"Make America Great Again" as a coded message echoing 1920s Klan ideology

Activists leading the way before political leadership in key reform movements

Aftermath of the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing and family connections

Alice Paul's focused campaign to win Woodrow Wilson's support for women's suffrage

America's cyclical struggle toward expanding equality and inclusion

Andrew Johnson's reversal of Civil War progress during Reconstruction

Atmosphere, music, and purpose of Civil Rights Movement mass meetings

Attending civil rights mass meetings and learning nonviolent protest principles

Becoming a teacher and experiencing disparities between segregated schools

Black women's support for women's suffrage despite being barred from voting

Bloody Sunday's national and global moral impact on the Civil Rights Movement

Bull Connor's role, background, and removal from power in Birmingham

Career path from Russian history to American social movements

Carter presidency's human rights policy and democratic transitions in Latin America

Causes of political polarization and the decline of compromise

Challenges of Reconstruction after the Civil War's end

Childhood arrest during a voter registration march in Selma

Childhood in Birmingham under Jim Crow and family protection from racism

Childhood trauma from Bloody Sunday and its impact on racial attitudes

Children's participation and its impact on the Birmingham movement

Civic engagement, moral principles, and shared American values

Civic engagement, voting, and the census as tools for change

Combating the Lost Cause narrative using biblical and moral language

Comparing Japanese American concentration camps to the Holocaust and defending immigration

Comparing the electoral impact of the women's movement and the Ku Klux Klan

Compiling literary perspectives on the Civil Rights Movement

Concern about global decline in human rights commitments since 9/11

Concessions made by city officials that led to calling off the marches

Connection between white nationalism, misogyny, and the men's rights movement

Consciousness-raising groups and their role in second-wave feminism

Critique of nostalgia and the myth of a more unified American past

Cultural impact and racial messaging of Birth of a Nation

Debate over renaming the Edmund Pettus Bridge and Confederate monuments in Selma

Debunking the myth that Social Security was an inevitable product of modernization

Defending the value of looking back at American progress despite imperfection

Defining economic and cultural populism and the role of charismatic leadership

Defining social movements as forces outside conventional electoral systems

Distinguishing between historical Populism and contemporary misuse of the term

Earl Warren's dual legacy on Japanese American incarceration and integration

Early career in journalism and the human drama of power

Early career in journalism at the Washington Monthly and Newsweek

Early journalism career and observing the rise of the religious right

Early journalism career shaping a nuanced worldview beyond ideology

Early life, education, and path toward history and journalism

Early memories of Watergate and developing an interest in politics

Economic anxiety, trust deficit, and the rise of populist sentiment

Economic roots of Japanese American incarceration and recurring patterns of racial scapegoating

Edward Alfred Pollard's The Lost Cause and its framing of white supremacy

Eisenhower's complicated relationship with and response to McCarthy

Eleanor Roosevelt's concern about Americans' readiness for a dictator during the Depression

Eleanor Roosevelt's role as Franklin Roosevelt's conscience and advocate

Empathy in leadership as demonstrated by Kennedy and Bush

Empowering youth and sustaining the fight for systemic change

Encouraging young people to resist injustice and use their vote

Encouraging younger generations to learn their own family history

Ending the book with a Dorothy Thompson quote about fascism in America

Enlightenment principles of reason, experience, and truth over authority

Equality and inequality as the best and worst aspects of America

Expanding equality and the ongoing pursuit of a more perfect union

Factors contributing to the decline of the Ku Klux Klan in the 1920s

Father's decision to resist Executive Order 9066 as an American citizen

Father's experiences with police theft and navigating Jim Crow on public buses

Father's gradual advocacy and the responsibility to speak out against injustice

Father's legacy and call for civic engagement and social justice

Father's legacy and the Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties

Father's solitary resistance to Executive Order 9066 and family incarceration

FDR and Truman's understanding of global interdependence in the 20th century

FDR's careful maneuvering to balance isolationism and war preparedness

FDR's decision to incarcerate Japanese Americans after Pearl Harbor

FDR's leadership through crisis and his enduring message of hope

Fear of immigrants and communism fueling nativist and isolationist movements after World War I

Fear versus hope as motivators in politics and human behavior

Fear, globalization, and political anxiety in the 2016 and 2020 elections

Five institutional forces that shape an era for good or for ill

Focusing on historical distance rather than recent events in writing

Formation of the Ku Klux Klan as an extension of the Confederacy's fight

Formative books that inspired writing about power and history

Founding-era myths and the emotional power of presidential leadership

Generational silence among Japanese American incarceration survivors and veterans

Geography, frontier mythology, and equality of opportunity in American life

George Wallace as the face of segregation in Alabama

George Wallace's divisive rhetoric and eventual change of heart

George Wallace's political transformation and role in segregationist resistance

Gradual entry into civil rights advocacy following father's passing

Grandfather's influence and the atmosphere of public life and storytelling

Grandfather's influence through courthouse culture and local political conversations

