I'm Brian Lehrer. This is my daily politics podcast from WNYC Studios. It's Friday, February 4th.

The American story is also resoundingly the story of the South. So much of the making of this country took place below the Mason-Dixon

line, where our nation's capital, don't forget, the symbol of which was built on the backs

of enslaved people remains. So now we'll talk about the South's message to America and what

we can learn about the country's history from a closer look at the experiences of black Americans

who called the South Home. Joining us in just a minute will be Imani Perry, Professor of African

American Studies at Princeton. Her new book is called South to America, a journey below the

Mason-Dixon line to understand the soul of a nation, its history, and its contemporary realities.

And again, Professor Imani Perry from Princeton has her new book called South to America,

A Journey Below the Mason-Dixon Line to Understand the Soul of a Nation.

Professor Perry, thanks so much for joining us. Welcome to WNYC today. Thank you for having me.

And you included a disclaimer that said, please remember while this book is not a history,

it's a true story. How do you distinguish between a true story and a history for the purposes

of this work?

Sure, yeah. So history, you know, it's a form, right?

It has a very particular method that's disciplinary, that is, goes and tells a kind of coherent storyline.

A story, I think, in this respect, is much more kind of invitation

to walk with me. I'm asking readers to be present with me in these places, to understand

them as places that have layered meanings that are ambiguous, that are complicated, and I'm

not telling readers what to think or even making a particular

argument, but rather, it's an invitation, it's an expose of sorts. It's wanting to encourage a discussion

about the centrality of this place in our history and in our culture.

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