April 2022

by Michael W. Clune,

[Letter from Istanbul]

The Spies Next Door

China’s covert campaign to intimidate Uighur exiles

by John Beck,

[Letter from Shasta County]

Notes on the State of Jefferson

A secessionist movement brews in northern California

by James Pogue,

Harper’s Magazine welcomes reader response.

Email us about articles in the magazine.

[Harper’s Index]

Minimum number of hamsters executed by the Hong Kong government because of COVID-19 exposure : 2,229

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage by which U.S. military spending has increased since the withdrawal from Afghanistan : 5

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of Afghans who are expected to be living in poverty in August : 97

[Harper’s Index]

Minimum number of U.S. immigration history requests held up because of pandemic rules on records storage : 350,000

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage change since 2017 in the number of Republicans who say military officers have “high standards of ethics” : –21

[Harper’s Index]

Minimum number of people who reported relatives to the FBI for participating in the January 6 U.S. Capitol riot : 15

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of U.S. representatives facing ethics investigations last year who refused to cooperate : 1/2

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of Americans who have favorable views of both capitalism and socialism : 1/5

[Harper’s Index]

Who have unfavorable views of both capitalism and socialism : 1/5

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage change since 2019 in U.S. labor union membership : –4

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of Americans who have considered committing suicide in response to political developments : 5

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of Americans who think Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech is no longer relevant : 1/4

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage by which Republicans are more likely than Democrats to think so : 94

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage by which more white men than black men died of drug overdoses in 2015 : 51

[Harper’s Index]

By which more black men than white men died of drug overdoses in 2020 : 22

[Harper’s Index]

Estimated portion of overdose deaths in the first half of 2021 that involved fentanyl : 2/3

[Harper’s Index]

Number of U.S. states in which it is illegal to possess fentanyl test strips : 30

[Harper’s Index]

Estimated percentage decrease in U.S. condom sales since the start of the pandemic : 8

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of Americans earning less than $50,000 who cite wedding costs as a reason for not marrying : 3/10

[Harper’s Index]

Estimated portion of married Americans who have considered divorce in the past six months : 1/4

[Harper’s Index]

Number of the one hundred most-watched TV broadcasts last year that were NFL games : 92

[Harper’s Index]

Factor by which Americans spent more time listening to the radio last year than to podcasts : 6

[Harper’s Index]

Amount of time, in years, viewers spent watching livestreams of Grand Theft Auto V on Twitch last year : 214,309

[Harper’s Index]

Minimum number of total views for TikTok videos tagged with #MentalHealth : 25,100,000,000

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of U.S. adults who have struggled with basic decisions like what to eat or wear since the start of the pandemic : 1/3

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of U.S. adults who say their closets contain many things they will never wear again : 3/4

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage decrease in spending on dental care since the start of the pandemic : 9.5

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of U.S. pet owners who say they take their pet’s health more seriously than their own : 7/10

[Harper’s Index]

Minimum number of dogs in the United States on anti-anxiety medication : 10,350,000

[Harper’s Index]

Minimum number of hamsters executed by the Hong Kong government because of COVID-19 exposure : 2,229

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage by which U.S. military spending has increased since the withdrawal from Afghanistan : 5

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of Afghans who are expected to be living in poverty in August : 97

[Harper’s Index]

Minimum number of U.S. immigration history requests held up because of pandemic rules on records storage : 350,000

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage change since 2017 in the number of Republicans who say military officers have “high standards of ethics” : –21

[Harper’s Index]

Minimum number of people who reported relatives to the FBI for participating in the January 6 U.S. Capitol riot : 15

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of U.S. representatives facing ethics investigations last year who refused to cooperate : 1/2

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of Americans who have favorable views of both capitalism and socialism : 1/5

[Harper’s Index]

Who have unfavorable views of both capitalism and socialism : 1/5

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage change since 2019 in U.S. labor union membership : –4

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage of Americans who have considered committing suicide in response to political developments : 5

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of Americans who think Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech is no longer relevant : 1/4

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage by which Republicans are more likely than Democrats to think so : 94

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage by which more white men than black men died of drug overdoses in 2015 : 51

