Adam Hochschild, an award-winning historian and author, discusses his latest work, "American Midnight," focusing on the fragile nature of democracy during and after World War I. He elaborates on how civil liberties were challenged and suppressed, highlighting the intense nationalism and violent repression of strikes. Hochschild also shares inspiring tales of activists fighting for free speech amidst national hysteria, emphasizing the importance of vigilance against threats to democracy—lessons that resonate even today.
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Patriotic Hysteria at War's Outset
On April 2, 1917, President Wilson's war request sparked overwhelming patriotic hysteria in Congress and beyond.
Chief Justice Edward White, a former Confederate soldier, led a standing ovation, symbolizing the nation's emotional embrace of war.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Violent Repression of Labor Strikes
The war justified brutal crackdowns on striking workers, including mass arrests and deportations.
In Butte, Montana, labor organizer Frank Little was lynched by masked men, illustrating violent repression.
insights INSIGHT
Race Riots Fueled by Migration
The 1919 race riots were primarily white attacks against black migrants escaping Southern lynching.
Economic competition after demobilization heightened racial tensions in northern cities.
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The Great War, a Violent Peace, and Democracy's Forgotten Crisis
Adam Hochschild
In 'American Midnight,' Adam Hochschild delves into the untold history of World War I in the United States, focusing on how the government and society responded to the war. The book explores the suppression of dissent, the rise of xenophobia, and the violent crackdown on civil liberties during this period. Hochschild examines the broader implications of these events on American democracy and society.
American Midnight
The Great War, a Violent Peace, and Democracy's Forgotten Crisis
Adam Hochschild
In 'American Midnight,' Adam Hochschild delves into the untold history of World War I in the United States, focusing on how the government and society responded to the war. The book explores the suppression of dissent, the rise of xenophobia, and the violent crackdown on civil liberties during this period. Hochschild examines the broader implications of these events on American democracy and society.
“If there was one thing that I would want people to take away from American Midnight,” Adam Hochschild says on this episode of The World in Time, “it’s the idea that democracy, despite all the different checks and balances and the separation of powers and whatnot written into our Constitution more than two hundred years ago, is fragile. It can easily be shattered and broken. It can easily be threatened.” And during the stretch of time covered in his latest book, which spans World War I and takes place on the American home front, “I really think a lot of the basic democratic freedoms that we take for granted in this country we lost during that period.”
This week on the podcast, Lewis H. Lapham speaks with Adam Hochschild, author of American Midnight: The Great War, a Violent Peace, and Democracy’s Forgotten Crisis, about civil liberties, strikes, and Emma Goldman, among other subjects.
Thanks to our generous donors. Lead support for this podcast has been provided by Elizabeth “Lisette” Prince. Additional support was provided by James J. “Jimmy” Coleman Jr.
The World in Time / Lapham’s Quarterly 