In this episode of ITPL, we focus on Alexander Hamilton. You may have noticed that Hamilton has become the hottest Founder in recent years – and it’s all due to the smash Broadway hit, “Hamilton: The Musical.” So here's the lineup: 1. First, I provide a brief backgrounder on the remarkable life of … [Read more...]
Episode 022 The History of Mass Incarceration in the US, Part 2
Why are so many Americans in prison? Right now, there are 2.3 million Americans held in US prisons. That's a HUGE number, relative to the overall US population. The US makes up just 5% of the world's population, but we hold 25% of the world's prison population. Put another way, 1 in 4 people held in … [Read more...]
Episode 20 African American Soldiers in the Civil War
In this episode of ITPL, we focus on the experiences of African Americans who joined the Union Army during the Civil War and the profound impact they had on the war's final outcome -- and on American society in the decades that followed. There's a lot more to this story than what you may have seen … [Read more...]
Episode 010 Harriet Tubman on the Twenty & More
This week at the In The Past Lane history podcast, we take up some timely questions: Who was Harriet Tubman and why did the U.S. Treasury Dept. choose her as the first woman to appear on the $20 bill? And why has President Andrew Jackson been demoted to the backside of the bill? Along the way, we’ll … [Read more...]
Why Do We Hold Presidential Primaries?
As the citizens of the United States follow this wild and often bewildering presidential primary process, few stop to ask a very important question: why do we have primaries in the first place? In the history of American democracy, political primaries are of relatively recent origin, so when and why … [Read more...]