A month before this Independence Day, a group of 100 scholars warned about “the recent deterioration of U.S. democracy.” America has been covering this topic from all angles; here are highlights from our archives.

Activists who oppose the death penalty said the Justice Department’s temporary stop of federal executions is a step in the right direction — but not enough.

The Justice Department is halting federal executions after a historic use of capital punishment by the Trump administration, which carried out 13 executions in six months.

“Essential” workers have returned to “normal,” confronting the low wages, poor-to-no benefits—including no paid sick time or company-sponsored health insurance—they faced before the crisis.

Pro-lifers and pro-choicers should both want to help women and families be in a place to choose to have another child.

The pope said business leaders should shift their focus to production, creating jobs and “investing in the common good, not hiding money in tax havens.”