Episode 6: Those Who Control the Past

Bonus Episode: Group Psychology & The Path to Extremism

This podcast explores some puzzling historical questions: How were white southerners able to convince themselves that the Lost Cause was true? Why were northerners so open to embracing these lies? How was violence and terror normalized and the cruelty of segregation accepted as a fact of life?   I don’t think you can fully answer those questions without asking deeper questions about human psychology - questions about how we as individuals form beliefs, how groups construct narratives, and how - under the right conditions - these narratives drive extremism, violence, and division. This bonus episode is a conversation with Williams College psychologist Steve Fein that explores the science behind the history of Reconstruction. It uses cutting-edge research on group psychology as a lens to view the events covered in the show - and offers lessons for understanding conflict today.  ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Episode 6: Those Who Control the Past

In the decades following 1876, the white south moves to solidify their power. They enact laws that restrict voting, segregate society, and usher in Jim Crow. Supporting these efforts is a concerted effort to rewrite the history of the war and Reconstruction.   Textbook committees, Confederate statues, and mainstream books and movies warp the country’s understanding of the era. Revisionist histories are embedded into academia and enshrined in law. They perpetuate racist tropes, incite violence, and lead to white supremacist movements around the world. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Episode 5: The Reconstruction Retreat

The white south’s war against Reconstruction has left the north with a choice: double-down on protecting the rights of formerly enslaved people or abandon the project.   With the future of Reconstruction in the balance, the country spends four months awaiting the results of a bitterly contested election. Militia form, Governors discuss using national guard troops to overpower the army, and Congressmen begin carrying pistols for protection.   A makeshift bipartisan commission is formed, but it only sort of works. Many prepare for a second Civil War. An eleventh hour deal saves the Union but results in a major retreat on Reconstruction. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Episode 4: The Whitelash

As Black communities are springing to life, a powerful force is rising to return the south to an age of white rule. The Ku Klux Klan is established in 1865 and other white terrorist groups soon follow suit.   The Lost Cause mythology is born, providing white southerners with a unifying (if inaccurate) narrative and a new vision to rally around: a white-rule south. They advance this vision through violence, propaganda, and voter suppression. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Episode 3: Land of Hope and Dreams

With Lee’s surrender, the country can imagine for the first time what a true, multiracial democracy might look like. Across the country, people work to push America closer to its founding ideals. Laws are passed abolishing slavery, guaranteeing equal protection before the law, granting Black men the right to vote, and banning segregation. Black people acquire land, establish schools, and form churches. There are Black congressmen and Black senators and even a Black Governor. There is hope and progress and a sense of possibility. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.