Sometimes you just want to know. Sometimes (these times? yes!) you just want to bust right out with the question, “Is American Democracy Going to Die?” …and get a good, strong answer from a good, strong historian.
Meet (if you haven’t yet had the pleasure) Ruth Ben-Ghiat.
Dr. Ben-Ghiat is not who you turn to when you want warm fuzzies, or discussions about M ‘n’ M’s and Gary the Apple Guy. For that, see my previous posts about Heather Cox Richardson and Joanne Freeman–both serious historians who often take a break from the serious. I have never seen Dr. RBG (yep, RBG!) do more than crack a smile; I’m not sure if she knows how to giggle.
That’s fine. Sometimes I need it straight. Like her book…which pretty much predicted our current predicament. (Click here to buy it from your favorite indie bookstore.)
If part of what bolsters you, in these fraught days, is the notion that this shit HAS happened before…that there IS a playbook for what’s happening in Washington DC…and that said playbook HAS been defeated…look no further than Dr. RBG.
I will leave it there for now. Stay strong, folks. Pay attention to the wise ones. Then pick whatever you can do and do it!
Read Dr. RBG’s book. Join a phone bank. Help someone register to vote. Talk to your loved ones. Keep your chin up.
That big laugh. That scoop-you-in enthusiasm. And while she doesn’t own a pet lizard like the famous Magic School Bus teacher, Joanne does have Rosie the Resistance Bird, the parakeet whose occasional shrieks feature prominently on her podcasts.
But almost every pod I’ve seen of her, she’s giggling. Or crowing, “LIVE!” (then laughing at her own glee). If what you need in these days of constant heartache and gut-wrenching worry about our vulnerable fellow Americans, environment, and democracy is a reminder of the “power of We”…Joanne Freeman is your woman.
Aside from her piercing insights on things like the role of white supremacy in our nation’s current shitshow state, and her abiding love for Alexander Hamilton, my favorite thing about Joanne Freeman is her tenderness with her listeners. “A Few Thoughts For Those Who Can’t Sleep” kind of says it all, doesn’t it? (Though her buddy HCR jokes that most folks call it “Freeman After Dark.) She’s there for us–literally.
At the end of each of these late-night (or evening, if you’re on Western time) sessions, Dr. Freeman has a set of rituals guaranteed to warm your heart. With a sense of joyful ceremony, she holds these items up, one at a time:
a whistle: to remind us to look out for each other, and stand up for each other, like the people in Minneapolis
2. a little tin labelled “Chutzpah”: to remind us to “Be strong and of good courage,” a quote from a onetime professor of hers, which she uses as a mantra
Who doesn’t need this?????
When it comes to Dr. Joanne Freeman, I say: Come for the scholarship. Stay for the…
And in navigating this current turbulence—both national, and, more recently in my case, personal—she’s also my North Star. (Here I confess I don’t actually know if Polaris forms part of what mariners look to…but I know the North Star led folks out of slavery, and that’s the choppiest chop there is. So: let’s roll with it.)
(image by Andres Nieto Porras, courtesy Wikimedia Commons)
Reading and listening to HCR (especially listening; her voice is so calm) has been keeping my keel evened since the 2024 debacle election. If you’re reading this, you’re probably in the HCR choir so I should quit preaching. But just in case you’re not…
Through her Letters From an American series, HCR puts the daily outrages of the current regime into perspective. Yes, this is horrible…but it also looks a lot like the 1850s. The 1890s. The 1920s. Etc.
1850s attempted murder in the Senate, anyone? (courtesy Wikimedia)
Through her Politics Chats, (on YouTube, Substack and Facebook) HCR draws a line through the chaos, connecting dots, allowing us to see patterns, to understand. What do all these awful news stories have in common? Grift. Corruption. White supremacy. Etc.
(Plus she has an adorable habit of reading aloud all the towns and countries people beam in from to listen to her livestream.)
Through her current 250 to 250 series—which should seriously win some kind of media prize—HCR reminds us what it means to have pride and joy in our own country, its government, lands, history. Want to celebrate America’s 250th more meaningfully than watching a cage fight? Here are 250 1-minute snippets on everything that makes us US.
(Most of the 250 are narrated by other people, some famous, some just appropriate. Heather herself only narrates two…but it’s telling which two she chose.)
HCR is also fun and funny. My favorite podcasts are her weekly(ish) chats with fellow American historian Joanne Freeman, “What the Heck Just Happened.” There, serious unpacking of the week’s stuff comes with healthy discussion of M ‘n’ Ms, cleaning your bathroom, and Gary the Apple Guy, and they end each session telling each other “I love you.” Can’t begin to express what a balm this is.
If you’ve clicked on some of the above links, you’ve now found your way into HCR World, but just to be clear: look for Heather Cox Richardson on YouTube, on Substack, or just Google her and see what pops up.
I guarantee you will feel heartened, bolstered, and…guided. Sail on!
