Why is a dance critic and performing arts journalist covering a lecture series with trending historian Heather Cox Richardson? Why were Palestinian protests outside last weekend’s performance of Batsheva at the same hall? And why did local dancers and dance aficionados boycott that performance? Because this is the crumbling world, we live in—where protesting and the right to assemble thinly remain our civil rights—art as a political tool and forging a new political system as an interpretive dance.
What an excellent opportunity to see the renowned American historian Heather Cox Richardson, a professor specializing in nineteenth-century American history. Richardson’s work focuses on the transformation of political ideology from the Civil War to Theodore Roosevelt’s presidency. Her research examines issues involving race, economics, westward expansion, and the emergence of the concept of an American middle class. She delves into the fundamental tensions in American politics from the time of the Northwest Ordinance to today. “Historians study what causes change,” she stated to a sold-out lecture while being interviewed by her much-admired friend and colleague, the acclaimed author Dylan C. Penningroth, Professor of Law and Morrison Professor of History at UC Berkeley.
Another pertinent question is why we should see Richardson—in person—when we have access to a daily podcast with 2 million subscribers. What could she say or do differently from what she has written in nine successful books or her daily media updates? Because we can—another freedom not to be taken for granted. And where else can you find yourself sitting in a packed venue full of older, white Berkeley intellectuals and liberals? (Reviewer included.) I expected the audience to be as intriguing as the talk, but where are the young people and people of color?
“I feel like I have to work to keep my moral sanity amidst the ascendancy and valorization of greed, hatred, and delusion.” Said front-row occupant Matt Brensilver, a Buddhist teacher. “Gathering with others, connected perhaps merely by our shared opposition to oligarchy, felt less like a history lecture and more like an occasion of moral revival. I wanted to be there for that.” Another, Bill Grief, said, “I read HCR daily, and it was inspiring to see her interviewed. There is clarity of communication when hearing her in person – not only in the knowledge shared but also in understanding where her emphasis lies, where she pauses, the nuances at play, and where her fervor is. Moreover, we bear an even greater responsibility by publicly supporting and promoting her work.” Grief, who pays a $5 monthly subscription—along with 2 million others, has helped make Richardson the wealthiest historian in American history.
Professor Richardson continues to teach history at Boston College and remains a leading expert on American political and economic history. Throughout the ninety-minute program, she pointed out that the size of the government hasn’t changed in fifty years, while the size of the country has grown by two-thirds. As if we needed reminding, she asserted, “Trump is a mentally unfit salesperson.” Regardless of the topic, Richardson consistently referenced the Lincoln presidency and the foundational values of the Republican Party as a framework for understanding the historical changes that have contributed to our political crisis. Lincoln’s Republican Party was a diverse coalition united in rejecting tyranny and sharing the fundamental belief that no one is truly free until we all are. If only that were the case for us today. Richardson spoke of the Lincoln we Baby Boomers learned to admire in grade school—the benevolent Aquarian, “Let the sunshine in,” Abe.
“America has never been a white Christian nation,” Richardson pointed out before turning to Kamala Harris’s decision to avoid identity as part of her platform as a significant mistake. Ironically, she made this observation during an interview with Penningroth, a specialist in African American history and U.S. socio-legal history—leading me to wish they had explored Lincoln and the early Republican Party more thoroughly. Specifically, it would have been enlightening to include the perspectives of Black activists who do not regard Lincoln as a saint but rather as a calculating businessman who emancipated the South to weaken its economy. After all, “freedom’s just another word for nothing left to lose,” highlighting that, for Black activists, freedom was granted only as an economic necessity.
Ultimately, we attended this evening hoping to hear something that might show us—a specific demographic, where we go from here. Do we settle for being reactive, merely putting out fires without a vision? Who has time to dream when we’re busy patching the floodgates? “It will be an uphill battle…The center has gone so far right that it is no longer the center…Remember, who matters and who doesn’t matter is only a matter of time. The Democrats are at risk. We need a bold, unapologetic new party…” Richardson urged, before quoting Will Roger, “I am not a member of any organized political party. I am a Democrat.”
“There are actions we can take. Call our representatives as frequently as MAGA does, which has always been significantly greater than what Democrats do. (Busted!) We need to support Independent Media. Reclaim the language of the Declaration of Independence, its vision and hope. We can only change society by changing its ideas. Find effective ways to protest. Our human impulse is to create a fair, humane society. Do one thing every day to protect democracy.”
“Now, sweet one, be wise. Cast all your votes for dancing.” – Hafz
David e. Moreno
