It’s the Radiotopia Spring Fundraiser! Your support helps foster independent, artist-owned podcasts and award-winning stories. Donate today at https://on.prx.org/3wl9pWn It’s June 1st. This day in 1863, Harriet Tubman led Union soldiers on a nighttime to free some 700 enslaved people in South Carolina. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss the Combahee River Raid, where it fits into Harriet Tubman’s long and varied life, and whether Tubman’s legacy has become flattened and distorted. Learn about your a...
Jun 01, 2021•18 min
It’s the Radiotopia Spring Fundraiser! Your support helps foster independent, artist-owned podcasts and award-winning stories. Donate today at https://on.prx.org/3wl9pWn It’s May 30th. This day in 1921 was the day before a white mob descended on the Greenwood neighborhood of Tulsa, Oklahoma, burning hundreds of buildings to the ground in what was known as “Black Wall Street.” Jody, Niki, and Kellie are joined by Cord Jefferson, writer for the HBO series “Watchmen,” which opens during the massacr...
May 30, 2021•25 min
It’s May 27th. This day in 1939, authorities in Cuba turned away the SS St. Louis, a ship full of Jewish refugees escaping Nazi persecution in Germany. The U.S. and Canada would also turn the ship away, which had to eventually return to Europe. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss the voyage of the St. Louis, and how it helps us understand the way the U.S. has treated refugees throughout history. It’s the Radiotopia Spring Fundraiser! Your support helps foster independent, artist-owned podcasts and aw...
May 27, 2021•15 min
It’s May 25th. This day in 1978, a suspicious package mailed to a university in Chicago blows up. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss the start of what would be a 15-year campaign by Ted Kaczynski to mail packages to universities, airlines, and other people he saw as causing the advance of modernity and the destruction of the environment. Kaczynski would eventually be captured and be known as “The Unabomber.” Find a transcript of this episode at: https://tinyurl.com/esoterichistory This Day In Esoter...
May 25, 2021•18 min
It’s May 23rd. This day in 1944, Texas Democrats hold two competing conventions ahead of the fall’s election, with the party split over FDR’s policies and larger civil rights issues. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss the roots of the split, and the way in which internal fractures within a party can plant the seeds for political re-alignment. Find a transcript of this episode at: https://tinyurl.com/esoterichistory This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If y...
May 23, 2021•14 min
It’s May 20th. This day in 1901, Connecticut passed the first ever speed limit law for automobiles in the United States. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss the chaos of the city streets, the rise of automobile regulation, and how anxieties over speed help define us. Find a transcript of this episode at: https://tinyurl.com/esoterichistory This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you want to support the show directly, you can do so on our website: ThisDayPod...
May 20, 2021•17 min
It’s May 18th. This day in 1992, Vice President Dan Quayle gave a speech about the erosion of “family values” in America, and towards the end criticized the TV show Murphy Brown, in which the main character had recently become a single mother. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss the ensuing controversy, and how it mirrors the culture wars of today. Find a transcript of this episode at: https://tinyurl.com/esoterichistory This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX....
May 18, 2021•17 min
It’s May 16th. This day in 1948, New York Governor Thomas E Dewey and former Minnesota Governor Harold Stassen were preparing for the first nationally broadcast presidential debate. Jody, NIki, and Kellie discuss how the debate came together and the way in which it centered around one provocative question. Find a transcript of this episode at: https://tinyurl.com/esoterichistory This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you want to support the show direc...
May 16, 2021•17 min
It’s May 13th. This day in 1985, the Philadelphia police department ended a standoff with the MOVE group by dropping two firebombs from a helicopter on a rowhouse, which eventually led to an entire city block burning to the ground and 11 people being killed. Jody, Niki, and Kellie are joined by Philly native Gene Demby of NPR’s “Code Switch” podcast to discuss the incident and its aftermath. Find a transcript of this episode at: https://tinyurl.com/esoterichistory This Day In Esoteric Political ...
May 13, 2021•23 min
It’s May 11th. This day in 1934, a massive dust storm swept across the Great Plains, lifting up millions of tons of topsoil and spreading it as far as 300 miles off the coast of New York City. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss the causes of the storm, the way it affected the economy and migration patterns — and the environmental efforts that finally brought the Dust Bowl era to an end. Find a transcript of this episode at: https://tinyurl.com/esoterichistory This Day In Esoteric Political History i...
