What does it mean to celebrate America on its 250th anniversary?
The Trump administration’s festivities — from the U.F.C. fight on the White House lawn to the Great American State Fair — have centered American glory and greatness. What has been missing are the Americans who fought to move America closer to its promises. They had to love a country — or at least believe in a country — that often failed them. How did they do it?
Beneath that is a deep question for anyone who loves a country, or even loves another person: How do you love something in its wholeness, amid its imperfections and failures?
One person who is thinking deeply about how to do this is Bryan Stevenson. He’s a civil rights lawyer and the founder of the Equal Justice Initiative, which is based in Montgomery, Ala. E.J.I. has created a series of museums and sites in Montgomery that aim to examine America’s history of enslavement, racial violence and segregation, while also uplifting and honoring the people who endured these systems and fought to upend them.
The sites are remarkable to witness, as I found out when I visited Montgomery, and they hold America’s manifold truths in tension with one another — all its horror and beauty, tragedy and triumph, inhumanity and humanity.
I asked Stevenson how he’s thinking about America’s 250th birthday — and what work the country has left to fulfill its vision of liberty and equality for all.
Mentioned:
<a href="https://legacysites.eji.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Legacy Sites, Equal Justice Initiative</a>
<a href="https://penguinrandomhousehighereducation.com/book/?isbn=9780812984965" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Just Mercy</a> by Bryan Stevenson
<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/08/14/magazine/1619-america-slavery.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The 1619 Project</a>
<a href="https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/The-Presidents-Advisory-1776-Commission-Final-Report.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The 1776 Report</a>
<a href="https://www.apartheidmuseum.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Apartheid Museum</a>
Book Recommendations:
<a href="https://www.harpercollins.com/products/their-eyes-were-watching-god-zora-neale-hurston?variant=43016254521378" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Their Eyes Were Watching God</a> by Zora Neale Hurston
<a href="https://www.harpercollins.com/products/les-miserables-victor-hugo?variant=40827705393186" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Les Misérables</a> by Victor Hugo
<a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/42256/the-brothers-karamazov-by-fyodor-dostoevsky/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Brothers Karamazov</a> by Fyodor Dostoevsky
Thoughts? Guest suggestions? Email us at ezrakleinshow@nytimes.com.
You can find transcripts (posted midday) and more episodes of “The Ezra Klein Show” at <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/column/ezra-klein-podcast" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">nytimes.com/ezra-klein-podcast</a>, and you can find Ezra on Twitter @ezraklein. Book recommendations from all our guests are listed at <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/article/ezra-klein-show-book-recs.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://www.nytimes.com/article/ezra-klein-show-book-recs</a>.
This episode of “The Ezra Klein Show” was produced by Annie Galvin. Fact-checking by Kelsey Lannin. Audio by Jeff Geld and Johnny Simon Our executive producer is Claire Gordon. The show’s production team also includes Marie Cascione, Michelle Harris, Rollin Hu, Kristin Lin, Emma Kehlbeck, Jack McCordick, Marina King and Jan Kobal. Original music by Marion Lozano and Pat McCusker. Audience strategy by Shannon Busta. The director of New York Times Opinion Shows is Annie-Rose Strasser. Special Thanks to Sonia Kapadia, Tania Cordes, Danielle Carrasquero and the Equal Justice Initiative.
Subscribe today at <a href="http://nytimes.com/podcasts">nytimes.com/podcasts</a> or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher">https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher</a>. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See <a href="https://pcm.adswizz.com">pcm.adswizz.com</a> for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Podurama

Home

Trending

Personal

Your Podcasts

New Episodes

My Files

Favourite Episodes

Tags (Folders)

Recently Played

Bookmarks

Followed Playlists

The America That’s Still Possible

The Ezra Klein Show

AI Chapters

AI Insights

Reviews