The president's recent Task Force on 21st Century Policing had one big omission: historical context. If we are going to reform police behavior, that means recognizing the underpinnings of African-American discrimination in the United States and using it as a launching point for a broader dialogue.
Since the Supreme Court struck down a key part of the Voting Rights Act, states have already moved to implement changes to voting laws previously identified as discriminatory. Is this what we're going back to?
Yes, the historic ruling on same-sex marriage was a triumph, but the Roberts Court has done major damage this week to the project of civil rights.
The court's reversal of the 1965 Voting Rights Act assumes politics has changed. But this historic phone call sounds pretty familiar.