This Day (An America 250 History Show)

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Thoreau Spends One Night In Jail (1846) Aug 13, 2024

Show notes

Come to our first ever live show! In Boston, on Friday, September 13th. Tickets are available now!

It's August 13th. This day in 1846, Henry David Thoreau is thrown in jail -- for one night -- for refusing to pay his back taxes.

Jody, NIki, and Kellie discuss why Thoreau objected to the poll tax, and how his political stances intersected with the more personal work that emerged from his two years living on Walden Pond.

This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX.

Your support helps foster independent, artist-owned podcasts and award-winning stories.

If you want to support the show directly, you can do so on our website: ThisDayPod.com

Get in touch if you have any ideas for future topics, or just want to say hello. Follow us on social @thisdaypod

Our team: Jacob Feldman, Researcher/Producer; Brittani Brown, Producer; Khawla Nakua, Transcripts; music by Teen Daze and Blue Dot Sessions; Audrey Mardavich is our Executive Producer at Radiotopia

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What The Watts Riots Meant (1965) Aug 11, 2024

Show notes

Come to our first ever live show! In Boston, on Friday, September 13th. Tickets are available now!

It's August 11th. This day in 1965, six days of civil unrest erupts in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Watts.

Jody, NIki, and Kellie discuss why the violence was sparked -- and how the reaction to it prefigured much of the conversation that would dominate the rest of the decade around protest, deprivation, backlash, and more.

This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX.

Your support helps foster independent, artist-owned podcasts and award-winning stories.

If you want to support the show directly, you can do so on our website: ThisDayPod.com

Get in touch if you have any ideas for future topics, or just want to say hello. Follow us on social @thisdaypod

Our team: Jacob Feldman, Researcher/Producer; Brittani Brown, Producer; Khawla Nakua, Transcripts; music by Teen Daze and Blue Dot Sessions; Audrey Mardavich is our Executive Producer at Radiotopia

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

George HW Bush Compares Sadaam To Hitler (1990) Aug 08, 2024

Show notes

Come to our first ever live show! In Boston, on Friday, September 13th. Tickets are available now!

It's August 8th. This day in 1990, George HW Bush addressed the country about Iraq's recent invasion of Kuwait. In it, Bush evoked WWII and made a comparison between Sadaam Hussein and Adolph Hitler.

Jody, NIki, and Kellie discuss why Bush framed the conflict that way and how it shifted a new era for global politics. Plus, Jody shares his personal family connection to this moment.

This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX.

Your support helps foster independent, artist-owned podcasts and award-winning stories.

If you want to support the show directly, you can do so on our website: ThisDayPod.com

Get in touch if you have any ideas for future topics, or just want to say hello. Follow us on social @thisdaypod

Our team: Jacob Feldman, Researcher/Producer; Brittani Brown, Producer; Khawla Nakua, Transcripts; music by Teen Daze and Blue Dot Sessions; Audrey Mardavich is our Executive Producer at Radiotopia

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

The Shirtless George Washington Statue Is Unveiled (1841) Aug 06, 2024

Show notes

Come to our first ever live show! In Boston, on Friday, September 13th. Tickets are available now!

It's August 5th. This day in 1841, a new statue is unveiled in the Capitol rotunda, to commemorate the 100th birthday of George Washington. One notable element: he's shirtless.

Jody, NIki, and Kellie discuss why the statue of Washington arrived bare-chested and, let's be honest, kinda ripped.

This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX.

Your support helps foster independent, artist-owned podcasts and award-winning stories.

If you want to support the show directly, you can do so on our website: ThisDayPod.com

Get in touch if you have any ideas for future topics, or just want to say hello. Follow us on social @thisdaypod

Our team: Jacob Feldman, Researcher/Producer; Brittani Brown, Producer; Khawla Nakua, Transcripts; music by Teen Daze and Blue Dot Sessions; Audrey Mardavich is our Executive Producer at Radiotopia

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

Some 2024 Veepstakes Thoughts (Plus A Special Announcement) Aug 04, 2024

Show notes

Here in 2024, there is a lot of speculation about who Kamala Harris will select as her running mate. And the Veepstakes almost feel kind of...normal? So, today, Jody shares some thoughts about the nature of the VP pick, and we re-run our episode from "Veepstakes Week" about notable picks throughout history.

Also -- we just announced our first ever live show! In Boston, on Friday, September 13th. Tickets are available now!

For other episodes in the Veepstakes series, check out our conversation about Sarah Palin, and LBJ.

This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX.

Your support helps foster independent, artist-owned podcasts and award-winning stories.

