Hugh Ryan
@hughryan.bsky.social
Author & queer historian. The Women’s House of Detention (2022) and When Brooklyn Was Queer (2019). I also teach nonfiction in the Bennington MFA program. Support my work: https://www.patreon.com/HughRyan
Reposted by Hugh Ryan
“But what deeply troubles me now is that for all the steps we've taken toward integration, I've come to believe that we are integrating into a burning house."
Dr. King said this famous quote on March 27th, 1968, mere days before his murder. But the context around the quote is interesting...
Dr. King said this famous quote on March 27th, 1968, mere days before his murder. But the context around the quote is interesting...
January 20, 2026 at 3:40 AM
“But what deeply troubles me now is that for all the steps we've taken toward integration, I've come to believe that we are integrating into a burning house."
Dr. King said this famous quote on March 27th, 1968, mere days before his murder. But the context around the quote is interesting...
Dr. King said this famous quote on March 27th, 1968, mere days before his murder. But the context around the quote is interesting...
Reposted by Hugh Ryan
Trump is privately worried about the "optics" of ICE raids and his advisers are looking for ways to soften them, Axios reports. I'm calling bullshit: The terror and violence cannot be hived off from the broader policy agenda. They are 100% intrinsic to it.
New piece:
newrepublic.com/article/2053...
New piece:
newrepublic.com/article/2053...
Trump’s Own Advisers Suddenly Unnerved as ICE Raids Take Horrific Turn
So the president doesn’t like the “optics” of what ICE is doing. But there’s no such thing as sanitized, popular mass deportations—and this is by design.
newrepublic.com
January 16, 2026 at 7:26 PM
Trump is privately worried about the "optics" of ICE raids and his advisers are looking for ways to soften them, Axios reports. I'm calling bullshit: The terror and violence cannot be hived off from the broader policy agenda. They are 100% intrinsic to it.
New piece:
newrepublic.com/article/2053...
New piece:
newrepublic.com/article/2053...
Reposted by Hugh Ryan
Six weeks into the immigration enforcement surge in the Twin Cities, observers say federal agents are employing violence more frequently and with little apparent restraint against citizens and noncitizens alike. (1) www.mprnews.org/story/2026/0...
Fear factor: Intimidation becomes a calling card as Twin Cities ICE surge widens
Six weeks into the immigration enforcement surge in Minnesota, observers say there are signs that federal agents are employing violence more frequently and with little apparent restraint against citiz...
www.mprnews.org
January 16, 2026 at 8:14 PM
Six weeks into the immigration enforcement surge in the Twin Cities, observers say federal agents are employing violence more frequently and with little apparent restraint against citizens and noncitizens alike. (1) www.mprnews.org/story/2026/0...
Reposted by Hugh Ryan
For anyone overseas, this saga is absolutely insane.
The Adelaide Festival, the second largest arts & cultural festival IN THE WORLD, is currently haemorrhaging because the Writer's Week board disinvited a Palestinian author. The Director disagreed.
She's now stepped down & is fighting back.
The Adelaide Festival, the second largest arts & cultural festival IN THE WORLD, is currently haemorrhaging because the Writer's Week board disinvited a Palestinian author. The Director disagreed.
She's now stepped down & is fighting back.
“We need writers now more than ever, as our media closes up, as our politicians grow daily more cowed by real power, as Australia grows more unjust and unequal.”
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
I cannot be party to silencing writers, which is why I am resigning as director of Adelaide Writers’ Week | Louise Adler
Cancelling the Australian Palestinian author Randa Abdel-Fattah weakens freedom of speech and is the harbinger of a less free nation
www.theguardian.com
January 12, 2026 at 10:27 PM
For anyone overseas, this saga is absolutely insane.
The Adelaide Festival, the second largest arts & cultural festival IN THE WORLD, is currently haemorrhaging because the Writer's Week board disinvited a Palestinian author. The Director disagreed.
She's now stepped down & is fighting back.
The Adelaide Festival, the second largest arts & cultural festival IN THE WORLD, is currently haemorrhaging because the Writer's Week board disinvited a Palestinian author. The Director disagreed.
She's now stepped down & is fighting back.
Reposted by Hugh Ryan
Between Mamdani and Spanberger, the establishment of "instantly repeal all the bullshit the last pig put in place" as Democratic priority #1 for both democratic socialists and ex-CIA types is an extremely heartening development.
