Twenty-four years ago, I was living in Washington D.C. while studying at the University of Maryland. I came back to America in August of 2016, this time with my family. It was just a few months before Trump's election. As I settled in the US and tried to understand why Trump got elected, I noticed how much the country had changed.
I believe that two major crises have determined the shape of what the country is today: the terrorist attacks on 9/11 and the subprime economic crisis in 2008.
Then came Trump. A man loved by half the country for being anti-elite, playing tough, and speaking his mind and hated by the other half for pretty much the same reasons. Trump has polarized America and the world at large, pushing what we thought was politically possible. Lies and mediocrity became the new normal.
For a year now, with this podcast, Back in America, I have been exploring and questioning America's culture, values, and identity. In every episode, I ask my guests “What is America?”. Quite often, they say that America is a story, an idea in the making.
By many standards, the 2020 election is historical and will once again help define what America is. The pandemic, the foreign interferences, the mistrust in the democratic voting process, and now the legal attacks against Biden's victory.
I have asked Americans what they thought of the outcome of the election.
Here they are:Jake Hoffman, the president of the Tampa Bay Young Republicans.
Mark Charles, an independent candidate who ran in the 2020 Presidential Election who holds dual citizenship to the United States and the Navajo Nation.
https://twitter.com/wirelesshogan
Previous episode https://pod.fo/e/a048d and https://pod.fo/e/a048e
Richard Heinberg, a Senior Fellow at the Post Carbon Institute, and one of the world’s foremost advocates for a shift away from our current reliance on fossil fuels.
https://twitter.com/richardheinberg
Live Interview
David Treibs, a Constitutionalist, Christian, and gun-rights activists from Fredericksburg, Texas.
Previous episode https://pod.fo/e/a2f78
Live Interview
Chivona Renee Newsome, co-founder of the Black Lives Matter chapter in Greater NY.
https://twitter.com/newyorkvonni
Live Interview
Majid Padellan, social justice warrior, social media expert, Twitter celebrity, an author, a digital designer, and a proud father of 5. His Twitter handle is BrooklynDad_Defiant.
https://twitter.com/mmpadellan
Previous episode https://pod.fo/e/9f4f2
Live Interview
Read the Transcript
Hilary Porta - "I had to be broken so I could be used": a story of rebuilding one's life to help others become unstoppable
Elan Leibner - From Israel kibbutz to the Waldorf School of Princeton: a story of passion for education
Councilwoman Leticia Fraga - From Mexico to Princeton, NJ - A story of immigration and integration in America
Chris Tyler - Part 3 of 3 - On white men's privileges and reparations to African-Americans
Chris Tyler - Part 2 of 3 - Helping men break free from trauma and abusive behaviors
Chris Tyler - Part 1 of 3 - A carpenter becomes a Zen monk for a year
Cassandra Shuck - A survivor of abuse now leads a women-only marketing agency for women business owners
Seattle Adventurer Erden Eruç and his wife Nancy Board reflect on love, depression and a Viking expedition
Denis Devine - Fishtown, Philly - a non-traditional dad, an engaged citizen, a climate activist
Liliana Morenilla - A life dedicated to immigrants in Princeton, NJ
Sheri Kurdakul CEO of VictimVoice tells her story of abuse that started when she was a toddler
Author Robert Kandell talks about the American Man and Toxic Masculinity
Toby Fraser - Men Explore Their Masculinity in Philadelphia
Eric Marsh - Being a black man today in America
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