If you want to support the show directly, you can do so on our website: ThisDayPod.com

Get in touch if you have any ideas for future topics, or just want to say hello. Follow us on social @thisdaypod

Our team: Jacob Feldman, Researcher/Producer; Brittani Brown, Producer; Khawla Nakua, Transcripts; music by Teen Daze and Blue Dot Sessions; Audrey Mardavich is our Executive Producer at Radiotopia

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

Jim Traficant Heads To Jail, Toupee And All (2002) Aug 01, 2024

Show notes

It's August 1st. This day in 2002, Congressman James Traficant of Ohio has been expelled from Congress for bribery and corruption, only the second member ever kicked out of the institution.

Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss Traficant's bombastic reputation, corrupt dealings -- and how his shifting politics represented the way political fault lines were moving in places like Youngstown, Ohio.

This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX.

Your support helps foster independent, artist-owned podcasts and award-winning stories.

If you want to support the show directly, you can do so on our website: ThisDayPod.com

Get in touch if you have any ideas for future topics, or just want to say hello. Follow us on social @thisdaypod

Our team: Jacob Feldman, Researcher/Producer; Brittani Brown, Producer; Khawla Nakua, Transcripts; music by Teen Daze and Blue Dot Sessions; Audrey Mardavich is our Executive Producer at Radiotopia

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

The Mother Of Miami (1896) Jul 30, 2024

Show notes

It's July 28th. This day in 1896, residents vote to incorporate the city of Miami, Florida.

Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss how the birth of Miami was in large part due to a woman named Julia Tuttle and the arrival of the railroad to the Florida "frontier."

This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX.

Your support helps foster independent, artist-owned podcasts and award-winning stories.

If you want to support the show directly, you can do so on our website: ThisDayPod.com

Get in touch if you have any ideas for future topics, or just want to say hello. Follow us on social @thisdaypod

Our team: Jacob Feldman, Researcher/Producer; Brittani Brown, Producer; Khawla Nakua, Transcripts; music by Teen Daze and Blue Dot Sessions; Audrey Mardavich is our Executive Producer at Radiotopia

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

Jesse Owens v Hitler, Behind The Scenes (1936) Jul 28, 2024

Show notes

It's July 27th. Today we mark the start of the Olympics by looking at one of the most famous -- and perhaps apocryphal -- moments in Olympics history, when American Jesse Owens won four gold medals in front of Adolf Hitler.

Jody, Niki, and Kellie discuss how the legend is a little more complicated than we may know, from the controversy over whether to boycott the games to Owens's remarks about his treatment on U.S. soil.

This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX.

Your support helps foster independent, artist-owned podcasts and award-winning stories.

If you want to support the show directly, you can do so on our website: ThisDayPod.com

Get in touch if you have any ideas for future topics, or just want to say hello. Follow us on social @thisdaypod

Our team: Jacob Feldman, Researcher/Producer; Brittani Brown, Producer; Khawla Nakua, Transcripts; music by Teen Daze and Blue Dot Sessions; Audrey Mardavich is our Executive Producer at Radiotopia

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

A Record Election-Year Heat Wave (1936) Jul 25, 2024

Show notes

It's the middle of July. In 1936, much of the country -- especially the Midwest -- is experiencing record heat.

Jody, NIki, and Kellie discuss why the heat was so deadly, how it created economic and social ripple effects, and why FDR was able to rally the country to talk about government solutions to some of the problems the heat exacerbated.

This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX.

Your support helps foster independent, artist-owned podcasts and award-winning stories.

If you want to support the show directly, you can do so on our website: ThisDayPod.com

Get in touch if you have any ideas for future topics, or just want to say hello. Follow us on social @thisdaypod

Our team: Jacob Feldman, Researcher/Producer; Brittani Brown, Producer; Khawla Nakua, Transcripts; music by Teen Daze and Blue Dot Sessions; Audrey Mardavich is our Executive Producer at Radiotopia

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

"Pretendians" And The Politics Of Native Identity (1934) w/ Angel Ellis and Robert Jago Jul 23, 2024

Show notes

It's July 22nd. This day in 1934, FDR has signed the "Indian Reorganization Act," which provided economic relief to many tribes, but also came with provisions to reorganize the way in which Native Americans self-governed, and self-identified. This opened up a vacuum for fundamental questions of identity and community which reverberate today.

Jody, Niki, and Kellie are joined by Angel Ellis and Robert Jago, the hosts of a new series called "Pretendians," which looks at the history of non-native people claiming native ancestry -- and what that says about our political and cultural relationship with American Indians.

You can listen to the entire Pretendians series right now, from CANADALAND!

This Day In Esoteric Political History is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX.

Your support helps foster independent, artist-owned podcasts and award-winning stories.

If you want to support the show directly, you can do so on our website: ThisDayPod.com

Get in touch if you have any ideas for future topics, or just want to say hello. Follow us on social @thisdaypod

Our team: Jacob Feldman, Researcher/Producer; Brittani Brown, Producer; Khawla Nakua, Transcripts; music by Teen Daze and Blue Dot Sessions; Audrey Mardavich is our Executive Producer at Radiotopia

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

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