Kristen Martin
@kwistent.bsky.social
Author of THE SUN WON'T COME OUT TOMORROW, out now from Bold Type / critic with words in NYRB, NYT Mag, WaPo, The New Republic, and elsewhere / member Freelance Solidarity Project and National Book Critics Circle / Philly / kristenmartin.net
Pinned
Kristen Martin
@kwistent.bsky.social
· Nov 9
The Sun Won't Come Out Tomorrow: The Dark History of American Orphanhood a book by Kristen Martin
The real history of being an orphan in America is nothing like the myth, and nothing like the American dream. The orphan story has been mythologized: Step one: While a child is still too young to fo...
bookshop.org
Hi new pals! I am a cultural critic based in Philadelphia, and my first book, THE SUN WON'T COME OUT TOMORROW: THE DARK HISTORY OF AMERICAN ORPHANHOOD, comes out the day after the inauguration (gulp). bookshop.org/p/books/the-... (1/2)
Reposted by Kristen Martin
Check out my series MISS ME YET for free on Means TV!
means.tv/programs/mis...
means.tv/programs/mis...
January 19, 2026 at 9:26 PM
Timeline cleanse: Penny Loafer gets a bath
January 19, 2026 at 8:40 PM
Timeline cleanse: Penny Loafer gets a bath
One more share!
For @altajournal.bsky.social I reviewed Eric Lichtblau’s AMERICAN REICH, which contextualizes the 2018 murder of Blaze Bernstein within a new era of white supremacy. This was a difficult assignment, as I have gotten to know Blaze after his death: www.altaonline.com/books/nonfic...
The State of Hate
Eric Lichtblau’s American Reich situates Blaze Bernstein’s murder within a resurgent culture of white supremacy and violent bigotry.
www.altaonline.com
January 16, 2026 at 3:17 PM
One more share!
Reposted by Kristen Martin
next to the historic Fort Snelling. ICE operates there because it is still federal land. In the winter of 1862-63 the fort was a concentration camp for Dakota people. As a punishment for the Dakota War, tribal members were rounded up, marched to Ft Snelling, detained and exiled from the state.
January 14, 2026 at 8:18 PM
next to the historic Fort Snelling. ICE operates there because it is still federal land. In the winter of 1862-63 the fort was a concentration camp for Dakota people. As a punishment for the Dakota War, tribal members were rounded up, marched to Ft Snelling, detained and exiled from the state.
Reposted by Kristen Martin
Four citizens of the Oglala Sioux Tribe have been held by ICE since Thursday. The unhoused men were picked up during an ICE raid and despite advocacy from their tribe, three have not been released.
The place where the men are being held (the ICE facility in Minneapolis) is
The place where the men are being held (the ICE facility in Minneapolis) is
January 14, 2026 at 8:18 PM
Four citizens of the Oglala Sioux Tribe have been held by ICE since Thursday. The unhoused men were picked up during an ICE raid and despite advocacy from their tribe, three have not been released.
The place where the men are being held (the ICE facility in Minneapolis) is
The place where the men are being held (the ICE facility in Minneapolis) is
Philly folks! Join me on February 4th (my half-birthday!) for a talk about my book at the Pen & Pencil! We will highlight some of the Philly connections in the book and talk about recent developments in foster care and family policing. Free and open to all; RSVP: www.penandpencil.org/content.aspx...
January 14, 2026 at 7:59 PM
Philly folks! Join me on February 4th (my half-birthday!) for a talk about my book at the Pen & Pencil! We will highlight some of the Philly connections in the book and talk about recent developments in foster care and family policing. Free and open to all; RSVP: www.penandpencil.org/content.aspx...
Reposted by Kristen Martin
In Sacramento at the senate judiciary committee hearing, advocating for the rights of CA-born adopted people to access their own records. I am concerned about tomorrow’s health committee hearing. If you are in CA, you can call the health committee senators (see below) & advocate in support of SB381.
🚨🚨Any California resident can help
The Senate Health Committee hearing is tomorrow 1/14 at 1:30 PST. Please contact your reps today and tell them to VOTE YES on SB381.
If calling isn’t your thing, email info for the committee is below👇🏾👇🏾
The Senate Health Committee hearing is tomorrow 1/14 at 1:30 PST. Please contact your reps today and tell them to VOTE YES on SB381.
If calling isn’t your thing, email info for the committee is below👇🏾👇🏾
January 13, 2026 at 10:37 PM
In Sacramento at the senate judiciary committee hearing, advocating for the rights of CA-born adopted people to access their own records. I am concerned about tomorrow’s health committee hearing. If you are in CA, you can call the health committee senators (see below) & advocate in support of SB381.
Reposted by Kristen Martin
🚨🚨Any California resident can help
The Senate Health Committee hearing is tomorrow 1/14 at 1:30 PST. Please contact your reps today and tell them to VOTE YES on SB381.