Grandmother's role in shaping activism and love of learning

Grant's use of federal power to dismantle the Ku Klux Klan during Reconstruction

Grassroots movements as the driving force behind American progress

Growing up in Selma during segregation and early awareness of racism

Growing up in the South and its influence on historical perspective

Growing up near "Dynamite Hill" and KKK bombings in Birmingham

Growing up on a Civil War battlefield in Chattanooga, Tennessee

Growing up surrounded by African Americans in a segregated Georgia community

Growing up surrounded by Civil War history and its twin original sins

Harding and Coolidge's measured stances against racial discrimination in their era

Historical concerns about media's impact on democracy across generations

Historical context and misuse of executive orders to target Americans

Historical context of the Charlottesville violence and Lost Cause mythology

Historical factors contributing to the rise of the second Ku Klux Klan

Historical parallels between past and present threats to democracy

Historical patterns of discrimination and the eventual recognition of wrongdoing

Historical trends in partisan attitudes and the case for humility

History as a record of decisions made and paths not taken

Hope for a future Democratic president committed to human rights and equality

How Birth of a Nation fueled white supremacist movements and the KKK's appeal

How change is achieved when the powerless finally reach the powerful

How fear, false claims, and anecdotes spread and influence social movements

How historical knowledge fosters empathy and tempers political outrage

How leaders who govern beyond their base achieve greatness over time

How second-wave feminism changed the response to domestic violence

How the women's movement transformed awareness of gender discrimination

Inspiration behind writing a book about Roosevelt and Churchill's wartime relationship

Interest in studying the Ku Klux Klan as a major 1920s social movement

James Bevel's revelations about unequal education spurring commitment to activism

Japanese American community's response to targeting of Muslims after 9/11

Jefferson's concept of the pursuit of happiness and its contradictions

John Lewis and the Bloody Sunday march in Selma, Alabama

Johnson's decision on the night of Kennedy's assassination to pursue civil rights legislation

Johnson's political conversion and legislative push for Civil Rights in the 1960s

Joseph McCarthy's rise and fall in mid-20th century American political culture

Journalistic responsibility to assess the validity of powerful statements

Key events shaping public opinion and Kennedy's stance on civil rights

Key legislative milestones in the post-war civil rights struggle

Klan's decline and the persistence of white nationalist ideas

Klan's narrow definition of Americanism and exclusion of outsiders

Klanswomen's complex relationship with women's suffrage and political power

Ku Klux Klan influence on the 1924 Democratic National Convention

Ku Klux Klan's embrace of new technology and rejection of science

Learning about constitutional rights through SNCC meetings and civics education

Learning from history to understand the present and shape the future

Legal discrimination against women and the gains made through second-wave feminism

Lessons learned from the movement and advice for future generations

Lincoln's "better angels" phrase and the power of presidential language

Lincoln's evolution as president and speculation about his Reconstruction legacy

Lincoln's view on leadership, crisis, and knowing where you want to go

Lyndon B. Johnson's decision not to seek reelection amid the Vietnam War

Lyndon Johnson's final speech and reflection on his civil rights legacy

Lyndon Johnson's motivations and legacy in fighting for civil rights

Lyndon Johnson's persuasion tactics and appeal to George Wallace's legacy

Margaret Chase Smith's early opposition to McCarthyism and its political climate

McCarthy's mastery of media to spread fear and advance his agenda

McCarthy's use of anti-communist fear as a tool for personal power

McCarthyism's fall as a case study in reason triumphing over passion

Measurable gains for women and ongoing economic and social challenges

Measuring historical eras by how broadly equality was applied

Meeting George Wallace and reflecting on his political redemption

Oliver Wendell Holmes's assessment of FDR's intellect and temperament

Ongoing barriers to voting rights in Alabama and the Black Belt

Organizational structure and diversity within second-wave feminism

Origins and arguments of the America First isolationist movement before World War II

Origins and lasting influence of the Lost Cause mythology in the South

Origins of postwar conservative conspiracy theories about communism and power

Overcoming fear during the Birmingham Children's Crusade through faith and leadership

Parallels between 1920s Klan-era bigotry and today's political climate

Parallels between 1960s racial injustice and present-day political rhetoric

Parallels between Japanese American incarceration and current immigrant detention conditions

Parallels between Japanese American incarceration and the Muslim travel ban

Parallels between Japanese-American incarceration and current targeting of marginalized groups

Parallels between the 1866 Klan's rise and the 2017 Charlottesville rally

Perennial questions of equality and opportunity in American history

Personal motivations for marching and the growing awareness of the movement's impact

