Racism

America’s Altar of Guns Explained
What explains the worship of guns in America? It’s long been a mystery to many. Historian Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz says guns have always been central to the insistent belief that God gave America to white Christian males. America’s first industry was

No Common Ground for Confederate Monuments
The monuments to Confederate leaders are all about altering the realities of history to empower and enforce old mythic beliefs. They are there on courthouse lawns to remind black southerners of their place. One this show, Southern historian Karen Cox

Hands in His Pockets as He Kills George Floyd
The message of his calm kneeling and centuries of racist violence is: you could be next, black person. Chauvin knew only 1% of police killing black people are even prosecuted. There have been others caught on film in broad daylight

Border Crisis? How About A Right to Stay Home
Americans talk about the surge at the border, but the real point is everyone has a right to stay home. Today’s guest Avi Chomsky says that under Biden, Trump’s cement wall is instead outsourced to a militarized high-tech barrier. Do

Stronger than Ever : The One World Idea is Back
Fierce nationalism and the insistence that the US is indispensable to organize the world has played itself out. With awareness of climate change, worldwide opposition to racism, and the avoidable persistence of great poverty, could this be the time once

A Carnival of Breaking Stuff and Lynching: January 6th
So much we have to learn from January 6th. On the first part of today’s show History Professor Robert Schneider calls it a “Populist Transgression,” without a legitimate grievance. Other uprisings and disruptions are purposeful. He likens Trump to Mao:

A Surprising Team for Justice: Malcolm X and Martin Luther King
They are often pictured as competitive opponents, but Malcolm X and Martin Luther King were “The Sword and the Shield” leading the same revolution with the shared goal of human dignity. On this show, Dr Peniel Joseph talks about his

Demilitarizing Our Democracy
What is this powerful hold the Pentagon has over our “civilian” government? Since Clinton’s presidency both parties have felt a need to look tough on defense; Biden and Trump competed for military support. That may be changing as America sees

Broke In America: Policies Not People Are To Blame
When one thinks of people in poverty, what judgements come up? Did you know that the vast majority are working often two or three jobs? When you go to a bank or a mortgage, do they ask you how much

Occupy Wall St. 2011 Was Just The Start
From its birth in one block in New York City to more than a thousand town squares, the conversation began ten years ago. It was the first social media driven movement and as Heather McKee Hurwitz writes in her new

New President: New Better Mideast Policy?
No one likes an outside power coming in and having control over them. But that’s exactly what has pervaded the Middle East for over a hundred years. Some of the effects of America’s recent wars there include epidemics of birth

2020 Not the Worst Election; 1876 Was
It was either another civil war or ratify a backroom deal to choose the next president. In that deal, the rights of newly emancipated people were sacrificed. Moving on from abolition, white northerners figured locking in white supremacy and the

The Beginning of the End for National Cruelty?
With his gleeful displays of cruelty, is it possible that Donald Trump performed the service of waking us all up to cruelty commonly in national and corporate policy? In his new book, Cruelty or Humanity: Challenges, Opportunities, and Responsibilities Australian

Ending the Drug War Got More Votes Than Biden or Trump
It was a momentous election. In blue states and red, voters overwhelmingly passed measures legalizing cannabis and, in Oregon, decriminalizing all drugs. So many people have been hurt, families have been separated, and the drug war has failed miserably to

Greek Fascist Party Convicted as a Criminal Gang
They went from a tiny group at the fringe to the third largest political party in Greece. In the birthplace of democracy, after a five year trial, the most significant anti-fascist trial since Nuremberg, the Golden Dawn has been convicted.

Voting in Indian Country, A View from the Trenches
We know about voter suppression against African Americans but what about Indigenous Americans, Indians? The effort to disenfranchise the 2% of the national population is not a secret, yet nearly unknown. On this show author Jean Schroedel shares disturbing findings

Anti-Racist Feminism Key To Covid, Environmental Solutions
How did we get in this mess in the first place? Will little tweaks allow America to effectively address climate change, racism, and the deadly pandemic? Author Northeastern University professor Jennie C. Stephens argues that there is a “polluter elite”

Women Lead March to Health Coverage
Significant historic change it seems is often led by women. The movement for universal health care is not exception. Women telling their stories, leading from where they are is the key ingredient. In her new book Marching Toward Coverage, author

Racism in the Women’s Suffrage Movement
There’s a brand new Central Park monument of feminist leaders Stanton, Anthony, and Sojourner Truth. It was a hundred years ago that the 19th Amendment became law: women won the right to vote. But what kind of compromises did the

Armed Poll Watchers: To Protect or Intimidate?
Blurring the lines between law enforcement and vigilantism, why are off duty police at the polling stations mainly in black and brown neighborhoods? New Jersey in 1981 is a case study in what has happened and most likely will happen

Black and Indian, Kamala Harris: A New Mandate?
She is exactly what Trumpists hate: a strong woman who is both black and Indian. Both groups were the subjects of white male dominance and control. American slavery and British rule over India both had their peak at the same

We’re all Historians Now!
With the killing of George Floyd and the resulting rage in the streets, this is a year like none other. Old reassuring myths are falling away. Statues are being ripped down. What is still worth preserving? Can we use today’s

Supreme Court Brings Back Legal Discrimination
By intentionally eroding the traditional wall of separation between church and state, the current Supreme Court is essentially overturning anti-discrimination laws. Under new rulings in the name of “religious liberty,” the right wing dominated court allows institutions receiving public money

Deeper Than You Thought: White Christian Privilege
It goes back to the 1300s actually and not just non-Christian people are affected; we all are. Often in subtle but meaningful ways. The understanding of the meaning of “patriotism” is involved. When one has this privilege, less exertion is

Reagan’s Dog Whistles Worked; Trump Missed That Lesson
In 1980, candidate Ronald Reagan had the advisors and discipline to be subtle enough about racist messages. Southern white fundamentalists and the NAACP’s Ralph Abernathy all endorsed him for president. As our guest author Rick Perlstein says, Trump turned a
When There is No Option But North
What would make you leave your home and family and friends? And head to a country whose president hates you? Especially in a time of Covid 19, what would possibly motivate you to take this extreme step? In her new

Covid 19 Fuels Far Right Rage
You’ve seen the pictures: heavily armed angry protesters at state houses demanding an end to stay at home orders. They call such safety measures “medical martial law,” and see it as the start of government tyranny, providing them with a

Recognizing Damaged Heritage Brings Real Racial Healing
You never heard of the Elaine Race Massacre, right? In Arkansas, in the times after World War One, black people wanted to form a union. That did not sit well with the racist culture. In 1919, a massacre of over

The System is Sick, More than the Coronavirus
The novel coronavirus is forcing us to see that the very economic structure of America itself is in ill health. We know more poor Americans are dying, they can’t work from home and stay safe. All of us depend on

Why Have We Not Gotten Smart About Race?
When some say African Americans can also be racist, that is not accurate. So says noted sociologist and author Margaret L. Andersen. Individuals can be prejudiced, sure, but racism is linked to a system of power. Since there is no