What does the United States’ 250th anniversary celebration really mean today, in this political climate? What lessons has the country learned – and failed to learn? What does the second Trump administration, which has been catastrophic to American democracy in so many ways as we’ve documented at Zeteo, mean for the country’s future as it steps into its next quarter of a century?
Mehdi spoke with renowned American historian Robin D. G. Kelley about all this in an enlightening, sobering, and at times empowering conversation that is unlike much else you’ll see out there.
“For me, to go back to the Declaration of Independence is to go to seeing how African-Americans, Indigenous people, actually saw this document,” Kelley tells Mehdi. “When you say all men are created equal, we mean all human beings, irrespective of where they’re from.”
If you’re bored of all the surface-level conversations about the semi-quincentennial, be sure to watch the full interview above as it dives deep into topics like:
What nationalism is and if we need to be “post-nationalists”
How Trump’s war against birthright citizenship is a step towards his dream of a white republic
Who independence was meant for in the Declaration of Independence
Whether the founding fathers left Britain for freedom or to keep slavery and prevent abolition sentiments
How the rise of fascism in the U.S. is tied to the nationwide oppression of Palestinian voices.
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