If calling isn’t your thing, email info for the committee is below👇🏾👇🏾
The Senate Health Committee hearing is tomorrow 1/14 at 1:30 PST. Please contact your reps today and tell them to VOTE YES on SB381.
If calling isn’t your thing, email info for the committee is below👇🏾👇🏾
January 13, 2026 at 8:02 PM
🚨🚨Any California resident can help
The Senate Health Committee hearing is tomorrow 1/14 at 1:30 PST. Please contact your reps today and tell them to VOTE YES on SB381.
If calling isn’t your thing, email info for the committee is below👇🏾👇🏾
The Senate Health Committee hearing is tomorrow 1/14 at 1:30 PST. Please contact your reps today and tell them to VOTE YES on SB381.
If calling isn’t your thing, email info for the committee is below👇🏾👇🏾
Reposted by Kristen Martin
For @altajournal.bsky.social I reviewed Eric Lichtblau’s AMERICAN REICH, which contextualizes the 2018 murder of Blaze Bernstein within a new era of white supremacy. This was a difficult assignment, as I have gotten to know Blaze after his death: www.altaonline.com/books/nonfic...
The State of Hate
Eric Lichtblau’s American Reich situates Blaze Bernstein’s murder within a resurgent culture of white supremacy and violent bigotry.
www.altaonline.com
January 12, 2026 at 8:12 PM
For @altajournal.bsky.social I reviewed Eric Lichtblau’s AMERICAN REICH, which contextualizes the 2018 murder of Blaze Bernstein within a new era of white supremacy. This was a difficult assignment, as I have gotten to know Blaze after his death: www.altaonline.com/books/nonfic...
For @altajournal.bsky.social I reviewed Eric Lichtblau’s AMERICAN REICH, which contextualizes the 2018 murder of Blaze Bernstein within a new era of white supremacy. This was a difficult assignment, as I have gotten to know Blaze after his death: www.altaonline.com/books/nonfic...
The State of Hate
Eric Lichtblau’s American Reich situates Blaze Bernstein’s murder within a resurgent culture of white supremacy and violent bigotry.
www.altaonline.com
January 12, 2026 at 8:12 PM
For @altajournal.bsky.social I reviewed Eric Lichtblau’s AMERICAN REICH, which contextualizes the 2018 murder of Blaze Bernstein within a new era of white supremacy. This was a difficult assignment, as I have gotten to know Blaze after his death: www.altaonline.com/books/nonfic...
Reposted by Kristen Martin
Writers, it's time. Scrivener for Creative Writers is back! Join me 1/31 for a 90-minute class that will give you a powerful start to your writing year. Info and signups (and student discount) at jaimegreen.net/classes
January 12, 2026 at 6:24 PM
Writers, it's time. Scrivener for Creative Writers is back! Join me 1/31 for a 90-minute class that will give you a powerful start to your writing year. Info and signups (and student discount) at jaimegreen.net/classes
Reposted by Kristen Martin
NBCC member Kristen Martin reviewed Elliot Williams’ "Five Bullets: The Story of Bernie Goetz, New York’s Explosive ‘80s, and the Subway Vigilante Trial That Divided the Nation" for Columbia Magazine:
The Subway Vigilante
In Five Bullets, CNN legal analyst Elliot Williams ’02JRN, ’02LAW looks back at a controversial 1984 shooting
buff.ly
January 12, 2026 at 7:01 PM
NBCC member Kristen Martin reviewed Elliot Williams’ "Five Bullets: The Story of Bernie Goetz, New York’s Explosive ‘80s, and the Subway Vigilante Trial That Divided the Nation" for Columbia Magazine:
Reposted by Kristen Martin
ICYMI: my latest for @thebaffler.com
Indian boarding schools sought to strip Native children of their culture. Now, the Trump administration seeks to strip their stories from the historical record while opening ancestral lands for pillage and plunder.
Serious Reservations | Kristen Martin
The Trump administration’s erasure of Indigenous history serves a larger project—yet another plunder of land.
thebaffler.com
January 10, 2026 at 4:44 PM
ICYMI: my latest for @thebaffler.com
ICYMI: my latest for @thebaffler.com
Indian boarding schools sought to strip Native children of their culture. Now, the Trump administration seeks to strip their stories from the historical record while opening ancestral lands for pillage and plunder.
Serious Reservations | Kristen Martin
The Trump administration’s erasure of Indigenous history serves a larger project—yet another plunder of land.
thebaffler.com
January 10, 2026 at 4:44 PM
ICYMI: my latest for @thebaffler.com
I hath blogged americanorphan.substack.com/p/what-im-wr...
What I'm Writing/What I'm Reading
On drawing on my book's foundational research for a new essay in The Baffler and more
americanorphan.substack.com
January 9, 2026 at 8:37 PM
I hath blogged americanorphan.substack.com/p/what-im-wr...