Personal preparations and departure for D-Day marches on May 2, 1963

Police violence against young marchers during Double D-Day in Birmingham

Politicians as mirrors of constituents rather than molders of public opinion

Post-war prosperity's role in advancing civil rights and reducing economic anxiety

Press suppression, free expression, and the foundations of democracy

Public grief and mourning following FDR's death in 1945

Public rallies and recruitment tactics of the second Ku Klux Klan

Public speaking as an extension of the storytelling enterprise

Questioning commonly accepted facts and monuments to understand history

Racial animus and white resistance persisting after the Civil War

Racial smear tactics as a recurring force in American political history

Reaction to President Kennedy's assassination and its aftermath

Reaction to Trump-era immigration policies and border conditions

Rebirth of the Ku Klux Klan amid early 20th-century white anxiety and social upheaval

Receiving a special Easter dress despite having big feet as a child

Recognizing historical suffering as the foundation for a message of hope

Recurring forces of fear, blame, and anxiety in American life

Reflecting on the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing and its meaning

Reflecting on the Civil Rights Act and the limits of legislation

Religious and racial foundations of the Lost Cause ideology in the South

Responsibility to share historical knowledge about openness and inclusion

Responsible journalism's role in countering McCarthy-era fear and misinformation

Revealing hidden complexities beneath seemingly unified historical moments

Richard Hofstadter's concept of the paranoid style in American politics

Role of grassroots activism and political leadership in the Civil Rights Movement

Self-governance as a reflection of human nature and collective virtue

Senator Joe McCarthy's overreach and violation of democratic values

Senator Joe McCarthy's tactics and the climate of fear he created

Sense of triumph and hope after the Selma to Montgomery march

Shared convictions uniting civil rights heroes across American history

Social movements as essential forces for democratic change

Sources of optimism about women in politics and shifting male attitudes

Strom Thurmond's 1948 segregationist campaign framed as anti-communist rhetoric

Student activism and selective buying campaigns leading up to the Children's Crusade

The 1925 Scopes trial as an early American culture war

The 1968 regional meeting that helped spark second-wave feminism

The American creed and the ongoing struggle to realize its ideals

The American story as a cycle of progress, regression, and ongoing struggle

The American tendency to swing between political extremes over time

The attack on Reverend James Reeb and his death in Selma

The challenge of overcoming stereotypes and selfish instincts in human growth

The Civil Rights legislation of the 1960s as the completion of Civil War-era work

The Civil War's end and the complexity of what followed

The Civil War, Civil Rights Movement, and the ongoing struggle for equality

The Constitution's design to account for human fallibility and ambition

The dangers of nostalgia in understanding American history

The death of Jimmie Lee Jackson and the events leading to Bloody Sunday

The decline of the Klan as a victory of reason over fear and division

The ego and psychology of American presidents

The Enlightenment's influence on American democratic ideals and equality

The formation of Confederate memory and monument-building after Reconstruction

The founding of the Dallas County Voters League and grassroots organizing for voting rights

The gradual expansion of presidential power and its significance

The Great Depression's threat to democratic capitalism and FDR's rise

The historical case for inclusion from the Civil War to the Civil Rights Movement

The history and defining features of first- and second-wave feminism

The impact of Eurocentric education on children's sense of self-worth

The importance of voting and government's role in everyday life

The institutions and elements that protect democratic governance

The intellectual history of progress and its role in shaping American identity

The interplay between public sector investment and private enterprise in American history

The Klan's decline and threats to FDR's presidency during the Great Depression

The Klan's narrow definition of morality and its connection to sexuality and race

The McCarthy era and how its excesses were eventually checked

The moral utility of history and lessons from imperfect leaders

The ongoing American struggle between ideals of equality and lived reality

The ongoing nature of the civil rights struggle and the danger of complacency

The ongoing struggle between America's better angels and worse instincts

The ongoing struggle between better angels and worst impulses in American history

The power of grassroots activism and the responsibility of voters to engage elected officials

The presidency as inherently dramatic and deeply human

The reclamation of "feminism" and "socialism" as meaningful terms

The role of fear and scapegoating in American political history

The role of individual virtue in shaping collective democratic outcomes

The role of journalism and public accountability in countering McCarthyism

The second Ku Klux Klan as an analogy for contemporary social anxieties

The second Ku Klux Klan's nativist rhetoric and political influence in the 1920s

The South's victory in the peace following the Civil War

The tension between political ambition and principled leadership

The unique challenge of running a pluralistic, multi-ethnic democratic republic

The unpredictability of when protest and citizenship efforts gain momentum

Training in nonviolent protest tactics and principles during the Civil Rights Movement

U.S. nativism, immigration restriction, and racially defined anti-immigrant sentiment

Underrepresentation of women's history in scholarship and textbooks