297: How Reconstruction Transformed the Constitution: A Feature Conversation with Pulitzer Prize-winning Historian Eric Foner

BackStory

History, Education

4.7 • 2.9K Ratings

🗓️ 11 October 2019

⏱️ 37 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

If you turn on the news, you’re likely to find a heated debate about big issues, from citizenship to voting rights. For Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Eric Foner, these issues are at the heart of what are often called the “Reconstruction Amendments”: the 13th, 14th and 15th amendments to the US Constitution. They were passed in 1865, 1868 and 1870, respectively. And if you ask Eric, they’ve been misinterpreted and overlooked for generations.

On this episode, Ed sits down with Eric Foner, a professor emeritus of history at Columbia University, to talk about public perceptions of Reconstruction, the landmark amendments to the Constitution and how they have the power to change the country today. Foner’s new book is The Second Founding: How the Civil War and Reconstruction Remade the Constitution.

Image: February 18, 1865 Harper's Weekly cartoon depicting celebration in the House of Representatives after adoption of the Thirteenth Amendment. Source: Internet Archive.

BackStory is funded in part by our listeners. You can help keep the episodes coming by supporting the show: https://www.backstoryradio.org/support

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Who Rob's a Banksy?
0:04.3	Who Rob's a Banksy?
0:05.0	Follows the true story of the man who kidnapped a Banksy statue in broad daylight.
0:11.4	The journey will take us through the worlds of football hooliganism to the heart of the
0:15.8	artist's establishment.
0:17.4	And throughout it all, I'll be trying to speak to the most delusive and famed anonymous
0:22.6	artist in the world.
0:25.0	From Podomo and Message Hurt, listen to Who Rob's a Banksy wherever you get your podcasts.
0:30.6	For early access to the series and to listen ad-free, subscribe to Podomo UK on Apple Podcasts.
0:55.0	This is backstory.
1:00.0	The show that explains the history behind today's headlines.
1:04.6	I'm Ed Ayers.
1:06.3	If you're new to the podcast, my colleagues, Joanne Freeman, Brian Ballot, Nathan Conlay
1:10.9	myself are all historians.
1:13.2	And each week we explore the history of one topic that's been in the news.
1:18.9	Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime.
1:24.8	Shall exist within the United States, or any place that is there.
1:28.5	All persons born or naturalized in the United States are citizens of the United States and
1:34.6	of the state.
1:35.6	What you're hearing are portions of a 13th, 14th and 15th amendments to the U.S. Constitution.
1:41.8	The privileges or no state shall make or enforce any law, which shall abridge the privileges
1:47.5	or immunities of citizens.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from BackStory, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of BackStory and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.