The first thing Virginia Spanberger did after being sworn in as Governor of Virginia was repeal Youngkin’s executive order requiring state and local law enforcement to cooperate with ICE.
This is the kind of leadership Democratic governors nationwide should be emulating.
This is the kind of leadership Democratic governors nationwide should be emulating.
January 18, 2026 at 2:36 PM
Between Mamdani and Spanberger, the establishment of "instantly repeal all the bullshit the last pig put in place" as Democratic priority #1 for both democratic socialists and ex-CIA types is an extremely heartening development.
Reposted by Hugh Ryan
How it started/how it's going
January 18, 2026 at 3:08 PM
How it started/how it's going
Reposted by Hugh Ryan
BRENNAN: What percentage of those you have in custody have committed crimes?
NOEM: 70% of them
B: It's not 70%
N: Yes it is. You guys pick and choose numbers
B: Your agency says 47% have criminal convictions
N: Wrong again. We'll get you the correct numbers
B: Well, that's from your agency
NOEM: 70% of them
B: It's not 70%
N: Yes it is. You guys pick and choose numbers
B: Your agency says 47% have criminal convictions
N: Wrong again. We'll get you the correct numbers
B: Well, that's from your agency
January 18, 2026 at 3:42 PM
BRENNAN: What percentage of those you have in custody have committed crimes?
NOEM: 70% of them
B: It's not 70%
N: Yes it is. You guys pick and choose numbers
B: Your agency says 47% have criminal convictions
N: Wrong again. We'll get you the correct numbers
B: Well, that's from your agency
NOEM: 70% of them
B: It's not 70%
N: Yes it is. You guys pick and choose numbers
B: Your agency says 47% have criminal convictions
N: Wrong again. We'll get you the correct numbers
B: Well, that's from your agency
Reposted by Hugh Ryan
Eight European NATO members including Germany, France and UK condemned Trump's tariff threats as undermining transatlantic relations, declaring full solidarity with Denmark and Greenland while emphasizing their joint Arctic exercises pose no threat and vowing to defend sovereignty.
January 18, 2026 at 3:49 PM
Eight European NATO members including Germany, France and UK condemned Trump's tariff threats as undermining transatlantic relations, declaring full solidarity with Denmark and Greenland while emphasizing their joint Arctic exercises pose no threat and vowing to defend sovereignty.
Reposted by Hugh Ryan
re: @annaposbergh.bsky.social & @nkalamb.bsky.social’s discussions about re-deploying “fairness”:
I’ve had *some* success w/ students by posing Qs about athletes in the men’s category, e.g. “If levels of T ‘outside of typical’ is about ‘fairness’ shouldn‘t we test folks in the men’s category too?”
I’ve had *some* success w/ students by posing Qs about athletes in the men’s category, e.g. “If levels of T ‘outside of typical’ is about ‘fairness’ shouldn‘t we test folks in the men’s category too?”
Out of Left Field: Episode 1
This is the first of bi-weekly conversations between our co-hosts about current issues in sport (and beyond).
In this episode we catch up on the state of the world after our hiatus.
Oh, and we share a podcast-altering announcement. 👀
open.spotify.com/episode/5771...
This is the first of bi-weekly conversations between our co-hosts about current issues in sport (and beyond).
In this episode we catch up on the state of the world after our hiatus.
Oh, and we share a podcast-altering announcement. 👀
open.spotify.com/episode/5771...
January 17, 2026 at 6:06 PM
re: @annaposbergh.bsky.social & @nkalamb.bsky.social’s discussions about re-deploying “fairness”:
I’ve had *some* success w/ students by posing Qs about athletes in the men’s category, e.g. “If levels of T ‘outside of typical’ is about ‘fairness’ shouldn‘t we test folks in the men’s category too?”
I’ve had *some* success w/ students by posing Qs about athletes in the men’s category, e.g. “If levels of T ‘outside of typical’ is about ‘fairness’ shouldn‘t we test folks in the men’s category too?”
Reposted by Hugh Ryan
No federal judge has the power or authority to make DOJ comply with the mandatory provisions of the Epstein Act, says Pam Bondi. It's unenforceable and meaningless. Essentially, DOJ is a lawless if not criminal enterprise, not a law enforcement agency, at this point.
January 17, 2026 at 2:36 PM
No federal judge has the power or authority to make DOJ comply with the mandatory provisions of the Epstein Act, says Pam Bondi. It's unenforceable and meaningless. Essentially, DOJ is a lawless if not criminal enterprise, not a law enforcement agency, at this point.
