How White Christian Nationalists Seek to Transform America

The Political Scene | The New Yorker

The New Yorker

Barack, Washington, Wickenden, News, Obama, Politics, Wnyc, Lizza, President

4.3 • 3.9K Ratings

🗓️ 21 July 2022

⏱️ 32 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

The past few weeks have been full of unsettling indicators of the fragile state of our democracy. The January 6th committee has assembled a frightening account of how near the 2020 election came to being violently overturned. The Supreme Court has lurched rightward, striking down the constitutional right to abortion and issuing a series of momentous decisions on guns, environmental regulation, and the separation of church and state. Researchers have begun to view these disparate political currents as part of a broader cultural, religious, and political phenomenon—one that is rooted in a specific reading of American history and, in particular, Christianity’s role in it. They call this concept “white Christian nationalism.” Samuel Perry, an associate professor at the University of Oklahoma and the co-author of “The Flag and the Cross: White Christian Nationalism and the Threat to American Democracy,” joins the guest host Michael Luo to discuss the contours of this belief system, and the roles that guns and voting restrictions play in its implementation in U.S. politics

Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Discover Earth's ultimate untamed places with wilderness. With access to 6 million acres of private land
0:07.7	in eight African countries, wilderness offers intimate wildlife encounters and experiences that will
0:13.0	leave you changed forever. The accommodations are luxurious and stay true to the vibrant soul
0:19.8	and spirit of each destination and the trips are
0:23.0	meticulously planned from arrival to departure, making them perfect for a group, family or
0:28.5	solo travellers. Wilderness is among the leaders of conservation hospitality, with more than 60
0:34.5	of the most highly awarded lodges in camps in Africa.
0:43.0	Wilderness is especially excited this year to focus on wellness, providing experiences that immerse you in beautiful places to restore your sense of self through nature.
0:48.1	To learn more and book your own wilderness adventure, go to wilderness destinations.com
0:52.9	slash women who travel.
0:55.7	eBay, it's a place to fall in love with new pre-loved vintage and rare fashion over and over
1:01.6	again. Your favorite designers, expertly authenticated. Yeah, eBay. Things people love.
1:14.6	Thank you. eBay. Things people love. Welcome to the political scene. I'm Michael Luo, the editor of New Yorker.com. Since Donald Trump's
1:20.5	election in 2016, there's been an almost constant feeling of emergency in American democracy.
1:29.3	The January 6th committee has been holding hearings and making clear to viewers just how close we came to a violent overthrow of the 2020
1:37.4	election. Election deniers are winning important midterm contests across the country.
1:45.0	And we're coming off a shocking Supreme Court term in which the court lurched rightward,
1:50.0	overturning the constitutional right to abortion and issuing a series of monumental decisions on guns,
1:57.0	environmental regulation, and the separation of church and state. You might think that these
2:02.0	are completely disparate political events, but researchers have begun to understand that we can
2:07.9	actually think about all of these together as part of a broader cultural, religious, and political
2:13.3	phenomenon, one that is rooted in a specific reading of American history, and in particular,
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

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

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