M Gessen
@mashagessen.bsky.social
Columnist at The New York Times. Distinguished Professor at Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism, City University of NY. Author at Riverhead Books
In which I talk with the brilliant Marianne Hirsch (gift link) www.nytimes.com/2025/10/31/o...
Opinion | We Need to Rethink How We Think About the Holocaust
www.nytimes.com
October 31, 2025 at 2:22 PM
In which I talk with the brilliant Marianne Hirsch (gift link) www.nytimes.com/2025/10/31/o...
In which I talk with the woman who won't shut up (gift link) www.nytimes.com/2025/10/16/o...
Opinion | The U.S. Denounces Her. Multinationals Threaten Her. She Likes Her Odds.
www.nytimes.com
October 16, 2025 at 12:13 PM
In which I talk with the woman who won't shut up (gift link) www.nytimes.com/2025/10/16/o...
In which I'm proud to know Peter. (Gift link) www.nytimes.com/2025/08/25/o...
Opinion | He Was a Star in Russia’s Media World. Now He’s a Corporal in Ukraine’s Army.
www.nytimes.com
August 25, 2025 at 1:36 PM
In which I'm proud to know Peter. (Gift link) www.nytimes.com/2025/08/25/o...
In which I parse some terms. www.nytimes.com/2025/08/19/o...
Opinion | A Brief Note on the Difference Between Negotiation and Extortion
www.nytimes.com
August 19, 2025 at 12:24 PM
In which I parse some terms. www.nytimes.com/2025/08/19/o...
In which I make just one prediction www.nytimes.com/2025/08/13/o...
Opinion | The Fundamental Truth About U.S. Strategy That Putin Knows and Trump Ignores
www.nytimes.com
August 14, 2025 at 4:13 AM
In which I make just one prediction www.nytimes.com/2025/08/13/o...
I think today is the right day for this piece. www.nytimes.com/2025/06/24/o...
Opinion | Antisemitism Isn’t What People Think It Is
www.nytimes.com
June 24, 2025 at 9:58 AM
I think today is the right day for this piece. www.nytimes.com/2025/06/24/o...
In which there are actual people involved. www.nytimes.com/2025/06/19/o...
Opinion | The Supreme Court Fails to See Transgender Teens
www.nytimes.com
June 19, 2025 at 4:44 PM
In which there are actual people involved. www.nytimes.com/2025/06/19/o...
In which I get to profile Christo (gift link). The Man Putin Couldn’t Kill www.nytimes.com/2025/06/02/o...
Opinion | The Man Putin Couldn’t Kill
www.nytimes.com
June 3, 2025 at 2:10 AM
In which I get to profile Christo (gift link). The Man Putin Couldn’t Kill www.nytimes.com/2025/06/02/o...
In which I have the sinking feeling of boredom. www.nytimes.com/2025/05/28/o...
Opinion | Beware: We Are Entering a New Phase of the Trump Era
www.nytimes.com
May 28, 2025 at 12:19 PM
In which I have the sinking feeling of boredom. www.nytimes.com/2025/05/28/o...
A few words abiut Harvard www.nytimes.com/2025/04/14/o...
Opinion | Harvard’s Strength and How Far We’ve Fallen So Quickly
The thrill over its response to the Trump administration is a measure of how low, and how fast, our expectations have fallen.
www.nytimes.com
April 15, 2025 at 2:21 PM
A few words abiut Harvard www.nytimes.com/2025/04/14/o...
In which I have a radical www.nytimes.com/2025/04/14/o...
Opinion | This Is How Universities Can Escape Trump’s Trap, If They Dare
It’s been tried in other countries facing authoritarian crackdowns. It works.
www.nytimes.com
April 14, 2025 at 3:03 PM
In which I have a radical www.nytimes.com/2025/04/14/o...
In which I try to call things what they are. www.nytimes.com/2025/04/02/o...
Opinion | Unmarked Vans. Secret Lists. Public Denunciations. America’s Police State Has Arrived.
Those of us who’ve seen secret police in action can’t shake a feeling of dreadful familiarity.
www.nytimes.com
April 2, 2025 at 6:21 PM
In which I try to call things what they are. www.nytimes.com/2025/04/02/o...
In which I try to put it all together.
The Hidden Motive Behind Trump’s Attack on Trans People www.nytimes.com/2025/03/17/o...
