Donate or Join | Boston Review

A Political and Literary Forum

Menu Search
Donate Shop Join

War and national security

Global Justice, War & Security

The Beirut That Was

The explosion was only the latest tragedy in the city’s long decline.

Helena Cobban

Global Justice

Letter from Beirut

In the wake of the devastating explosion, civil society has shown the way forward—filling the void of a nonexistent and incapacitated state.

Joelle M. Abi-Rached

Politics, War & Security

The Conceit of American Indispensability

As both politicians and historians mine the 1940s for alternate visions of international order, we must guard against the presumption that the United States remains the benevolent center of global politics.

Sam Klug

War & Security

The Death and Rebirth of American Internationalism

As the 2020 presidential election nears, internationalists are plotting their return. But they still haven’t learned from the failure of liberal universalism.

Edward Fishman

Global Justice, War & Security

The Racist Foundation of Nuclear Architecture

On the seventy-fifth anniversary of Hiroshima, it is increasingly clear that white supremacy sustains the U.S. nuclear arsenal, while the country's approach to nuclear weapons reinforces racism at home. 

Elaine Scarry

Reading Lists

An Anti-Imperialism Reading List

Your fourth of July reading. 

Rosie Gillies, Boston Review

Law & Justice

Policing the World

Since World War II, the United States has spread its style of policing—and police technology—around the world as a way to exert control. This link between modern policing and the national security state means they will have to be democratized together.

Andrew Lanham

Politics, War & Security

The Future of U.S. Global Leadership

The assumption that only the United States can lead the free world increasingly looks imperiled, most recently by the COVID-19 pandemic. What would foreign policy look like without it?

Jeremy Shapiro

Race

Terror and Abolition

At a moment when the call to abolish police and prisons is louder than ever, we should also demand an end to counterterrorism, which functions largely to ensnare people of color.

Atiya Husain

Science & Nature

The Case Against Mars

Contrary to the boosterism of billionaires, the need for space colonization must be argued for, not assumed. And the arguments aren’t good.

Byron Williston

War & Security

The Murderous Legacy of Cold War Anticommunism

A new book reveals how deeply the Washington-backed Indonesian mass killings of 1965 reshaped global politics, securing a decisive victory for U.S. interests against Third World self-determination.

Stuart Schrader

Global Justice, Politics

Sanctions Are Inhumane—Now, and Always

In a world imperiled by global pandemic, it is long past time to put an end to sanctions—including new ones against Iran—and to reconstruct U.S. foreign policy around international solidarity.

Aslı U. Bâli, Aziz Rana

       

Sign Up for Our Newsletter

Vital reading on politics, literature, and more in your inbox

Love Boston Review?

Then you’ll love our new membership program! Join us to support engaged discussion on critical issues. You’ll also enjoy exclusive membership benefits.
Get Started

Copyright © 1993-2020 Boston Review and its authors.

Support Boston Review

Become a Member

Make a tax-deductible donation today

Boston Review Printing Note: For best printing results try turning on any options your web browser's print dialog makes available for printing backgrounds and background graphics.

Join the conversation

Subscribe to Our Emails

Confronting the challenges of this moment demands all the moral and deliberative clarity we can muster. While much remains uncertain, Boston Review’s responsibility to public reason is sure. Sign up for our newsletters and don’t miss a thing. 

Support Our Mission