2 JUL 2024 · Americans put up Liberty Poles to express political beliefs in the period of the Early Republic. These poles were massive, highly decorated, and highly contested. Both Federalists and Anti-Federalists used them to promote their ideas of what the new Republic should reflect in terms of “liberty.” Join us to discuss how different early American political life was compared to the romantic version in the movies! Episode 555.

25 JUN 2024 · Professor Rachel Mesch guides us through three compelling lives and careers in 19th-century France. The lives of French writers, Jane Dieulafoy (1850–1916), Rachilde (1860–1953), and Marc de Montifaud (1845–1912), did not conform to nineteenth-century notions of femininity. In their work, they contested conventional gender norms, and refused to be categorized by traditional gender standards. These three lives tell us much more about late 19th-century France than we previously knew. Episode 554.

18 JUN 2024 · "Juneteenth" (June 19th) is now widely regarded as marking the end of slavery in the United States. Professor Buzzkill examines the many dates related to the abolition of human enslavement in the US. And he pleads for more holidays observing this moral advance! Encore Episode!

12 JUN 2024 · It’s June 12th! Loving Day! Loving Day is being celebrated worldwide. You might think that Loving Day is Valentine’s Day, February 14th, but it’s not, it’s today, June 12th. If you don’t know what Loving Day is, listen to the story we tell you in this brief, special episode. And go to https://lovingday.org to find out more! Encore episode!

11 JUN 2024 · Heather Haley, a civilian historian for the United States Navy, enlightens us about the work of a historian outside traditional academic institutions. She works for the US Naval History and Heritage Command, doing naval history research, finding and preserving historical records related the the Navy and its ships, and writing analytical works. And she encourages young historians to consider careers in this sort of public history. Disclaimer: "The opinions and conclusions expressed in this episode may not necessarily represent those of the Naval History and Heritage Command, the Department of Navy, or the Department of Defense." Episode 553. 

4 JUN 2024 · Dr. Neil Young helps us understand how and why gay Republicans regularly faced condemnation from both the LGBTQ+ community and their own political party. They’ve been active and influential for decades, however. Gay conservatives were instrumental, for example, in ending “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” and securing the legalization of same-sex marriage—but they also helped lay the groundwork for the rise of Donald Trump. Episode 522.

28 MAY 2024 · Ray Boomhower joins us to discuss how the most unlikely of war correspondents, Malcolm W. Browne, became the only Western reporter to capture Buddhist monk Thích Quảng Đức's horrific self-immolation on June 11, 1963. Thích Quảng Đức made his ultimate sacrifice to protest the perceived anti-Buddhist policies of the Catholic-dominated administration of South Vietnam's president Ngo Dinh Diem. And Browne’s photographs shocked the world. Episode 551.

21 MAY 2024 · Professor Richard Toye explains the background and context of Winston Churchill's famous World War II speeches, from how they were written, to how they were delivered, to how the public reacted. Not only is it much more complex than the legend has it, the full history provides us with a much greater understanding of World War II.

14 MAY 2024 · “The Wild West,” is one of the strongest conceptions in American history. But “where” was the west? How “wild” was it? “Who” settled it? Did settlers build the west with their hands? How many of the stories about settlers and Native Americans are myths or misconceptions? Professor Edward O’Donnell helps us explain it all, including the central role that Buffalo Bill played in creating and spreading the story of the “wild west.” 

7 MAY 2024 · Dr. Jesse Curtis shows us how white evangelicals in the 20th century US grew their own institutions and created an evangelical form of whiteness, infusing the politics of colorblindness with sacred fervor. They deployed a Christian brand of colorblindness to protect new investments in whiteness. While black evangelicals used the rhetoric of Christian unity to challenge racism, white evangelicals repurposed this language to silence their black counterparts and retain power. Encore Episode