It’s February 4th. This day in 1877, a hastily assembled commission is meeting to try and sort out the very messy aftermath of the previous fall’s election between Samuel Tilden and Rutherford B. Hayes. Hayes won the popular vote, but in the end, they would hand the election to Hayes after a bargain with southerners that effectively ended reconstruction. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss why the 1876 election was so close, how a few rogue states were able to hold the process hostage — and what the ...
Feb 04, 2024•23 min•Transcript available on Metacast It’s February 1st. This day in 1877, the first Groundhog Day ceremony is held in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania — in which a small rodent’s shadow determines long-term meteorological forces. Jody, Niki and Kellie discuss how this ceremony came to be, and some of the very weird elements, from elixirs of everlasting life to secret societies pulling the strings. Sign up for our newsletter! Get your hands on This Day merch! Find out more at thisdaypod.com This Day In Esoteric Political History is a prou...
Feb 01, 2024•16 min•Transcript available on Metacast It’s January 30th. This day in 1798, representatives Roger Lyon and Matthew Griswold get into a fight on the house floor — with spitting, wrestling, and even a caning. Jody, Niki, and Kellie are joined by Yale history professor Joanne Freeman to talk about why Lyon and Griswold came to blows and what the incident says about the moments of extreme partisanship and violence in American politics. Be sure to check out Joanne’s Friday morning series “ History Matters and So Does Coffee .” Sign up for...
Jan 30, 2024•22 min•Transcript available on Metacast It’s January 28th. This day in 1967, the U.S., U.K., and Russia sign a treaty that, among other things, says that outer space should be off-limits for the testing and deployment of weapons of mass destruction. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss why there was a need for the Outer Space Treaty, and how — despite its important language about nuclear weapons — it left a lot of grey area and confusion about how different countries would take on space exploration. Sign up for our newsletter! Get your hand...
Jan 28, 2024•18 min•Transcript available on Metacast It’s January 25th. This day in 1845, Congress passed a law designating that Americans would henceforth vote on “the first Tuesday after the first Monday of November.” Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss why that day was designated, and the many pitfalls that now exist around the fact that Election Day is only one day, and on a Tuesday. Sign up for our newsletter! Get your hands on This Day merch! Find out more at thisdaypod.com This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia fr...
Jan 25, 2024•18 min•Transcript available on Metacast It’s January 23rd, happy Ed Roberts Day! This day in 2010, the State of California proclaimed this day to commemorate the life and work of the pioneering disability rights activist. Niki, Jody, and Kellie discuss how Roberts got his start in activism when he was denied entry to the University of California in the early 60s, and how his worked continued all the way through the passage of the ADA and beyond. Sign up for our newsletter! Get your hands on This Day merch! Find out more at thisdaypod....
Jan 23, 2024•19 min•Transcript available on Metacast This day, January 19th, 1990, at the end of a joint sting operation by FBI agents and District of Columbia Police, DC Mayor Marion Barry is arrested and charged with drug possession for the use of crack cocaine. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss how the video of the incident went viral, led to an onslaught of scandal and punchlines about Barry — but never fully eroded DC resident’s support for their beloved mayor. Sign up for our newsletter! Get your hands on This Day merch! Find out more at thisda...
Jan 21, 2024•22 min•Transcript available on Metacast It’s January 17th. This day in 1943, the U.S. military has a shiny - and massive - new home. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss how the design of the building came into place, and how construction went into overdrive with U.S. involvement in World War II. Sign up for our newsletter! Get your hands on This Day merch! Find out more at thisdaypod.com This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. Your support helps foster independent, artist-owned podcasts and award-wi...
Jan 18, 2024•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast It’s January 16th. This day in 1811, the aftermath of what came to be known as the “German Coast” uprising in the Orleans territory. Jody, NIki, and Kellie discuss how Charles Deslondes led a slave revolt that became the biggest in US history, and how it was inspired by the Hatian revolution, French ideas of freedom, and more. Sign up for our newsletter! Get your hands on This Day merch! Find out more at thisdaypod.com This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from P...
Jan 16, 2024•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast It’s January 14th. This day in 1986, Ronald Reagan issued a proclamation that January 15th would be a federal holiday recognizing the contributions of Martin Luther King, Jr. Jody, NIki, and Kellie discuss why it took 20 years since King’s assassination for there to be a federal holiday, and how there was active resistance and subversion among many states even after the federal mandate. Sign up for our newsletter! Get your hands on This Day merch! Find out more at thisdaypod.com This Day In Esot...
Jan 14, 2024•23 min•Transcript available on Metacast It’s January 11th. In 1888, a massive and quick-moving storm swept across the American Midwest, trapping hundreds of school-children in their schoolhouses. Jody and Niki discuss why the storm was so severe, and deadly — and how the poor preparation for the storm led to a change in weather forecasting. Sign up for our newsletter! Get your hands on This Day merch! Find out more at thisdaypod.com This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX. Your support helps fos...