Reposted by Kristen Martin
foster care has been on the decline nationally over the past ten years. that's a good thing! but there's a group that routinely argue that this is putting kids in danger. @kelleyfong.bsky.social; @bobapel.bsky.social and I checked the evidence (it's null 1/n) jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
Foster Care and Child Maltreatment Mortality Rates in the US
This cross-sectional study of children in state-supervised foster care assesses deaths due to child maltreatment and whether these fatalities are associated with foster care entry rates.
jamanetwork.com
January 8, 2026 at 3:51 PM
foster care has been on the decline nationally over the past ten years. that's a good thing! but there's a group that routinely argue that this is putting kids in danger. @kelleyfong.bsky.social; @bobapel.bsky.social and I checked the evidence (it's null 1/n) jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
Reposted by Kristen Martin
Using propaganda to back stealing territory for natural resource extraction? It’s the oldest American story. For @thebaffler.com, I wrote about how Trump’s erasures of our country's history of expropriating land from Native Americans are geared toward yet more plunder: thebaffler.com/outbursts/se...
Serious Reservations | Kristen Martin
The Trump administration’s erasure of Indigenous history serves a larger project—yet another plunder of land.
thebaffler.com
January 6, 2026 at 8:17 PM
Using propaganda to back stealing territory for natural resource extraction? It’s the oldest American story. For @thebaffler.com, I wrote about how Trump’s erasures of our country's history of expropriating land from Native Americans are geared toward yet more plunder: thebaffler.com/outbursts/se...
Reposted by Kristen Martin
This is the right framing.
As always, Defector gets it right: defector.com/ice-agent-ki...
ICE Agent Kills Woman, DHS Tells Obvious, Insane Lies About It | Defector
On Wednesday in Minneapolis, masked government agents apparently representing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) surrounded a stationary vehicle stopped in the middle of a residential street. O...
defector.com
January 7, 2026 at 9:19 PM
This is the right framing.
Using propaganda to back stealing territory for natural resource extraction? It’s the oldest American story. For @thebaffler.com, I wrote about how Trump’s erasures of our country's history of expropriating land from Native Americans are geared toward yet more plunder: thebaffler.com/outbursts/se...
Serious Reservations | Kristen Martin
The Trump administration’s erasure of Indigenous history serves a larger project—yet another plunder of land.
thebaffler.com
January 6, 2026 at 8:17 PM
Using propaganda to back stealing territory for natural resource extraction? It’s the oldest American story. For @thebaffler.com, I wrote about how Trump’s erasures of our country's history of expropriating land from Native Americans are geared toward yet more plunder: thebaffler.com/outbursts/se...
Reposted by Kristen Martin
Indian boarding schools sought to strip Native children of their culture. Now, the Trump administration seeks to strip their stories from the historical record while opening ancestral lands for pillage and plunder.
Serious Reservations | Kristen Martin
The Trump administration’s erasure of Indigenous history serves a larger project—yet another plunder of land.
thebaffler.com
January 6, 2026 at 4:59 PM
Indian boarding schools sought to strip Native children of their culture. Now, the Trump administration seeks to strip their stories from the historical record while opening ancestral lands for pillage and plunder.
Reposted by Kristen Martin
Who will protect the Earth from the pillage and spillage of mankind? Our new issue, “Bloom and Gloom,” surveys the mess we’ve made of our planet, and describes the terrain on which we stage the battle for its ecological future.
thebaffler.com/issues/no-82
thebaffler.com/issues/no-82
January 6, 2026 at 1:20 PM
Who will protect the Earth from the pillage and spillage of mankind? Our new issue, “Bloom and Gloom,” surveys the mess we’ve made of our planet, and describes the terrain on which we stage the battle for its ecological future.
thebaffler.com/issues/no-82
thebaffler.com/issues/no-82
Reposted by Kristen Martin
My mom died 24 years ago today, so all weekend I've been doing that sort of grief math of thinking about what things were like in 2002, which means I've been thinking about how incredibly dumb it is that our country is once again being led by a bumbling idiot who has gotten us into regime-change war
January 4, 2026 at 9:56 PM
My mom died 24 years ago today, so all weekend I've been doing that sort of grief math of thinking about what things were like in 2002, which means I've been thinking about how incredibly dumb it is that our country is once again being led by a bumbling idiot who has gotten us into regime-change war
Reposted by Kristen Martin
The muffling of critical voices compromises consumer choice. A dollar a word would help critics make a living wage. nwu.org/join
Illustration by @colleentie.bsky.social
Illustration by @colleentie.bsky.social
December 22, 2025 at 4:03 PM
The muffling of critical voices compromises consumer choice. A dollar a word would help critics make a living wage. nwu.org/join
Illustration by @colleentie.bsky.social
Illustration by @colleentie.bsky.social
I posted a picture of my dog wearing boots
What’s the funniest reason someone got mad at you on Bluesky this year?
December 30, 2025 at 9:38 PM
I posted a picture of my dog wearing boots