The Hidden Motive Behind Trump’s Attack on Trans People www.nytimes.com/2025/03/17/o...
Opinion | There’s a Name for What Trump Is Doing to Trans People: Denationalizing
The message is that we are a threat to the nation. The subtext is that we are not of this nation.
www.nytimes.com
March 17, 2025 at 1:25 PM
In which I try to put it all together.
The Hidden Motive Behind Trump’s Attack on Trans People www.nytimes.com/2025/03/17/o...
The Hidden Motive Behind Trump’s Attack on Trans People www.nytimes.com/2025/03/17/o...
In which war can be described. www.nytimes.com/2025/02/22/o...
Opinion | They Invented a New Language for War
The words of war and the war of words.
www.nytimes.com
February 23, 2025 at 3:37 PM
In which war can be described. www.nytimes.com/2025/02/22/o...
In which the time to think is now.https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/15/opinion/trump-autocracy-bad-ideas.html?smid=nytcore-android-share
February 15, 2025 at 4:42 PM
In which the time to think is now.https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/15/opinion/trump-autocracy-bad-ideas.html?smid=nytcore-android-share
A follow-up on collective hostage-taking. Hagan Scotten, Emil Bove and the Collective Punishment Test www.nytimes.com/live/2025/02...
Opinion | Hagan Scotten, Emil Bove and the Collective Punishment Test
How Hagan Scotten, Emil Bove and the prosecutors who filed motions in the Eric Adams case demonstrate the tool of collective punishment.
www.nytimes.com
February 15, 2025 at 6:41 AM
A follow-up on collective hostage-taking. Hagan Scotten, Emil Bove and the Collective Punishment Test www.nytimes.com/live/2025/02...
In which there are many reasons to obey and one not to. www.nytimes.com/2025/02/08/o...
Opinion | To Obey Trump or Not to Obey
The voluntarily surrender of the public’s power is how autocracies are built.
www.nytimes.com
February 8, 2025 at 2:48 PM
In which there are many reasons to obey and one not to. www.nytimes.com/2025/02/08/o...
In which I watched it from afar. www.nytimes.com/2025/01/21/o...
Opinion | I Spent Trump’s Inauguration in Ukraine. This Is What I Saw.
“And Panama!” a Ukrainian military analyst said. “What did calm, peaceful Panama do?”
www.nytimes.com
January 21, 2025 at 7:45 PM
In which I watched it from afar. www.nytimes.com/2025/01/21/o...
All this separation of church and state. I've lost count of the number of clergy members speaking at today's festivities
January 20, 2025 at 8:53 PM
All this separation of church and state. I've lost count of the number of clergy members speaking at today's festivities
In which I think about how much we've lost already and how much worse it will get.The Supreme Court Just Gave Us a Bitter Taste of What’s Coming www.nytimes.com/2024/12/06/o...
Opinion | The Supreme Court Just Gave Us a Bitter Taste of What’s Coming
In the case involving medical care for transgender adolescents, ignoring doctors is part of the point.
www.nytimes.com
December 6, 2024 at 12:45 PM
In which I think about how much we've lost already and how much worse it will get.The Supreme Court Just Gave Us a Bitter Taste of What’s Coming www.nytimes.com/2024/12/06/o...
In which I argue that the Dems' inconsistency may have caught up with them. What Democrats Are Getting Wrong About Transgender Rights www.nytimes.com/2024/11/22/o...
Opinion | The Secret Behind America’s Moral Panic
Trans rights aren’t just trans rights. They’re reproductive rights.
www.nytimes.com
November 22, 2024 at 12:00 PM
In which I argue that the Dems' inconsistency may have caught up with them. What Democrats Are Getting Wrong About Transgender Rights www.nytimes.com/2024/11/22/o...
In which I consider Trump's blueprint for destruction This Is the Dark, Unspoken Promise of Trump’s Return www.nytimes.com/2024/11/15/o...
Opinion | This Is the Dark, Unspoken Promise of Trump’s Return
Liberal democracy offers moral constraints without problem-solving. Populism offers problem-solving without moral constraints.
www.nytimes.com
November 15, 2024 at 1:03 PM
In which I consider Trump's blueprint for destruction This Is the Dark, Unspoken Promise of Trump’s Return www.nytimes.com/2024/11/15/o...