Jan 11, 2024•20 min•Transcript available on Metacast It’s January 9th. In 1802, Thomas Jefferson penned a letter in which he referred to a “wall of separation between church and state. Jody and Niki discuss how this phrase became wedded to the first amendment and a foundational political and legal idea for centuries — and how Jefferson’s intent has been contested at various points over the years. Sign up for our newsletter! Get your hands on This Day merch! Find out more at thisdaypod.com This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of...
Jan 09, 2024•28 min•Transcript available on Metacast It’s January 7th. In 1970, the New York Times published an article with the headline “Statisticians Charge Draft Lottery Was Not Random.” Jody and Niki are joined by data reporter Walt Hickey to talk about how statistical analysis exposed that people born in December were more likely to be selected for the Vietnam War draft than those born in January, and what that tells us about randomness, trust, and more. Walt’s most recent book is “You Are What You Watch” — check it out now ! Sign up for our...
Jan 07, 2024•27 min•Transcript available on Metacast **We’ll be back on Sunday with our first new epsiode of 2024. In the meantime, here’s a treat from the archives!** It’s March 13th. This day in 1955, news breaks that the White House is engaged in a full-on battle against the squirrels that have invaded the grounds. Jody, NIki, and Kellie discuss why President Eisenhower is so determined to get rid of the squirrels, and how he tried everything from relocating them to shooting them to — really — deploying psychological torture to solve the proble...
Jan 03, 2024•16 min•Transcript available on Metacast ** It’s the final day of the Radiotopia fundraiser! Support the show using this link and you’ll get a 20% discount to our new merch store! https://on.prx.org/46XCf1R ** It’s December 31st. Today we wrap up the year by talking about — what else — the time that the Idaho Department of Fish and Game relocated 76 beavers by parachuting them out of airplanes. Jody, Niki, and Kellie are joined by our Radiotopia pal Ian Chillag to discuss the story. Ian recently encountered it while doing an episode of...
Dec 31, 2023•23 min•Transcript available on Metacast ** It’s the Radiotopia fundraiser! Support the show using this link and you’ll get a 20% discount to our new merch store! https://on.prx.org/46XCf1R ** It’s December 29th. This day in 1975, a bomb, planted in a luggage locker, exploded at NYC’s LaGuardia Airport, killing 11 and injuring 74. If it had gone off just minutes earlier, it would have killed hundreds more. Jody and Niki discuss who was responsible for the bombing, the prevalence of scattered violence in the 1970s, and why New York City...
Dec 28, 2023•20 min•Transcript available on Metacast ** It’s the Radiotopia fundraiser! Support the show using this link and you’ll get a 20% discount to our new merch store! https://on.prx.org/46XCf1R ** It’s December 26th. This day in 1951 — actually on Christmas Day — Florida activists Harry and Harriette Moore are killed by a bomb planted under their home. Jody, NIki, and Kellie look at the life and activism of the Moore’s, why they became targets for assassination and Florida’s place in the early civil rights movement. Here’s our holiday book...
Dec 26, 2023•21 min•Transcript available on Metacast ** It’s the Radiotopia fundraiser! Support the show using this link and you’ll get a 20% discount to our new merch store! https://on.prx.org/46XCf1R ** It’s December 24th. Today, we look at a number of puzzle-related stories from the WWII era. This is when the New York Times finally got in the crossword game, codebreakers used puzzles to recruit great minds, and more. Jody, NIki, and Kellie are joined by author and podcast host A.J. Jacobs to discuss what that first crossword looked like, why it...
Dec 24, 2023•20 min•Transcript available on Metacast ** It’s the Radiotopia fundraiser! Support the show using this link and you’ll get a 20% discount to our new merch store! https://on.prx.org/46XCf1R ** It’s December 21st. This day in 1913, the New York World published the very first crossword puzzle — originally called a “word cross.” Soon, a bona fide puzzle craze was sweeping the country. Jody, NIki, and Kellie are joined by author and podcast host A.J. Jacobs to discuss what that first crossword looked like, why it was such a hit, and how pu...
Dec 21, 2023•22 min•Transcript available on Metacast ** It’s the Radiotopia fundraiser! Support the show using this link and you’ll get a 20% discount to our new merch store! https://on.prx.org/46XCf1R ** It’s December 19th. This day in 1732, Benjamin Franklin first published “Poor Richard’s Almanack” — his book of weather forecast, practical advice, and all sorts of aphorisms about living your best life. Jody, NIki, and Kellie discuss why the Almanack became such a sensation in Colonial America, and why his advice still feels like it could find a...
