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American Culture ClubAMERICAN CULTURE, ARTS & IDEAS

Society

Reporting on how Americans actually live alongside one another, from congregations and unions to block associations and school boards. The section documents which shared institutions are holding, which are emptying out, and what replaces them. For readers interested in social change described through people rather than statistics alone.

Family sharing Sunday breakfast on a sunny apartment balcony
Society

A Short History of the American Sunday

From Puritan Sabbath laws to football packages and brunch, the seventh day has been contested American territory for four centuries.

Imani BrooksFebruary 9, 2026 · 6 min read
Empty suburban street with parked minivans and mowed front lawns at dusk
Society

How Suburbs Redesigned American Leisure

The backyard, the mall, and little league did not just host the weekend; they rewrote what Americans believed a weekend was for.

Oliver GrantJanuary 31, 2026 · 6 min read
Stack of mass-market paperbacks with worn spines under warm lamp light
Society

The Book Club Industrial Complex

What began as a parlor ritual became a publishing supply chain, with celebrities, influencers, and bookstore chains each taking a cut of the discussion.

Imani BrooksJanuary 22, 2026 · 6 min read
Chart showing falling attendance and rising costs for regional theaters
Society

Why Community Theaters Keep Closing

America has thousands of volunteer stages and loses a stubborn handful every year; the causes are older than the recession everyone blames.

Oliver GrantJanuary 12, 2026 · 6 min read
Older visitors examining paintings in a bright American art museum gallery
Society

Who Actually Goes to Museums in America

The National Endowment for the Arts has been counting museum visitors for four decades, and the answer is more complicated, and more gray-haired, than the brochure suggests.

Imani BrooksJanuary 4, 2026 · 6 min read