May 11, 2021•12 min
It’s May 9th. This day in 1877, Lakota leader Sitting Bull leads a large group into Canada to seek refuge from the U.S. Army, which had been pursuing him after he defeated the U.S. in the Battle of Little Bighorn. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss Sitting Bull’s reasons for leaving Canada and why he eventually returned with a much smaller group. Find a transcript of this episode at: https://tinyurl.com/esoterichistory This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. ...
May 09, 2021•13 min
It’s May 6th. This day in 1957, Senator John F Kennedy of Massachusetts was awarded the Pulitzer prize for his book “Profiles in Courage.” Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss the book, which profiled courageous acts by members of Congress throughout American history — many of which have been re-evaluated in the decades since. Plus, a ghostwriting controversy! Find a transcript of this episode at: https://tinyurl.com/esoterichistory This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopi...
May 06, 2021•22 min
It’s May 4th. This day (May 2nd, in fact) in 2011, a group of Navy SEALs raided a compound in Pakistan and killed Osama bin Laden. Jody, Niki, and Kellie are joined by Dan Taberski to discuss the details of the raid, how the news spread across the globe — and what the moment meant for Navy SEALs. Dan’s new podcast series “The Line” explores the physical and psychological pressures on Navy SEALs and why they have started to be more public facing in recent years. Be sure to listen to “The Line” on...
May 04, 2021•25 min
It’s May 2nd. This day in 2003 (actually, May 1st) President George W. Bush gave a speech about the Iraq War on the USS Abraham Lincoln in front of a large banner reading “Mission Accomplished.” Jody, Niki, and Kellie are joined by Slate’s Noreen Malone to discuss the stagecraft of the speech, and how it came at a moment when many people inside and outside the administration still felt as if the Iraq War was a justified and successful effort. Be sure to listen to the new season of SLOW BURN, hos...
May 02, 2021•19 min
It’s April 29th. This day in 1854, the Ashmun Institute in Pennsylvania is chartered, the first (depending on how you count) university devoted to African-American students. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss the founding of Ashmun, which later changed its name to Lincoln University, and the rise of HBCUs throughout the late 19th century. Plus, Kellie tells us why her alma mater Howard University is (clearly) the best HBCU. Find a transcript of this episode at: https://tinyurl.com/esoterichistory Th...
Apr 29, 2021•20 min
It’s April 27th. This day in 1982, John Hinckley went on trial for the attempted assassination of President Reagan. Hinckley’s lawyers would mount a successful insanity defense, based on his fixation with actress Jodie Foster. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss the way the trial played out, why Foster was forced to testify, and how this trial played into the larger conversation — and criminalization — of mental health conditions in the 1980s. Find a transcript of this episode at: https://tinyurl.com...
Apr 27, 2021•19 min
It’s April 25th. This day in 1800, President John Adams approved the appropriation of $5000 for the initial collection of the Library of Congress. Jody, Niki, and Kellie are joined by special guest Kerri Greenidge of Tufts to discuss the founding of the library, how the collection kept being lost to fire — and what it means fro something to be included or not included in a nation’s library. Kerri Greenidge’s latest book is “Black Radical: The Life and Times of William Monroe Trotter.” Check it o...
Apr 25, 2021•21 min
It’s April 22nd. This day in 1889, tens of thousands of people gathered in the middle of “unassigned territory” to wait for the signal at high noon — at which point they rushed to claim their free land in what would, overnight, become Oklahoma City. Jody, NIki, and Kellie are joined by Sam Anderson of the New York Times Magazine to talk about the Oklahoma land rush, the chaos of those first few days, and how the forming of OKC represents modern America. Sam’s book about Oklahoma City is called “...
Apr 22, 2021•26 min
It’s April 20th. This day in 1787, Congress authorized the production of the country’s first coin. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss the “Fugio cent,” designed — some say over-designed — by Ben Franklin, and what it meant for a new country to have a proper coin. Find a transcript of this episode at: https://tinyurl.com/esoterichistory This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you want to support the show directly, you can do so on our website: ThisDayPod.co...
Apr 20, 2021•12 min
It’s April 18th. This day in 1809, a man by the name of John Freeman writes a letter to Thomas Jefferson, asking that Jefferson transfer his indentured servitude contract to incoming president James Madison. Jody, Niki, and Kellie talk about the life of John Freeman, the role of enslaved people in building the White House, and the star-crosssed-lovers story at the heart of it all. Find a transcript of this episode at: https://tinyurl.com/esoterichistory This Day In Esoteric Political History is ...