[Harper’s Index]

By which more black men than white men died of drug overdoses in 2020 : 22

[Harper’s Index]

Estimated portion of overdose deaths in the first half of 2021 that involved fentanyl : 2/3

[Harper’s Index]

Number of U.S. states in which it is illegal to possess fentanyl test strips : 30

[Harper’s Index]

Estimated percentage decrease in U.S. condom sales since the start of the pandemic : 8

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of Americans earning less than $50,000 who cite wedding costs as a reason for not marrying : 3/10

[Harper’s Index]

Estimated portion of married Americans who have considered divorce in the past six months : 1/4

[Harper’s Index]

Number of the one hundred most-watched TV broadcasts last year that were NFL games : 92

[Harper’s Index]

Factor by which Americans spent more time listening to the radio last year than to podcasts : 6

[Harper’s Index]

Amount of time, in years, viewers spent watching livestreams of Grand Theft Auto V on Twitch last year : 214,309

[Harper’s Index]

Minimum number of total views for TikTok videos tagged with #MentalHealth : 25,100,000,000

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of U.S. adults who have struggled with basic decisions like what to eat or wear since the start of the pandemic : 1/3

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of U.S. adults who say their closets contain many things they will never wear again : 3/4

[Harper’s Index]

Percentage decrease in spending on dental care since the start of the pandemic : 9.5

[Harper’s Index]

Portion of U.S. pet owners who say they take their pet’s health more seriously than their own : 7/10

[Harper’s Index]

Minimum number of dogs in the United States on anti-anxiety medication : 10,350,000

[Harper’s Index]

Estimated portion of passengers on private jets who fly with a pet : 1/4

[Harper’s Index]

Minimum number of Instagram influencers who have cloned a pet : 12

[Harper’s Index]

Number of dogs cloned for law enforcement purposes in Iowa : 52

[Harper’s Index]

Minimum number of COVID-19 outbreaks recorded among animal populations : 645

[Harper’s Index]

Minimum number of hamsters executed by the Hong Kong government because of COVID-19 exposure : 2,229

Readings

[Essay]

White Rapture

by Margo Jefferson,

[How-to]

Make It a Double

[Interrogation]

A Man of All Reasons

by Mark Shiffman,

[Cargo]

In the Air Tonight

[Assessment]

We Need to Talk About Kitty

[Memoir]

Another Land

by Lawrence Jackson,

[Guide]

Pearls of Wisdom

by James Max,

[Sentencing]

Lawn & Order

[Feuilleton]

No News Is Bad News

by Isaac Bashevis Singer,

[Diary]

End Notes

by Elias Canetti,Translated by Peter Filkins,

[Fiction]

Remains of the Day

by Colin Barrett,

[Poem]

Family Story

by Pamela Mordecai,

A photograph by Paul Guilmoth from At Night Gardens Grow, which was published last year by Stanley/Barker.

Courtesy the artist and Stanley/Barker

Untitled, 1982, a painting by June Edmonds, whose work was on view last month at Loyola Marymount University’s Laband Art Gallery, in Los Angeles.

The artist. Collection of Dr. Lucia Edmonds. Courtesy Luis De Jesus Los Angeles and Laband Art Gallery, Los Angeles

Drawing for The Head & The Load (Landscape with Waterfall), by William Kentridge, whose work was on view last month at Alexander Berggruen, in New York City.

The artist. Courtesy Alexander Berggruen, New York City

Limestone Wall, a painting by Hurvin Anderson, whose work is on view at Tate Britain, in London.

The artist. Courtesy Thomas Dane Gallery, London

“White Horse and The Lake, 2021,” an artwork by Anja Niemi, whose work was on view in January at the Ravestijn Gallery, in Amsterdam.

The artist. Courtesy the Ravestijn Gallery, Amsterdam

Artwork by Miroslav Sekulic-Struja from Petar & Liza, a graphic novel, which was published this year by Actes Sud. Sekulic-Struja’s work was on view in February at Galerie Martel, in Paris.

The artist. Courtesy Galerie Martel, Paris

A photograph by Paul Guilmoth from At Night Gardens Grow, which was published last year by Stanley/Barker.

