The Soul of America

John Meacham is an amazing and brilliant person - a product of the South who sees an America that has repeatedly failed to fulfill its promises of "liberty and justice for all." And an America that has almost constantly struggled between its "better angels" and worst impulses. Showing us that today's divisions are not new, the film is both reassuring and depressing. Meacham highlights a few of the United States failures (the struggle for women's suffrage, the incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II, McCarthyism, and the fight to pass Civil Rights legislation in the 1960s) and shows how we sometimes listened to our better angels to address them. All of these events were familiar to me but Meacham brought new insight into them as we follow him while he lectures, teaches and addresses the film audience directly.

My wife and I were blown away with the impact of this film in such a time as this (writing this one month past Jan. 6th 2021). It is a shame it is only available to those with an HBO subscription of some type. I hope it will soon be released on DVD or a less costly streaming services.

This documentary shares details of some of the most appalling events in American history, events that are repeating themselves today. Many people's freedoms are threatened, forcing people into "camps", more like prisons. History is repeating itself. Jon Meacham makes some strong points in his speeches about America. If we choose to, we can unite instead of staying a divided people, always fighting. But to do this we must try to look at things from a different perspective, have empathy and compassion for others, and acknowledge when we have made mistakes.

"All men are created equal"

Unless you're black, Asian, oh and definitely don't be female.

Woman's votes, segregation, interment during WWII for anyone with Japanese heritage, McCarthyism. Absolutely fascinating and very educational documentary about how much has changed in 100 years, how much STILL has to change and how we can use the past to heal the future. Please do more of these documentaries!

Honestly speaking. America now is white men vs all. Shameful.

Earlier this week an angry mob descended on the US Capitol...and we decided to watch a history documentary on Friday night? It turned out to be a good choice. This film was a sad look at our nation's history, but also a reminder that we have been here before and can transcend even our worst moments.