These Truths: A History of the United States

Since the emergence of Nikole Hannah-Jones’s 1619 Project, there has been recurring debate on the presentation of American history, with conservatives arguing that history ought to be regarded as a collection of fixed artifacts, while liberals argue that primary historical sources are materials through which we should continually re-examine our understanding of historical events. Which position do you think Lepore takes? Support your answer with examples from the text.

Consider the intellectual debate that simmered between John Adams and Thomas Jefferson for much of their lives. Can you think of examples of other political figures, particularly in the present day, who have similar ideological debates in public?

What is your assessment of Jacksonian Democracy? Was this expansion of the electorate a good thing for the nation’s development? Why or why not? What evidence of the populist legacy do you recognize in contemporary politics?

The adjective “progressive” has re-entered the political lexicon, embraced by those on the far left who seek to distance themselves from the mainstream Democratic Party, as well as from the taint that conservatives have imposed on the term “liberal.” How do contemporary progressives (e.g., Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez) compare to their forebears from the Progressive Era? How have their political positions evolved? What comparable mistakes have they made?

Lepore traces the schism in women’s politics—that is, the division between those who sought social equality (e.g., the Women’s League for Equal Opportunity, the Equal Rights Association) and protectors of traditional gender roles (e.g., the League of Women Voters). This schism became particularly apparent, as Lepore notes, when the Equal Rights Amendment neared ratification in the late 1970s. During this decade, social equalizers (e.g., Bella Abzug) and protectionists (e.g., Phyllis Schlafly) once again argued over women’s proper roles. Does this schism in American gender politics still exist? If so, which figures in politics and media illustrate its prevalence?

How did Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s approach to civil rights reform differ from Lyndon Baines Johnson’s? What advances and concessions did both presidents make when passing their respective reforms? How did their approaches to reform set the nation’s tone for conversations about social and political equality, both during their terms and today?

Two-time presidential candidate and former US ambassador to the United Nations Adlai Stevenson asserted that television was an instrument of artifice, using the television in his own home to demonstrate to voters how the technology could be used to manipulate them. How did Stevenson’s opinions about television coincide with Walter Lippmann’s ideas about public opinion and publicity? Was television a uniquely dangerous instrument, or have previous technologies (e.g., newspaper printing, radio) offered similar opportunities to manipulate public opinion? Explain.

When he was a clerk at the Supreme Court, future Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist believed that Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) had been legally correct, despite being a humanitarian failure. Do you agree with Rehnquist? Why or why not? Is it possible, considering the origins and goals of the Constitution (i.e., a document that would support and protect citizens’ natural rights), for it to support Supreme Court decisions that are inhumane? Why or why not?