Apr 18, 2021•15 min
It’s April 15th. On this day in 1996, Oprah Winfrey hosted a segment on her show about “Mad Cow Disease” and proclaimed that she would no longer eat beef. That same day, cattle futures plummeted, and she was soon sued by the cattle industry. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss the power of Oprah, the “veggie libel laws” and how she turned the trial into both television and a free speech crusade. Find a transcript of this episode at: https://tinyurl.com/esoterichistory This Day In Esoteric Political H...
Apr 15, 2021•21 min
It’s April 13th. This day in 1953, the CIA started the secretive MK Ultra program, which experimented on unwitting subjects to determine the effects of LSD and other drugs. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss some of the program’s tactics, the intelligence community’s obsession with “mind control,” and the legacy of the secretive program. Find a transcript of this episode at: https://tinyurl.com/esoterichistory This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you wa...
Apr 13, 2021•19 min
It’s April 11th. This day in 1866, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is founded. Jody, Niki, Kellie and special guest Anne Helen Petersen discuss the rise of animal welfare groups, and how they reflected a growing conversation about morality, labor, child cruelty, and more. Be sure to subscribe to Anne’s excellent newsletter “Culture Study” https://annehelen.substack.com/ Find a transcript of this episode at: https://tinyurl.com/esoterichistory This Day In Esoteric Po...
Apr 11, 2021•22 min
It’s April 8th. This day in 1986, Clint Eastwood is elected mayor of Carmel-by-the-Sea, a wealthy town of 4,000 in California. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss why Eastwood decided to get into politics, how he want about improving the town, and his political life in the decades since. Find a transcript of this episode at: https://tinyurl.com/esoterichistory This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you want to support the show directly, you can do so on ou...
Apr 08, 2021•19 min
It’s April 6th. This day in 1712, a group of enslaved people start a fire in New York City aimed at sparking a larger rebellion. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss the slave rebellion of 1712, the landscape of slavery in New York City at that time, and the brutal crackdown to the revolt. Find a transcript of this episode at: https://tinyurl.com/esoterichistory This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you want to support the show directly, you can do so on o...
Apr 06, 2021•18 min
It’s April 4th. This day in 1967, Martin Luther King, Jr delivers his “Beyond Vietnam” speech at Riverside Church in New York City. Jody, Niki, and Kellie are joined by Peniel Joseph of UT-Austin to discuss the speech, King’s anti-war stance, and the reaction to his remarks at the time. Peniel’s latest book is “The Sword and the Shield.” Find a transcript of this episode at: https://tinyurl.com/esoterichistory This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If yo...
Apr 04, 2021•18 min
It’s April 1st. This day in the early 1980s, a surprising discovery at Mt Vernon. Jody, Niki, and Kellie talk about George Washington, conspiracy theories, and more. Find a transcript of this episode at: https://tinyurl.com/esoterichistory This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you want to support the show directly, you can do so on our website: ThisDayPod.com Get in touch if you have any ideas for future topics, or just want to say hello. Our website...
Apr 01, 2021•18 min
It’s March 30th. This day in 1951, Ethel and Julius Rosenberg are convicted of spying in order to share nuclear secrets with the U.S.S.R. They would be sentenced to death and eventually executed. Jody, NIki, and Kellie are joined by Jamelle Bouie of the New York Times to discuss the case, whether the Rosenberg’s were railroaded, and the larger red-scare context of the time. This is the one-year anniversary of the show! Thanks to everyone who has supported us throughout the year. Find a transcrip...
Mar 30, 2021•19 min
It’s March 28th. This day, in 1979, a partial meltdown at the Three Mile Island nuclear facility outside Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss what led to the crisis, and how poor communications after the fact caused high levels of panic and misinformation. Plus, Jimmy Carter’s unexpectedly competent response. Find a transcript of this episode at: https://tinyurl.com/esoterichistory This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you want to...
Mar 28, 2021•14 min
It’s March 25th. This day in 1933, the USS Sequoia is commissioned as a presidential yacht. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss the long and strange history of presidential boats, from anti-rum-running efforts to secret negotiations and sketchy parties. Find a transcript of this episode at: https://tinyurl.com/esoterichistory This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. If you want to support the show directly, you can do so on our website: ThisDayPod.com Get in to...
Mar 25, 2021•13 min