Reposted by Hugh Ryan
Keep this in mind: she’s referencing Syrians who constitute the largest group of foreign doctors in Germany. When the revolution ended, German medical associations warned that a mass departure of Syrian doctors could destabilize the healthcare system, particularly in rural areas.
January 16, 2026 at 10:46 AM
Keep this in mind: she’s referencing Syrians who constitute the largest group of foreign doctors in Germany. When the revolution ended, German medical associations warned that a mass departure of Syrian doctors could destabilize the healthcare system, particularly in rural areas.
Reposted by Hugh Ryan
Students and staff at public schools in America are being terrorized by paramilitary forces.
This is an entirely factual description of what is happening. donmoynihan.substack.com/p/dispatch-f...
This is an entirely factual description of what is happening. donmoynihan.substack.com/p/dispatch-f...
January 17, 2026 at 2:09 PM
Students and staff at public schools in America are being terrorized by paramilitary forces.
This is an entirely factual description of what is happening. donmoynihan.substack.com/p/dispatch-f...
This is an entirely factual description of what is happening. donmoynihan.substack.com/p/dispatch-f...
Reposted by Hugh Ryan
what the hell is this revisionist nonsense? This *did not happen*—except in the minds of the far-right. You're buying their bad faith bullshit. MAGA called for and now is building a white ethnostate b/c *they are white nationalists*. That's what they do. FFS
January 16, 2026 at 10:01 PM
what the hell is this revisionist nonsense? This *did not happen*—except in the minds of the far-right. You're buying their bad faith bullshit. MAGA called for and now is building a white ethnostate b/c *they are white nationalists*. That's what they do. FFS
Reposted by Hugh Ryan
these people got annoyed by some grad students on the internet in 2020 and projected it on to joe biden for some reason. bizarre behavior.
what the hell is this revisionist nonsense? This *did not happen*—except in the minds of the far-right. You're buying their bad faith bullshit. MAGA called for and now is building a white ethnostate b/c *they are white nationalists*. That's what they do. FFS
January 16, 2026 at 10:29 PM
these people got annoyed by some grad students on the internet in 2020 and projected it on to joe biden for some reason. bizarre behavior.
Reposted by Hugh Ryan
Christ, this (from Lizza's latest) is pretty fucking damning of...literally the entire media(?) What the fuck?
January 17, 2026 at 1:09 AM
Christ, this (from Lizza's latest) is pretty fucking damning of...literally the entire media(?) What the fuck?
Reposted by Hugh Ryan
"You can get ChatGPT to help you build a nuclear bomb if you simply design the prompt in the form of a poem, according to a new study from researchers in Europe. "
www.wired.com/story/poems-...
www.wired.com/story/poems-...
Poems Can Trick AI Into Helping You Make a Nuclear Weapon
It turns out all the guardrails in the world won’t protect a chatbot from meter and rhyme.
www.wired.com
November 30, 2025 at 12:12 PM
"You can get ChatGPT to help you build a nuclear bomb if you simply design the prompt in the form of a poem, according to a new study from researchers in Europe. "
www.wired.com/story/poems-...
www.wired.com/story/poems-...
Reposted by Hugh Ryan
The 6-month-old that DHS is tweeting about here lived in the neighborhood and the baby’s father was just trying to evacuate his family after federal agents had shot someone.
January 16, 2026 at 3:38 PM
The 6-month-old that DHS is tweeting about here lived in the neighborhood and the baby’s father was just trying to evacuate his family after federal agents had shot someone.
Reposted by Hugh Ryan
i’ll say it again, jennings is a contemptible liar and it is a disgrace that CNN puts him on television every night to spread bullshit
The thing is, some people can make mistakes, get things wrong, be careless, etc. But that’s not what Jennings did here. Jennings knowingly, purposefully and intentionally lied to utterly distort what was said, which CNN pays him to do every day. CNN is the enabler of this.
January 16, 2026 at 2:00 PM
i’ll say it again, jennings is a contemptible liar and it is a disgrace that CNN puts him on television every night to spread bullshit
Reposted by Hugh Ryan
Over the weekend, the White House and the Department of Homeland Security shared posts with a song, "We'll Have Our Home Again."
I dug into the group that performed and popularized it. Its cofounder said his goal was to create "the seed of an eventual government." www.splcenter.org/resources/ha...
