Myth

A Keep America Beautiful ad that was made in partnership with the Ad Council. Library of Congress hide caption

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Library of Congress

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Reframing History: The Litter Myth

There is more waste in the world today than at any time in history, and the responsibility for keeping the environment clean too often falls on individuals instead of manufacturers. But, why us? And why this feeling of responsibility? This week, how one organization changed the American public's relationship with waste and who is ultimately responsible for it.

Reframing History: The Litter Myth

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Thursday

America's Caste System

Civil rights activists are blocked by National Guardsmen brandishing bayonets while trying to stage a protest on Beale Street in Memphis, Tennessee. The marching demonstrators are also flanked by tanks. Bettmann/Bettmann Archive hide caption

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Bettmann/Bettmann Archive

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America's Caste System

"Race" is often used as a fundamental way to understand American history. But what if "caste" is the more appropriate lens? In conversation with Pulitzer Prize winner Isabel Wilkerson, we examine the hidden system that has shaped our country.

America's Caste System

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Thursday

A.D.A. Now!

A group of people with disabilities crawl up the steps of the U.S. Capitol to draw support for the Americans with Disabilities Act, March 12th, 1990. Used by permission. © The Tom Olin Collection hide caption

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Used by permission. © The Tom Olin Collection

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A.D.A. Now!

This month marks the 30th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which is considered the most important civil rights law since the 1960s. Through first-person stories, we look back at the making of this movement, the history of how disability came to be seen as a civil rights issue, and what the disability community is still fighting for 30 years later.

A.D.A. Now!

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Thursday

Lives Of The Great Depression

A migrant family saying grace before their noonday meal by the side of the road east of Oklahoma, 1930. Three Lions/Getty Images hide caption

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Three Lions/Getty Images

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Lives Of The Great Depression

The Great Depression was a revolutionary spark for all kinds of things — health insurance, social safety nets, big government — all of which were in response to a national crisis. Through the personal accounts of four people who lived during the Great Depression, we look back at what life was like back then and what those stories can teach us about the last time the U.S. went through a national economic cataclysm.

Lives Of The Great Depression

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Thursday

Mecca Under Siege

The Kaaba in the centre of the Masjid al-Haram in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, 1979. Every year, millions of Muslims complete a Hajj, or pilgrimage, to this sacred spot. Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images hide caption

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Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

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Mecca Under Siege

Hajj, the annual Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca, is effectively canceled this year, due to concerns around the spread of the coronavirus. But, for two weeks in 1979, visits to the holy site were also upended when a group of Islamic militants seized Mecca, taking thousands of visitors hostage.

Mecca Under Siege

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Thursday

There's Something About Mary

An article on Mary Mallon where she was infamously labeled "Typhoid Mary." She was the first healthy person identified as a carrier of typhoid fever in the United States. Library of Congress hide caption

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Library of Congress

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There's Something About Mary

When a cook who carried typhoid fever refused to stop working, despite showing no symptoms, the authorities forcibly quarantined her for nearly three decades. Perfect villain or just a woman scapegoated because of her background? What the story of Typhoid Mary tells us about journalism, the powers of the state, and the tension between personal responsibility and personal liberty.

There's Something About Mary

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Thursday

How The CIA Overthrew Iran's Democracy In 4 Days

A resident of Tehran washes "Yankee Go Home" graffiti from a wall in the capital city of Iran, Aug. 21, 1953. The new Premier Gen. Fazlollah Zahedi requested the clean-up after the coup d'etat which restored the Shah of Iran in power. (AP Photo) ASSOCIATED PRESS hide caption

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ASSOCIATED PRESS

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How The CIA Overthrew Iran's Democracy In 4 Days

It's no secret that Iran and the U.S. have a history of animosity toward each other. But when and how did it begin? This week we look back at four days in August 1953, when the CIA orchestrated a coup of Iran's elected Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh.

How The CIA Overthrew Iran's Democracy In 4 Days

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Saturday

In An Era Of Fake News, Advancing Face-Swap Apps Blur More Lines

The advancement of AI-assisted face-swapping apps lets users apply the technology to an eerie new trend: pasting the faces of celebrities into pornographic videos. RobinOlimb/Getty Images hide caption

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RobinOlimb/Getty Images

Technology

In An Era Of Fake News, Advancing Face-Swap Apps Blur More Lines

The ease of AI-assisted face-swapping apps lets users apply the technology to an eerie new trend: pasting the faces of celebrities onto actors in pornographic videos. And the law can't keep up.

In An Era Of Fake News, Advancing Face-Swap Apps Blur More Lines

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