Courtesy the artist and Stanley/Barker

Untitled, 1982, a painting by June Edmonds, whose work was on view last month at Loyola Marymount University’s Laband Art Gallery, in Los Angeles.

The artist. Collection of Dr. Lucia Edmonds. Courtesy Luis De Jesus Los Angeles and Laband Art Gallery, Los Angeles

Drawing for The Head & The Load (Landscape with Waterfall), by William Kentridge, whose work was on view last month at Alexander Berggruen, in New York City.

The artist. Courtesy Alexander Berggruen, New York City

Limestone Wall, a painting by Hurvin Anderson, whose work is on view at Tate Britain, in London.

The artist. Courtesy Thomas Dane Gallery, London

“White Horse and The Lake, 2021,” an artwork by Anja Niemi, whose work was on view in January at the Ravestijn Gallery, in Amsterdam.

The artist. Courtesy the Ravestijn Gallery, Amsterdam

Artwork by Miroslav Sekulic-Struja from Petar & Liza, a graphic novel, which was published this year by Actes Sud. Sekulic-Struja’s work was on view in February at Galerie Martel, in Paris.

The artist. Courtesy Galerie Martel, Paris

A photograph by Paul Guilmoth from At Night Gardens Grow, which was published last year by Stanley/Barker.

Courtesy the artist and Stanley/Barker

[Letters]

A skull previously thought to belong to Cleopatra’s sister was found to be that of an Italian boy with a deformed jaw.

[Findings]

The collapse of the Qing Dynasty was driven by the quadrupling of its population and consequent rural impoverishment, an overabundance of qualified applicants for elite academic degrees, rising costs and trade deficits, and falling productivity, which were variously associated with internal unrest, opium imports, and the depletion of silver reserves.

[Findings]

Men can rate the facial attractiveness of women without paying attention, but women cannot do the same for men; gay men find the faces of purportedly fertile women and men more attractive; adolescents and adults both rate the faces of children younger than 4.6 years old as more appealing than those of older children; and body odors associated with fear quicken the visual processing of others’ facial expressions of fear.

[Findings]

The collapse of the Qing Dynasty was driven by the quadrupling of its population and consequent rural impoverishment, an overabundance of qualified applicants for elite academic degrees, rising costs and trade deficits, and falling productivity, which were variously associated with internal unrest, opium imports, and the depletion of silver reserves.

[Findings]

Men can rate the facial attractiveness of women without paying attention, but women cannot do the same for men; gay men find the faces of purportedly fertile women and men more attractive; adolescents and adults both rate the faces of children younger than 4.6 years old as more appealing than those of older children; and body odors associated with fear quicken the visual processing of others’ facial expressions of fear.

Le Repos, by Pablo Picasso 2022 Estate of Pablo Picasso/Artists Rights Society, New York City. Photo Christie’s Images/Succession Picasso/ DACS, London 2022/Bridgeman Images Microfiche

April 2022

Night Shifts

Can technology shape our dreams?

The Spies Next Door

China’s covert campaign to intimidate Uighur exiles

Notes on the State of Jefferson

A secessionist movement brews in northern California

Percentage by which U.S. military spending has increased since the withdrawal from Afghanistan : 5

Readings

White Rapture

Make It a Double

A Man of All Reasons

In the Air Tonight

We Need to Talk About Kitty

Another Land

Pearls of Wisdom

Lawn & Order

No News Is Bad News

End Notes

Remains of the Day

Family Story

Letters

Skiing and Nothingness

Harper’s Index

Night Shifts

Can technology shape our dreams?

Dreamland

The Spies Next Door

China’s covert campaign to intimidate Uighur exiles

The Hothouse

Tracking the past and future spread of ragweed allergies

Notes on the State of Jefferson

A secessionist movement brews in northern California

Two Poems

Worms

New Books

Future Nostalgia

Jennifer Egan’s old-world internet novel

Who Killed Louis Le Prince?

On the forgotten father of film

Heads or Tails

See the solution to last month’s puzzle

Findings

A skull previously thought to belong to Cleopatra’s sister was found to be that of an Italian boy with a deformed jaw.