I dug into the group that performed and popularized it. Its cofounder said his goal was to create "the seed of an eventual government." www.splcenter.org/resources/ha...
DHS, White House shared white nationalist song in ICE recruitment posts
Multiple accounts run by DHS share references to “We’ll have our home again” song, popularized by a white nationalist group, with a link to join ICE.
www.splcenter.org
January 15, 2026 at 8:27 PM
Over the weekend, the White House and the Department of Homeland Security shared posts with a song, "We'll Have Our Home Again."
I dug into the group that performed and popularized it. Its cofounder said his goal was to create "the seed of an eventual government." www.splcenter.org/resources/ha...
I dug into the group that performed and popularized it. Its cofounder said his goal was to create "the seed of an eventual government." www.splcenter.org/resources/ha...
Reposted by Hugh Ryan
Liberal pundits are everywhere in the MSM talking about how MAGA voters are angry because they feel that Liberals do not like/respect them. There is no equivalent version of this where Conservative pundits talk about how the rest of the country feels about whether they are liked/respected.
January 15, 2026 at 5:09 PM
Liberal pundits are everywhere in the MSM talking about how MAGA voters are angry because they feel that Liberals do not like/respect them. There is no equivalent version of this where Conservative pundits talk about how the rest of the country feels about whether they are liked/respected.
Reposted by Hugh Ryan
It's not clear to me why you would make this sentence the kicker -- and not the lede.
@reuters.com @bgrueskin.bsky.social
@reuters.com @bgrueskin.bsky.social
".. when you win the presidency, you don't win the midterms,” Trump said. He boasted that he had accomplished so much that “when you think of it, we shouldn't even have an election.”
@reuters.com
www.reuters.com/world/us/fiv...
@reuters.com
www.reuters.com/world/us/fiv...
Five takeaways from the Reuters interview of President Trump
Reuters sat down with U.S. President Donald Trump for an interview in the Oval Office on Wednesday. Here are some takeaways from the 30-minute exchange:
www.reuters.com
January 15, 2026 at 3:59 PM
It's not clear to me why you would make this sentence the kicker -- and not the lede.
@reuters.com @bgrueskin.bsky.social
@reuters.com @bgrueskin.bsky.social
Reposted by Hugh Ryan
the question to ask about this is, okay, he wants to cancel the midterms. how does he get the VA state board of elections to cancel the midterms? how does he get the georgia board of elections to do it? how does he convince republican house members to quit their jobs and give up their paychecks?
Trump says a lot of deranged shit, but, per this Reuters article — and the threats of invoking the Insurrection Act in Minnesota this morning — he is very clearly exploring how to cancel the midterms.
www.reuters.com/world/us/fiv...
www.reuters.com/world/us/fiv...
January 15, 2026 at 4:29 PM
the question to ask about this is, okay, he wants to cancel the midterms. how does he get the VA state board of elections to cancel the midterms? how does he get the georgia board of elections to do it? how does he convince republican house members to quit their jobs and give up their paychecks?
Reposted by Hugh Ryan
People really reacting to this without all the details. I am sure there are good and legitimate reasons why President Trump is taking the oil revenue ransom he extorted from Venezuela and is putting into a Middle Eastern bank account that Congress cannot control.
The main bank account holding revenue from the Venezuelan oil sales is located in Qatar.
“There is no basis in law for a president to set up an offshore account that he controls so that he can sell assets seized by the American military,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren.
www.semafor.com/article/01/1...
“There is no basis in law for a president to set up an offshore account that he controls so that he can sell assets seized by the American military,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren.
www.semafor.com/article/01/1...
Exclusive: US gets first $500 million Venezuelan oil deal, holding some proceeds in Qatar
The details shared with Semafor mark an initial milestone in the administration’s plan following the ouster of Nicolás Maduro.
www.semafor.com
January 15, 2026 at 2:13 PM
People really reacting to this without all the details. I am sure there are good and legitimate reasons why President Trump is taking the oil revenue ransom he extorted from Venezuela and is putting into a Middle Eastern bank account that Congress cannot control.
Oh how I have been waiting for this book!! Preorder it now!
The official announcement for The Overseer Class, proudly published by @amistadbooks.bsky.social and @harpercollins.bsky.social. Available for preorder now at @bookshop.org or wherever you get your books: bookshop.org/p/books/the-...
January 15, 2026 at 12:27 PM
Oh how I have been waiting for this book!! Preorder it now!