Fragility in Liberty

Fragility in Liberty

Many of us associate the Statue of Liberty with the poem mounted on her pedestal: “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.” The monument has become a symbol of immigration. What fewer of us know is that Lady Liberty was originally conceived as a tribute to the abolition of slavery. In fact, what we find as we look into history is that our country's immigration policy is closely intertwined with the end of Reconstruction and rise of Jim Crow. In this episode, we tell the story of one undocumented immigrant—Carlos Aguirre-Venegas—and trace the origins of a little-known law that's now being used to prosecute tens of thousands of people who crossed the border, separate some from their children, and lock them away in federal prisons.

- Jim Elkin is a National Park Ranger at Statue of Liberty National Monument

- Eric Foner is author of The Second Founding

- Kelly Lytle Hernandez is a professor of History, African American Studies, and Urban Planning at UCLA and author of City of Inmates

Hosted by Kai Wright. Reported by Seth Freed Wessler, in partnership with Type Investigations. Produced and edited by Christopher Werth. For more on Seth's reporting about Carlos Aguirre-Venegas and the privately-run prisons used exclusively to incarcerate non-citizens convicted of crimes, see his 2016 investigation in The Nation.

Tell us what you think. We're @noteswithkai on Instagram and X (Twitter). Email us at notes@wnyc.org. Send us a voice message by recording yourself on your phone and emailing us, or record one here.

Notes from America airs live on Sundays at 6 p.m. ET. The podcast episodes are lightly edited from our live broadcasts.

Jaksot(424)

Lessons From a Year in Isolation

Lessons From a Year in Isolation

A first draft of history for 2020, told through three very personal efforts to find -- and keep -- human connection amid a pandemic.  We hear from 13-year-old Adiva Kaisary about how 2020 has complica...

28 Joulu 202049min

The Racist History of Georgia’s Runoff

The Racist History of Georgia’s Runoff

Segregationists gamed the system 57 years ago. But this year, Black organizers may have finally slipped the knot that Jim Crow tied around democracy in the state. Ari Berman, senior reporter at Mother...

21 Joulu 202049min

Tell It To Me Straight, Doc

Tell It To Me Straight, Doc

Two Black physicians describe the racist history the medical world carries into the COVID-19 vaccine rollout -- and answer listeners’ questions about why we should still get vaccinated.  A recent Pew ...

14 Joulu 202048min

ACT UP, Fight Covid

ACT UP, Fight Covid

The HIV epidemic is nearly 40 years old. So what can we learn from that pandemic, as we approach a year of living with COVID-19? When COVID-19 overwhelmed New York City this spring, our executive prod...

7 Joulu 202047min

One Family’s Land of Opportunity

One Family’s Land of Opportunity

A family’s legend about "40 acres and a mule” takes host Kai Wright on a fact checking mission to the Mississippi Delta. He finds an unexpected solution to wealth inequality in the U.S. We first told ...

30 Marras 202051min

MAGA, the New Confederate Lost Cause

MAGA, the New Confederate Lost Cause

White supremacist myths turn defeated leaders into heroic victors. Will Donald Trump now get the same transfiguration as Robert E. Lee? If history is our guide -- as it often is on this show -- then t...

16 Marras 202046min

Meditations on a Bittersweet Election

Meditations on a Bittersweet Election

Dr. Melissa Harris-Perry joins Kai to discuss all of our complex feelings as Donald Trump’s presidency comes to an end. More people voted in this presidential election than ever. But did it resolve an...

9 Marras 202045min

An Invitation To Dream

An Invitation To Dream

Radical imagination is now essential. What can we imagine for our country, our communities, and ourselves beyond this election, and beyond this pandemic? In this episode, we face our fears and dream b...

2 Marras 202048min

Suosittua kategoriassa Politiikka ja uutiset

uutiscast
aikalisa
ootsa-kuullut-tasta-2
politiikan-puskaradio
rss-ootsa-kuullut-tasta
tervo-halme
rss-vaalirankkurit-podcast
rss-pinnalla
otetaan-yhdet
rss-podme-livebox
rss-asiastudio
the-ulkopolitist
et-sa-noin-voi-sanoo-esittaa
rss-tasta-on-kyse-ivan-puopolo-verkkouutiset
aihe
linda-maria
rss-pallo-keskelle-2
rss-polikulaari-pitka-kiekko-ja-muut-ts-podcastit
rss-50100-podcast
rss-girls-finish-f1rst