History That Doesn't Suck

Professor Greg Jackson is interviewed by Professor Ben Sawyer on The Road to Now podcast to discuss Jackson’s new book, Been There, Done That: What Our History Shows What We Can Overcome. As we approach the 250th anniversary of the United States, the conversation centers on the resilience of the American experiment. Rather than viewing the current political climate with despondency, Jackson argues that American history provid...

"What I vividly recall is after getting to Tanforan and walking into this horse stable, and Mom… putting down her suitcase and just crying.”

This is the story of Japanese American incarceration.

In February 1942, shortly after the United States enters the war, FDR signs Executive Order 9066, beginning the forced removal of Japanese Americans from their West Coast homes and lives. Some 120,000 civilians—many of them...

“Will young, freewheeling American boys take the iron discipline of wartime? … In my judgment the answer is Yes! ... if the answers they get are worth fighting and dying for.”

This is the story of propaganda on the home front. 

The word “propaganda” has some messy connotations, but it’s fundamentally about pushing a narrative, which can be good or evil. Leaders on all sides of the war thoug...

“I suggest that while we keep defense and victory in the forefront, that we don't lose sight of our fight for true democracy at home.”

This is the story of life on the American home front. 

While millions of brave men and women are sacrificing life and limb “over there,” those left behind are making sacrifices of their own—heeding the call to grow gardens in their backyards or on community lots, c...

Been There, Done That: How Our History Shows What We Can Overcome, Prof. Jackson’s new book publishing June 16th, takes us on a chronological journey—from the very start of the republic in 1789, through the end of the nineteenth century—while telling stories not heard in the podcast, tales that engage such topics as political violence, fake news, and contested elections.

Pre-order a copy ⁠HERE⁠ or co...

“Everybody’s dead. Don’t ask me about anybody. Everybody’s dead.” 

This is the story of the Final Solution. 

From Anne Frank’s annex to countless ghettos, Jews who have thus far avoided the concentration camps are increasingly being funneled there. Jewish leaders like Chaim Rumkowski face impossible dilemmas—who should be sent to the camps? On the other hand, some Warsaw Ghetto ...

“The procedure is a pretty barbaric one and not to be described here more definitively. Not much will remain of the Jews.” —Joseph Goebbels

This is the story of how the Holocaust becomes industrialized. 

In January 1942, Nazi leaders discuss what will become the “Final Solution”: their plan to murder millions. As more and more Jews are stripped of everything and forced into ghettos, and terrified ...

After turning our attention back to Europe in the last few episodes, it’s time to finally examine the Holocaust. Back in episode 185, we covered a broad history of antisemitism in Europe and the violent results of the first few years of Hitler’s reign in Germany, going all the way to the nationwide November pogrom (also known as Kristallnacht). But before we go any further, we present this interview with the United S...

"My dear Duce, it’s no longer any good… At this moment you are the most hated man in Italy.” 

“This is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is perhaps the end of the beginning.” 

“When do we get a whack at those Germans?”

“It was almost unbelievable, but I was seeing it. Almost simultaneously, three [Japanese] carriers were wiped out. I knew what it meant. By golly, we did it!” 

“We had been promised relief but none was coming, and all of us in Bataan shared a sense of betrayal.”

With the December 1941 surprise attack on the US naval base Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, our story has officially come to the United States’ entry into the Second World War. Professor Jackson told that story in episode 194, and in 193 we covered the long buildup to the war with Japan; yet, the attack on Pearl Harbor is one of those moments of history where the depths of inquiry and knowledge to be gained is almost endless. There i...

“This year very few Hanukkah candles were lit.” / “This is a strange Christmas Eve.”

“Man your battle stations! This is no sh*t!”

“To be perfectly frank, the ways you and I look at the Chinese are fundamentally different. You seem to think of them as human, but I see them as pigs.”

Professor Greg Jackson sits down with legendary documentary filmmaker Ken Burns and his co-producer Sarah Botstein to discuss their newest film series, The American Revolution plus a conversation about their 2007 WWII series, The War.