Dec 19, 2023•19 min•Transcript available on Metacast ** It’s the Radiotopia fundraiser! Support the show using this link and you’ll get a 20% discount to our new merch store! https://on.prx.org/46XCf1R ** It’s December 17th. This day in 1978, holiday travelers are flying around the country under a regulatory system that was about to come to an end. The next year, the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978 would kick in. Jody, NIki, and Kellie are joined by Ganesh Sitaraman of Vanderbilt to discuss how the act changed the competitive structure for airlin...
Dec 17, 2023•27 min•Transcript available on Metacast ** It’s the Radiotopia fundraiser! Support the show using this link and you’ll get a 20% discount to our new merch store! https://on.prx.org/46XCf1R ** It’s December 16th. This day in 1971, Richard Nixon signed the Alaska Natives Settlement Act, which established a new set of treaties and financial structures for Alaskan tribes — unlike any other arrangement in the so-called “lower 48.” Jody, NIki, and Kellie discuss how the structure of the act meant that tribes would now be embracing, and cont...
Dec 14, 2023•19 min•Transcript available on Metacast ** It’s the Radiotopia fundraiser! Support the show using this link and you’ll get a 20% discount to our new merch store! https://on.prx.org/46XCf1R ** It’s December 12th. This day in 1909, garment industry workers in New York and Philadelphia are on a massive strike, protesting working conditions and beginning to unionize in favor of better working conditions. This was a couple years before the more infamous fire at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory. Jody, NIki, and Kellie discuss how these earli...
Dec 12, 2023•20 min•Transcript available on Metacast ** It’s the Radiotopia fundraiser! Support the show using this link and you’ll get a 20% discount to our new merch store! https://on.prx.org/46XCf1R ** It’s December 10th. This day in 1875, the Canadian Metis leader Louis Riel is in Washington, DC to ask US President Grant for assistance in his battle against the Canadian government. Jody, NIki, and Kellie discuss the Metis fight, violence along the western parts of the US-Canadian border, and Riel’s subsequent religious “epiphany.” Sign up for ...
Dec 10, 2023•25 min•Transcript available on Metacast ** It’s the Radiotopia fundraiser! Support the show using this link and you’ll get a 20% discount to our new merch store! https://on.prx.org/46XCf1R ** Today we’re looking at Hawaiian Independence Day, marked on November 28th. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss what exactly “independence” meant for the islands, which were shifting from colonial rule to monarchical rule and, eventually, American annexation. Sign up for our newsletter! Get your hands on This Day merch! Find out more at thisdaypod.com ...
Dec 07, 2023•16 min•Transcript available on Metacast ** It’s the Radiotopia fundraiser! Support the show using this link and you’ll get a 20% discount to our new merch store! https://on.prx.org/46XCf1R ** It’s December 5th. In 196, W.E.B. Du Bois announces that he’s joining the Communist Party — at the age of 93. Jody, Niki and Kellie discuss why Du Bois found an ideological home in the Party, his lifelong ideological seeking, and what it meant to join the Communist Party in this particular moment. Sign up for our newsletter! Get your hands on Thi...
Dec 05, 2023•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast ** It’s the Radiotopia fundraiser! Support the show using this link and you’ll get a 20% discount to our new merch store! https://on.prx.org/46XCf1R ** It’s December 3rd. In 1878, the White House got a phone line for the first time. Jody, Niki and Kellie discuss why President Rutherford B Hayes was so embracing of new technology — and how the phone got other presidents into hot water over the years. Sign up for our newsletter! Get your hands on This Day merch! Find out more at thisdaypod.com Thi...
Dec 03, 2023•17 min•Transcript available on Metacast ** It’s the Radiotopia fundraiser! Support the show using this link and you’ll get a 20% discount to our new merch store! https://on.prx.org/46XCf1R ** [[This episode is from the This Day archives]] It’s November 24th. On this day in 1969, Native American activists have staged an occupation of Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay. Jody and Niki are joined by Julian Brave Noisecat to discuss the 19-month occupation, often considered the birth of the modern Indigenous rights movement — and how exa...
Nov 30, 2023•20 min•Transcript available on Metacast ** It’s the Radiotopia fundraiser! Support the show using this link and you’ll get a 20% discount to our new merch store! https://on.prx.org/46XCf1R ** It’s November 27th. In 1894, a group of 19 Hopi men are arrested in Arizona and brought to Alcatraz Island in California, imprisoned for their resistance to the US government’s re-education efforts. Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss why the group of Hopi’s were arrested, what Hopi resistance looked like in this era, and what happened to the men afte...
Nov 28, 2023•16 min•Transcript available on Metacast ** It’s the Radiotopia fundraiser! Support the show using this link and you’ll get a 20% discount to our new merch store! https://on.prx.org/46XCf1R ** Happy Thanksgiving everyone! For today, a special historical potluck. Jody, NIki, and Kellie discuss some of their favorite historical stories related to food, drink, and dessert. Sign up for our newsletter! Get your hands on This Day merch! Find out more at thisdaypod.com This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia fro...
Nov 22, 2023•42 min•Transcript available on Metacast 
